Children’s Writing Challenge

In celebration of Qatar National Day, the Children’s Library hosted a creative writing challenge in Arabic and English. Read the full description of the writing challenge here. If your children are interested in story writing, this post is a starting point for resources to inspire them, help them shape their ideas about the story they want to tell and guide them as they write.

Storytelling is an integral part of Qatari culture, and the Children’s Writing Challenge aimed to give young writers a chance to look back at the country’s history and traditions, and, in turn, share their own interpretations, retellings or original stories set in Qatar. Refresh your memory about some significant places in Qatar, which, given quarantine restrictions this year, you might have missed, by picking up the story The Valley of the Colocynth, by Qatari author Asma Al Kuwari. For a story about horseracing, a timeless tradition in Qatar, read Al Faresan Al Masila Horse Racing. These books are picture books for children ages 9 to 11 and are available in Arabic and English.

If you are a young writer looking to improve your writing skills, or a parent with a young writer whose talents you wish to nurture, dive into Creative Writing: The Plot Thickens to discover your genre and how to write it. You might also start with So, You Want to Be a Writer? which will set you up to tackle any writing project, from finding the perfect space to do it to explore the possibility of getting published! For online writing resources, visit Britannica School or Scholastic and select the relevant grade.

The Children's Library has also created a special corner for Qatari books in support of local writers, and this corner serves as a platform to display their creativity and highlight their presence in the cultural community. The Library is committed to introducing creative and influential literature to society, including children, to enhance the Qatari identity among children and preserve Qatari heritage.

Earlier in the year, to keep our community of young writers busy, we hosted another writing challenge. The winners, as well as one story, are below.

Here is the first English winning entry from a previous writing challenge, by Aarav Bellur, 10 years old.

 So, it all goes back to December 21, 2017. Four friends and I were flying on a winter holiday to the Czech Republic. After take-off, I was about to doze off when I saw something out of the corner of my eye. Outside the plane window, I saw a door. Yes, a door, floating in the sky. I asked a flight attendant what it was.

“I don’t know sir,” she answered.

“Could you please drop me off there?” I asked. She walked to the front of the plane and a few seconds later, she came back to tell me the pilots would be willing to but I would have to find my own way after that. She asked me to come to the front door so she could drop me off. Before I knew it, I was at the door. Now, this was no ordinary door. Through this door, I found a cloud standing (or is it hovering) outside.

“Welcome to the Kingdom of Clouds!” he exclaimed, but without much enthusiasm. I looked around.

“This place looks amazing!” I yelled over the roar of the wind.

“Yeah, but it won’t be for long,” he mumbled.

“Why?”

“Because the king is planning to destroy the Sun with the ultimate weapon.”

“Whaaaat?”

“With the Sun out the way, he wants his army of clouds to create a storm to flood the Earth.”

“That’s terrible for me, but why does it affect you?”

“The destruction will cause our kingdom to evaporate, but the king doesn’t know that.”

“Yikes!”

“Well, looks like all is lost. I’m gonna go home,” he sighed. “Enjoy your time here…while it lasts.” Then he drifted away. I felt bad for all the clouds in this kingdom. They had a foolish king who was going to end the world.

And I decided on the most suicidal, idiotic move ever. I was going to try to stop the king. So, I caught a ride to the palace on a cloud taxi. There, I saw the king. He was a thick, dark cloud with a white fluffy beard (also made out of cloud). His eye resembled an angry bull’s and a small crown rested on his bald cloud head.

“What do you want, human?” he thundered.

“I want to stop you from destroying our world!” I yelled.

“Hahaha, that’s funny!” he laughed, and picked up a giant lightning blaster. I dodged the first few shots, but the fifth one almost took my head off. I ran down a corridor and took a sharp turn into a room. I guessed it was the forge. Then I saw the ultimate weapon in the center. It was a giant gold lightning bolt. I had to destroy it, so I picked up a hammer and started banging away but I didn’t make a dent. Then, I heard the king’s footsteps thumping down the corridor. Suddenly, he burst into the room and shot at me again. I ducked just in time and hid under an anvil. I heard a loud CRACK and I heard the king’s agonizing scream.

“Nooooo!” he sobbed. “All my hard work!” Then, I heard him fire his blaster once more. There was a scream of pain and then…silence. I looked up. There were no remains of the king. The lightning bolt was broken. The clouds outside were so grateful, they gave me a ride to our hotel in the Czech Republic. My friends, though, were nowhere to be found. I wondered where they were…