The 2024 Microfiction Competition, presented in partnership with The University of Queensland, called young writers from Queensland based schools to respond to the prompt Transformation. Entrants were invited to respond to the prompt in 120 words or less, using any written format (verse/prose).
The judging panel featured Sarah Armstrong, author and Word Play 2024 guest; Dr Richard Newsome, author and lecturer at UQ; and Clair Hume, children's publisher at Thames & Hudson Australia.
The shortlisted entrants were invited to present a reading of their microfiction story at the awards ceremony held at the Festival (see photo gallery below!). The shortlisted entrants for 2024 are: Junior (Primary School) Category:
- Elizabeth, Ironside State School
- Maeve, St Columba's Primary School Wilston
- Emeryck, Robertson State School
- Argy, Robertson State School
- Alex, Junction Park State School
Senior (High School) Category:
- Madeline, St Margaret's Anglican Girls School
- Evie, Matthew Flinders Anglican College
- Anson, Brisbane Grammar School
- Darcy, All Hallows' School
- Scarlett, St Thomas More College
BWF and UQ thanks all who entered and congratulates those who were shortlisted.
The winners for 2024 are Maeve Tilson, for the Junior Category, and Scarlett Wightley, for the Senior Category. Congratulations Maeve and Scarlett! Read their entries below.
Junior Category winner: Maeve Tilson
Senior Category winner: Scarlett Wightley
My Townsfolk by Maeve Tilson
A smile, with little dimples. A joyful dance on my lips. Though… ‘Her smile’s crooked. Let’s change it!’. Too wonky. Too crowded. Like busy, jostling townsfolk waltzing around their village.
Then comes a white room, a funny blue gown, and a shower cap?! I smell disinfectant and fear. ‘Count down from ten,’ they say.
Blankness envelopes me into a curtain of uncertainty.
No pain at first, just numb, but then, a deep, continuous throbbing. If I move, the universe will spill from my mouth. I miss my stolen townsfolk, warming my smile.
Later, looking in the mirror, I see strings of silvery lanterns strung across my teeth, new dimples, an emerging dance, and a little village just beginning.
The Hangover Angels by Scarlett Wightley
There were angels on the train tonight. Glitter smiled around sunken eyes, and their long, youthful figures were covered in clear skin the colour of cream, coffee, and caramel. Their jaded forms shrunk inside the superficial shimmer of their dresses and the creases in their shirts.
Their graceful contours were tangled together and slumped in a row along the carriage. In the skew of vacant bodies, minidresses crawled up their thighs and pants drooped down their hips. Their fatigued clothes seemed not to fit them the way they would have only a few hours ago.
#Photo Gallery
