Children’s Fiction – Maximum 1000 words
Do not include pictures.
Please state the age level of your target audience.
All entries are original and unpublished.
| Score out of 100 | Children’s Fiction |
| _/5 | Format: Double spaced, 1-inch margins, Times New Roman, 12 |
| _/5 | Hook: Title and opening pulls reader into the story. There is a strong hook. The story starts in the right place, not too late, not too soon. |
| _/10 | Voice: Writing is fresh and original, demonstrating the author’s unique and consistent voice from beginning to end. The writing is compelling and clear. There is a good balance between showing and telling. Writer does not slow down the action with too many passive verbs and adverbs. |
| _/10 | Reader: Style is age appropriate. Age of characters engages those of target audience. |
| _/10 | Viewpoint: The point of view (POV) is consistent and clear throughout, without head-hopping. POV stays true to the character viewpoint. |
| _/10 | Scene Breaks: Scene breaks make sense. They are logical. They don’t jolt the reader out of the story but entice them to keep reading. |
| _/10 | Setting and Description: Setting and physical details contribute to the mood and theme and move the story forward. There is a reason for the setting. There is a reason for the description of every detail. If it is never used in the story, then why did you describe it? All details must have a reason to belong. |
| _/10 | Character Arc: Motivation is strong enough to move the story forward and take the character on a journey in which the main character grows or changes in some way. |
| _/10 | Dialogue: Dialogue develops the characters and their emotions, and it moves the story forward. Dialogue is natural, and distinctive to their personality. |
| _/10 | Literacy: Author has a strong command of grammar, punctuation, capitalization, usage, and spelling. The level of craftsmanship is high. Sometimes the author may break the rules of grammar, but it is done effectively and not so often that is causes confusion. |
| _/10 | Interest & Conclusion: Story holds the reader’s interest to the end and provides, at the very least, a satisfying conclusion or, at best, a powerful emotional experience. Any problems that were introduced at the beginning are now resolved; not that each character has solved all their problems, but they have either gained what they were striving for, or they have changed in such a way that they are equipped to deal with the problem. |