Autumn '24: Writing

Contests

Red tree among muted trees

Autumn '24: Writing

Deadline

Convey the ephemeral beauty of autumn in the genre of your choice, poetry or prose, fiction or nonfiction. Let yourself be inspired by the colors, settings, tones, and traditions of the season. 

[Photo credit: "The Last of Fall" by ckodama24, YWP archive]


It's a complex season of interchangeable names (is it autumn or fall to you?) and back-and-forth weather with its echoes of summer and hints of winter. It's a time of beginnings (a new school year and the range of emotions that go with it, from trepidation to excitement) and endings (falling leaves, shorter days). Share your take on the season!


CONTEST DETAILS

  • Three $75 prizes for writing; three $75 prizes for visual art
  • For ages 13-19. You must have a YWP account (It’s free to join!)
  • Respond to the challenge in any literary genre
  • Must be your original work and not published elsewhere. No AI.
  • No limit to number of submissions
  • Prize winners and honorable mentions will be published in the November 2024 issue of our digital magazine, The Voice.
  • Contest deadline: Oct. 25, 2024


    Click here for the Visual Art Contest

     

Submissions

  • Seasons

    Summer is going fast, 
    As the nights grow colder. 

    Summer came and went, 
    And took with it that feeling. 

    Fall brings sorrow, 
    It reminds you that time doesn't stop. 

  • The little leaf

    Every day

    At a 3

    I would walk home

    Taking the same path

    In fall I would admire

    The trees and colors

    One evening I saw a tree

    With one little leaf

    It was bright red

    Standing out against

  • Each time

    Each time a leaf falls

    Another heart shatters

    Each time the wind blows

    Another break up

    But each time a pumpkin is carved

    A date is planned

    Each time a cider donut is devoured

    Another kiss

  • Hawk Eyes

    We have hawk eyes 

    watching 

    for the moment when the hills 

    can decidedly be called red 

    instead of green. 

     

    We have hawk eyes 

    watching 

  • Hello my old friend

    Summer is gone

    As the leaves now fall

    In shades of lively oranges and bits of red

    Hello my old friend.

    Where now I can bask in your warm embrace

    Of your season's range

    And a new wardrobe change.

  • Autumn Girl

    She sat on the steps, enjoying the brisk autumn air. It was the day before Halloween and the smell of cinnamon hung in the air. She knew she’d have to go in soon, but for now life was perfect.

  • Darkness

    Standing in the streets, 
    The darkness of the city lights 
    Washes over you. 

    The joy of the summer fades, 
    The sorrow of the fall is a current feeling. 

  • I Just Really Like You

    Hand in hand we walked down the path, littered with colorful leaves. A gust of wind swirled the leaves around us. Encompassing us in our own little world. I looked up, the trees bent over us with shades of red, orange and yellow.

  • The Season of Death

    Death reaches his hands

    Shrivels leaves

    Rips them up

    Soon the ghosts and ghouls will scream

    They've waited all year for Halloween

     But this death is not a scary thought

    In fact it's comforting

  • autumn forest goddess

    as I sit here-
    deep in the forest, bathed in shadow,

    watching the leaves fall,
    tell me, why does the earth end in such a pretty display

    I holler to the trees,
    they answer with a rustle