Find out by entering this year’s international children’s story competition run by Inclusive Works, Kazdu and Clavis Publishers! The theme of the 2014 competition is “Grandad, grandma and I in our multicultural society”. Submit your story for children aged 1-3 years or 4-6 years no later than 31 August 2014.
The two winning stories will be published as illustrated children’s books in both Dutch and English by Clavis Publishers.

Who can participate?
Everyone! Amateurs, professional writers – in fact any individual who likes to write children’s stories, regardless of age, ability, background, education, language, nationality, country of residence, etc. Individuals of 50 years and older are especially encouraged to submit a story!

How to submit a story?
Upload the final version of your story in either English or Dutch using the online form available at www.inclusiveworks.eu no later than 31 August 2014.

Background and objectives of the competition
Inclusive Works and partners organised their first international children’s story competition in 2012. More than 350 stories were submitted from 33 countries. The competition resulted in the publication of the following books:

Count and Rhyme with Family Mouse by Juliette Rosenkamp

Princess Nina by Marlise Achterbergh

For this year’s competition we are looking for children’s stories inspired by the interaction between elderly people and children in today’s multicultural societies. Entries should show, in a fun, playful and appropriate way, the important role(s) played by grandparents and (other) elderly people in the lives of the children in these societies.

The theme
Grandparents and other elderly people often play an important, valuable and fun role in children’s lives. This role can be very diverse, and can involve reading books, playing games, baking, gardening, visiting public places, recounting family anecdotes, passing on traditions, teaching children valuable lessons, etc. This interaction often takes place in a multicultural setting or happens between people with multicultural backgrounds. For this reason, we ask that the diversity in our society is positively represented in the stories submitted.
The prize!
The jury will select one winner for each age category: 1-3 years and 4-6 years. The two winning stories will be published as illustrated children’s books in both Dutch and English by Clavis Publishers.

The winners will be announced during an awards ceremony to be held in November 2014, at which the winning stories will be presented to the public and read by the authors.

Competition guidelines
The story:
– will take the multicultural society into account (for instance in the characters, their names, the composition of the characters, the place where the story occurs, the activities, etc.);
– must be written for children aged either 1-3 years or 4-6 years;
– may be realistic or have elements of fantasy;
– must be submitted in either English or Dutch;
– must not exceed the maximum word count for that age category: 600 words (age category 1-3 years) and 900 words (age category 4-6 years);
– should include no further text (description of the context, back cover copy, etc.) nor illustrations;
– must not have been published before, either by a professional publisher or privately.

For detail on how to enter, visit: http://www.inclusiveworks.eu/Our-expertise/Projects/Childrens-stories#.U1MNpVdrTlh