Tomorrow's novelists

Recently I had a great opportunity to judge a contest for young writers (junior high and high school). For the most part, I saw the type of entries I expected--stories long on passion and enthusiasm and short on discipline. These kids knew what they liked to read and were attempting to duplicate it. I saw everything from an apocalyptic, futuristic war story filled with explosions to a YA chick-lit type story to something that read like a treatment for a B-grade slasher film. The pages were littered with hideous misspellings ("cereal killer" being my favorite), unintelligible sentence structure and random punctuation.

But I saw occasional flashes of brilliance, too--the subtle, sophisticated use of symbolism in one story; funny, sparkling dialogue in another.

My task was to offer abundant praise where possible and gentle suggestions for improvement--pretty easy for the most part.

Then there was Emily's* story. Oh, my Lord, could that little fifteen-year-old write. She described one pivotal moment in a teenager's life, and her story had it all--an endearingly flawed protagonist facing a difficult situation, a plot that hung together, a climax, and a satisfying conclusion. Her writing was filled with rich, sensory detail. Her point of view was solid. Her voice was fresh. Her spelling, grammar and punctuation--flawless.

It's a little embarrassing to be "judging" a teenager who can write circles around me! I hope someone in her life encourages her to pursue writing as a career, because she is certainly off to a brilliant start. I hope she will remember me fondly as the contest judge who gave her the encouragement she needed to pursue a dream.

*not her real name