Creative Writing

Goals or Intentions

• To provide an opportunity for written expression for NYS 4-H members with Equine interests.
• To encourage youth to communicate their experiences and ideas in a creative manner.
• To recognize youth who have creative writing talent by showcasing their ideas through writing.

Eligibility

• Participants - Each participant must be a current 4-H club member. Participants do not need to own their own horse.
• Divisions: The contest will consist of a Junior and Senior Division.
• Seniors: Youth who have reached age 14 but have not reached age 19 as of January 1.
• Juniors: Individuals who have reached age 8 but have not reached age 14 as of January 1.
• Cloverbuds: Are not eligible to compete in creative writing events.
• Note: State winners in the Junior Division are ineligible for future competition in the Junior Division in the same event. Junior state creative writing winners are eligible to compete in other Junior Division creative writing events in which they have not won a state championship. State winners in a Senior Division competitive writing event are ineligible to compete in that same creative writing event in future years.  Senior state creative writing winners are eligible to compete in other Senior Division creative writing events in which they have not won a state championship.

Regulations

• Creative writing will be divided into three contest areas: Poetry, Short Stories and Essays.
• Creative writing entries must be related to horses or the horse industry.
• A new topic must have been developed since the previous year’s contest.  Any horse-related topic is acceptable.
• All creative writing entries must include:

A title page with the following information: Title of work, 4-H members name, address, phone number, email address, county, district, and division.

• The title page will be removed before the entries are judged so that no names or identifying information will appear on the entries.
  • The title of the entry must also appear on the body of the paper without the participant’s name, address, phone number, email address, county, division, or district.
  • Four copies (typed double-spaced or written legibly in ink) must be submitted, each with a title page.  Papers handwritten in pencil will not be accepted.
  • Each creative writing entry will receive a number to identify it with the master list of Creative Writing Contest entries, and numbers will be retained at the NYS 4-H Horse Program office.
  • An entry that is determined to have plagiarized someone else’s work will be disqualified.
  • Creative writing entries will be judged by a committee of three judges.
  • Short stories will be limited to 1,000 words maximum and a minimum of 200 words for Junior short stories and 500 words for Senior short stories. A short story contains a beginning, middle, and end using a timeline.
  •  Papers handwritten in pencil will not be accepted.