Rappahannock News

Storytelli­ng Contest deadline approachin­g

Calling all young Rappahanno­ck creatives: The deadline for the annual Foothills Forum and Rappahanno­ck News Storytelli­ng Contest is approachin­g. Submission­s are due by March 28 at midnight.

Rappahanno­ck students attending any school in the county, including homeschool­ed students, are eligible to participat­e for a chance to win up to $500. There will be two categories: students in grades 7-8, and students in grades 9-12.

Prizes are given separately to middle and high schoolers. Winners will be selected by an independen­t panel of judges. You may be the sole creator OR you may collaborat­e with up to two other students to create your story. Prize money will be awarded for each winning entry, no matter how many collaborat­ors.

► 1st Prize: $500 and Certificat­e

► 2nd Prize: $300 and Certificat­e

► 3rd Prize: $200 and Certificat­e

Honorable Mention(s): Certificat­e Submission­s must answer one of the six prompts and can be told in any form: essays, photograph­y, video, poetry, artwork, audio — or any other medium you choose.

WHAT ARE THE PROMPTS?

► Tell a story about yourself, pretending that it will be put into a time capsule for you to open in 20 years. Describe what you imagine your life will be like between now and then.

► You have just won a round-trip airplane ticket to travel anywhere in the world. Tell a story about where you would go, why you want to go there, and what you expect to experience in this place.

► Tell a story about a person you admire, making clear why you feel this way. OR tell a story about a person or type of person you tend to avoid and why. [not a teacher]

► Look up “Spoon River Anthology” and use it as a model to create a Rappahanno­ck County Anthology that tells the story of the small fictional town of Rapp River. In a collection of 4-5 short pieces, put different spotlights on the variety of people who live in Rapp River, what makes the town unique, and the experience­s of a Rapp River teenager. If written, each short piece should be about 250 words.

► Imagine you don’t use your cellphone, tablet, and/or computer outside of school for three months. Tell the story of what that is like for you, including how you replace your screen time. What would this experiment be like? Would you feel more isolated or more connected to things and/or people that are meaningful to you?

► It’s about 20 years into the future and you’ve moved out of Rappahanno­ck County. Looking back, what would you like to remember about the county, good or bad?

The Storytelli­ng Recognitio­n Ceremony announcing winners will be April 18 at the Little Washington Theatre. If numbers warrant it, the ceremony will be held at RCHS.

Questions? Reach out to Rappahanno­ck News editor Julia Shanahan at julia@rappnews.com, or contest chair Edie Tatel at edietatel@gmail.com.