Young writers sought for Canadian agriculture book competition

The Canadian Association of Fairs and Exhibitions (CAFE) is on the hunt for writers interested in entering the Youth Inspired! Children’s Book Competition for young Canadians ages 7 to 30 years old.

The competition involves writing children’s books about Canadian agriculture.

The deadline for submissions is Sept.27. Winners and runners up will receive a cash prize and have their books

published by CAFE.

“There are not a lot of books out there on the subject,” explained CAFE Executive Director Christina Franc. “This is for kids, by kids,” she said, explaining the goal of the competition is two-fold: to support young writers, and to highlight Canadian agriculture and educate young readers.

The competition is divided into two different age groups, youth 7-12 years old, and writers between 13-30 years old.

For the younger category, writers are invited to let their imaginations run wild and come up with an agriculture-related story between 10-20 pages long. It can be written in English or French and should include images or illustrations.

For the 13-30 age group, books should be between 15-35 pages with images and illustrations, and have a minimum of five words per page.

The entries will be judged on their creativity, educational content, accuracy of information, ability to maintain a theme, plain language, and proper attribution.

Writers can enter as individuals or as a group (youth group, school class), but only one entry per participant is permitted.

Once the competition closes on Sept.27, the entries will be reviewed and judged, and the winners will be contacted by Nov.1, 2019.

For more information about the competition and details about how to apply, visit the CAFE website at www.canadianfairs.ca/en/programs/youth-inspired-program-2-2.