In last year’s Great Kiwi Write Off, the judges were drawn to stories that showed heart, originality, and a strong connection to the theme. What stood out most were authentic, thoughtfully crafted pieces — whether through a surprising twist, vivid description, or memorable characters. Entries with strong structure, creative risks, and expressive language really shone, but above all, it was the writer’s imagination and voice that left a lasting impression. Want your story to stand out? Take inspiration from last year’s favourites — and make it your own.
“Great structure, audience engagement, strong author voice. A simple, effective story that captured emotions and a clever loop back at the end. Impressed by the vocab range and the character development using an imaginative story idea.”
– Katie Pye (Y4 judge)
“The best stories are well-shaped and come to a strong ending. These ten young writers show intelligence and imagination. Their characters were interesting. There was a sense of meaning in the pieces: they were about important feelings or subjects. The best of all had a strong individual voice or tone: the young writer had pulled the elements of story together as well as adding originality.”
– Barbara Else Y5-6 judge
“They [the stories] mostly had a single well-developed idea, some excellent dialogue and efficient characterisation, and conveyed some sense of the author’s unique voice.”
– Tessa Duder (Y7-8 judge)
“The characters behaved congruently. The conclusion gave the reader an insight into the human condition at a deep level. Relatable characters. Vivid description with the opening paragraph setting the scene and the closing paragraph tying into the first. Strong evidence of editing and proof reading. Technically correct.”
– Stephanie Hammond and Suraya Dewing
Joint judges (Year 9-10 and 11-13)