- Poetry And Short Storieshibs English Dictionary
- Poetry And Short Storieshibs English Translation
- Poetry And Short Storieshibs English Subtitles
- Poetry And Short Storieshibs English Translator
Short Stories to enjoy when you have 5 minutes to spare, sorted by category so you can find what suits your mood. Stories average 1,000 words, including morality tales, feel-good/love stories, other-worldly stories, witty stories, dramatic stories, and farce/political stories. Featured authors include Mark Twain, Anton Chekhov, Kate Chopin, James Baldwin, H.H. Munro (SAKI), Virginia Woolf, O. In this section, read our entertaining short stories specially written for intermediate (CEFR level B1) or upper intermediate (CEFR level B2) learners. You will improve your reading fluency and comprehension and develop your vocabulary.
On this page, you'll find the web's best and most updated selection of writing contests. If you've got a way with making your words come to life, try your hand at a poetry contest. If you're a teen, there's a special category of teen writing contests just for you. For everybody else, there's a variety of other ways to test your writing skills, from essay contests to short story contests. Want to submit a contest? Simply click on our 'Submit a Contest' button. Good luck everyone, and be sure to read our tips on how to win below!
Are you interested in entering a writing contest, but don't know how to win? After reading these seven tips, you'll become a surefire contender for winning the top prize. 1….
Are you interested in entering a writing contest, but don't know how to win? After reading these seven tips, you'll become a surefire contender for winning the top prize.
1. Captivate from your first sentence
'The first sentence sets the tone for the entire piece.' You may have heard similar advice many times before, but it really does hold true of trying to produce a memorable piece of writing. Would you be inclined to continue reading a submission if the first line is dull, cliche, or doesn't convey its intention effectively?
The harsh truth is that due to time constraints and the large volume of entries received, many writing contest judges simply flick through the submissions they receive. The golden handful that are read properly are the submissions that capture the reader from the very beginning. Of course, your writing should be captivating from the first word to the last, but especially in the case of a writing contest, it should be one of your top priorities to ensure that the judges give your piece the consideration it deserves.
2. Think outside the box
Think about this: Hundreds or thousands of other people are likely to apply for the same competition as you. This means your goal should be to make your submission stand out. How? Give the judges something to 'chew on'. Whether it be a different perspective, an innovative idea or perhaps a controversial topic, your submission should be memorable.
Try to consider the given topic from a number of angles. Sure, it's 'safer' to take the usual angle to a topic if you're confident you can do it well. But once you think about all the other people who took a similar one, it doesn't seem like such a safe bet after all. Push yourself to take a different perspective. Another important tip is to stay away from cliched phrases or anything that sounds overused and stale. Remember, as long as you can back up what you say and convey your ideas effectively, adopting a unique approach is easy way to make your submission stand out.
3. Be consistent
Consistency is a fundamental tenet of solid writing. Without consistency, your piece will be challenging for the judges to read. In order to ensure your submission demonstrates consistency, consider the following areas:
Structure
Organize your ideas so that there is a clear flow and structure. This rule applies to any type of piece- from a nonfiction essay to a short story or poem. Structure is king.
Your argument
If you're writing an essay or analysis, assert your standpoint or message from the beginning and ensure it is evident right through to the end. If you are arguing in favor of something, for example, don't backtrack on your words later on in the piece. This is a common error of inexperienced writers, who have a tendency to flip flop on their views throughout. Be sure to highlight your standpoint with supporting evidence at all times.
Your plot and characters
If you're writing a story, you will need to develop the plot and characters skillfully. It is important that you do not have any plot holes, as this will throw out the whole balance of your story. Your characters should consistently reflect the personality and behavioral characteristics you attached to them in all their actions and dialogue.
Editing
Your submission should have a uniform style, from punctuation to stylistic features like the font and headings. See Tip 5 and 6 for more information.
4. Emotionally engage
One of the hard and fast rules about writing well is to write in a way that emotionally engages the reader. Whatever topic you write about, try to hone in on an aspect which has the potential to tap into the reader's experiences or bring about meaningful reaction in them. A judge is far more likely to remember your piece of writing if it prompted them to feel, think, or even reflect or question their own views.
Unless the competition calls for it, try not to make your writing too specific to yourself. Try to write in a way which will allow anyone who reads your submission to find something they can identify with, or at least relate to. For instance, instead of writing about the impact a certain policy has on you, write about how it has affected your town, city, or the country as a whole. Everyone likes being able to see themselves in a piece of writing- make sure your piece speaks to everyone.
5. Edit, edit, edit
Any writer will tell you that writing is only half the battle- editing is where the real beast lies. A simple way to impress the judges of a writing contest is to make sure you have read and reread your article for errors. And no, a quick once-over won't cut it. You'll need to be vigilant in your search for typos, punctuation errors, structural weaknesses, cliches, overused words and any other problems. Once you learn how to edit effectively, and become more confident doing it, editing your piece won't seem nearly as confronting.
Poetry And Short Storieshibs English Dictionary
Even when it's not explicitly stated in the competition guidelines that editing will be considered, you can be certain that any judge will look more favorably on a well-edited piece than a poorly edited one. You never know, if your piece is running head-to-head with another contestant's for the top prize, a 'simple' mistake could cost you the whole contest. Ignore proofreading at your own peril.
Poetry And Short Storieshibs English Translation
6. Get a fresh set of eyes
It may be daunting to show your submission to someone you're close to, but having another set of eyes to look over your writing is invaluable. As any writer who has spent hours mulling over their piece will know, it's difficult to detect your own errors or weaknesses.
When you ask someone to edit your work, it's best to provide them with the competition guidelines so they know exactly what to be on the lookout for. If there is a particular area you are worried about, such as your punctuation or structure, let them know so they can better advise you. Receiving constructive criticism about your writing, and acting on it, is one of the best ways to improve your writing and have a good chance at winning a competition.
7. Mind your manners
Many contests require you to submit your entry by email, and this is where a lot of contestants fail to make a good impression. A surprising amount of participants simply attach the document without anything written in the body of the message. If a contest is by email submission, you need to follow proper etiquette. The following is a simple guide to writing an email to submit your piece to a writing competition:
- Subject line: First, title your email clearly. Something simple as '[Name of competition] Submission' and your own name is usually fine. Some competitions will request you title your email something specific- so read the guidelines carefully!
- Salutation: Open the body of your email with a salutation such as, 'Dear [competition organization/person in charge]'.
- Self intro: Next, provide a very brief self-introduction which states who you are and what you do (e.g. student, freelance writer).
- Reason for emailing: Concisely explain that you are sending the email to enter their competition. Make sure to you specify the competition to which you submitting, as some organizations have a number of competitions running concurrently.
- Final thanks:Thank the organization/person for the opportunity to enter this competition. If you want you can express that you're looking forward to hearing from them further.
- Sign off: End with a formal sign-off like 'Yours sincerely/Kindest regards [your name]'
Here is a sample email:
[Email Subject: The Power of Science Competition Submission]
To whom it may concern at Sunflower Writing,
My name is James West, and I am completing my Bachelor of Science at the University of Pennsylvania.
I am writing to submit my entry to your writing competition, 'The Power of Science'. My submission answers the question, 'Which Scientific Development has had the Greatest Impact on the 21st Century?'
Please find my entry attached to this email.
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to enter this competition.
Kindest,
James West.
Final words
So writers, read over these tips (a few times if you need to!), be confident, and get to it! Writing competitions are a fantastic opportunity to polish your writing skills and get some feedback on your writing. The chance to win some prize money is just the *icing on the cake.
*Yep, that's a cliche there. Good spotting! For those who missed it, it's back to Tip Number 2 for you!
16 years after enjoying a high school literary education rich in poetry, I am a literature teacher who barely teaches it. So far this year, my 12th grade literature students have read nearly 200,000 words for my class. Poems have accounted for no more than 100.
This is a shame—not just because poetry is important to teach, but also because poetry is important for the teaching of writing and reading.
High school poetry suffers from an image problem. Think of Dead Poet's Society's scenes of red-cheeked lads standing on desks and reciting verse, or of dowdy Dickinson imitators mooning on park benches, filling up journals with noxious chapbook fodder. There's also the tired lessons about iambic pentameter and teachers wringing interpretations from cryptic stanzas, their students bewildered and chuckling. Reading poetry is impractical, even frivolous. High school poets are antisocial and effete.
I have always rejected these clichéd mischaracterizations born of ignorance, bad movies, and uninspired teaching. Yet I haven't been stirred to fill my lessons with Pound and Eliot as my 11th grade teacher did. I loved poetry in high school. I wrote it. I read it. Today, I slip scripture into an analysis of The Day of the Locust. A Nikki Giovanni piece appears in The Bluest Eye unit. Poetry has become an afterthought, a supplement, not something to study on its own.
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Poetry And Short Storieshibs English Subtitles
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In an education landscape that dramatically deemphasizes creative expression in favor of expository writing and prioritizes the analysis of non-literary texts, high school literature teachers have to negotiate between their preferences and the way the wind is blowing. That sometimes means sacrifice, and poetry is often the first head to roll.
Yet poetry enables teachers to teach their students how to write, read, and understand any text. Poetry can give students a healthy outlet for surging emotions. Reading original poetry aloud in class can foster trust and empathy in the classroom community, while also emphasizing speaking and listening skills that are often neglected in high school literature classes.
Students who don't like writing essays may like poetry, with its dearth of fixed rules and its kinship with rap. For these students, poetry can become a gateway to other forms of writing. It can help teach skills that come in handy with other kinds of writing—like precise, economical diction, for example. When Carl Sandburg writes, 'The fog comes/on little cat feet,' in just six words, he endows a natural phenomenon with character, a pace, and a spirit. All forms of writing benefits from the powerful and concise phrases found in poems.
I have used cut-up poetry (a variation on the sort 'popularized' by William Burroughs and Brion Gysin) to teach 9th grade students, most of whom learned English as a second language, about grammar and literary devices. They made collages after slicing up dozens of 'sources,' identifying the adjectives and adverbs, utilizing parallel structure, alliteration, assonance, and other figures of speech. Short poems make a complete textual analysis more manageable for English language learners. When teaching students to read and evaluate every single word of a text, it makes sense to demonstrate the practice with a brief poem—like Gwendolyn Brooks's 'We Real Cool.'
Poetry And Short Storieshibs English Translator
Students can learn how to utilize grammar in their own writing by studying how poets do—and do not—abide by traditional writing rules in their work. Poetry can teach writing and grammar conventions by showing what happens when poets strip them away or pervert them for effect. Dickinson often capitalizes common nouns and uses dashes instead of commas to note sudden shifts in focus. Agee uses colons to create dramatic, speech-like pauses. Cummings of course rebels completely. He usually eschews capitalization in his proto-text message poetry, wrapping frequent asides in parentheses and leaving last lines dangling on their pages, period-less. In 'next to of course god america i,' Cummings strings together, in the first 13 lines, a cavalcade of jingoistic catch-phrases a politician might utter, and the lack of punctuation slowing down and organizing the assault accentuates their unintelligibility and banality and heightens the satire. The abuse of conventions helps make the point. In class, it can help a teacher explain the exhausting effect of run-on sentences—or illustrate how clichés weaken an argument.
Yet, despite all of the benefits poetry brings to the classroom, I have been hesitant to use poems as a mere tool for teaching grammar conventions. Even the in-class disembowelment of a poem's meaning can diminish the personal, even transcendent, experience of reading a poem. Billy Collins characterizes the latter as a 'deadening' act that obscures the poem beneath the puffed-up importance of its interpretation. In his poem 'Introduction to Poetry,' he writes: 'all they want to do is tie the poem to a chair with rope/and torture a confession out of it./They begin beating it with a hose/to find out what it really means.'
The point of reading a poem is not to try to 'solve' it. Still, that quantifiable process of demystification is precisely what teachers are encouraged to teach students, often in lieu of curating a powerful experience through literature. The literature itself becomes secondary, boiled down to its Cliff's Notes demi-glace. I haven't wanted to risk that with the poems that enchanted me in my youth.
Teachers should produce literature lovers as well as keen critics, striking a balance between teaching writing, grammar, and analytical strategies and then also helping students to see that literature should be mystifying. It should resist easy interpretation and beg for return visits. Poetry serves this purpose perfectly. I am confident my 12th graders know how to write essays. I know they can mine a text for subtle messages. But I worry sometimes if they've learned this lesson. In May, a month before they graduate, I may read some poetry with my seniors—to drive home that and nothing more.
