Competitions Close 12 April
Hatchlings (8 to 18 year olds)
Writing for the children's and young adults' markets
Eligibility
All writers and illustrators who are 8 – 18 years old (as of 12th April) worldwide, who have not been published in book format within the section’s genres.
All entries must have a parent or guardians’ electronic signature of permission on the entry form.
Categories
H01) Picture Books – Text only for preschool or primary-aged children up to 500 words and pitch.
H02) Chapter Book* (Judged as one category. The classification is for judging purposes only.)
Text only for younger primary-aged children. First 1,000 words, pitch and a 600 word synopsis.
Text only for older children (Middle Grade). First 1,000 words, pitch and a a 600 word synopsis.
Fiction writing for Young Adults. First 5,000 words, pitch and a 600 word synopsis.
First-round judging: The first 1,000 words, pitch and synopsis are read by the CYA judges.
Final judging: The final judge will read your pitch, synopsis and the full 5,000 words.
We recommend you read the competition guidelines prior to submitting your entries.
Entry and Prizes
Prize for each section
First - $100,
Second - $60,
Third - $40
All Hatchling entries have historically gone in front of a professional editor, but this is not guaranteed.
Publication
If the winning entry and short-listed finalists are judged by a publisher of children’s books, there is no guarantee of publication. The author retains copyright.
Entry is Free
IMPORTANT: There are no age barriers in this competition, and all entrants are judged equally.