MyNovel Young Writers

Encouraging the storytellers and poets of tomorrow

At MyNovel, we believe every writer starts somewhere.

MyNovel Young Writers gives children and teenagers the opportunity to write, be creative and see selected short stories and poems published on the MyNovel website.

Each month we may provide a new writing theme, story prompt or poetry challenge. Young writers are invited to create their own original work and submit it through a parent or legal guardian.

There is no entry fee.

The aim is simple: to encourage young people to read, write, imagine and enjoy expressing themselves through words.

Who Can Take Part?

MyNovel Young Writers is open to young writers aged:

8 to 17 years

You do not need to have written a story or poem before. We welcome experienced young writers, complete beginners and everyone in between.

Entries may be submitted in: English or Afrikaans.

Choose Your Category

Short Stories

Write an original short story of up to 800 words.

Your story can be funny, mysterious, adventurous, frightening, thoughtful, imaginative or completely unexpected.

Poetry

Write an original poem of up to 60 lines.

Poems may rhyme or be written in free verse. They can be funny, serious, imaginative, personal, descriptive or tell a story of their own.

The Current Writing Challenge

Theme: The Mysterious Door.

Imagine discovering a mysterious door where you least expect it.

Where does it lead? Who put it there? What happens when it is opened?

Young writers may interpret the theme in any way they like. The writing can be adventurous, funny, frightening, magical, mysterious or completely unexpected.

For this challenge, entrants may submit either a short story or a poem inspired by the theme.

Short stories may be up to 800 words and poems may be up to 60 lines.

Closing date: Sunday, 11 October 2026.

General Guidelines

Please follow these basic guidelines:

The entry must be the young writer's own original work.
Short stories may be up to 800 words.
Poems may be up to 60 lines.
Entries may be written in English or Afrikaans.
The writer must be between 8 and 17 years old at the time of submission.
Only one entry per young writer may be submitted for each monthly challenge.
Entries should be suitable for a general family audience.
Entries must not contain copied material from books, websites, films, AI-generated writing or another person's work.
A parent or legal guardian must submit the entry on behalf of the young writer.
There is no charge to enter.

Young writers are welcome to receive help with spelling and basic grammar, but the ideas, wording and creative work should remain their own.

Poetry Guidelines

Poetry does not have to rhyme. Young writers are welcome to experiment with different styles, rhythms and ways of expressing their ideas.

Poems may be humorous, serious, thoughtful, imaginative or descriptive. They may also tell a story.

The important thing is that the poem is the young writer's own original work.

Maximum length: 60 lines.

What Happens After You Submit?

MyNovel will read the short stories and poems submitted for each challenge.

A selection of entries may be chosen for publication in the MyNovel Young Writers section of our website.

This is intended as an encouraging writing project rather than a formal literary competition. There does not have to be only one winner.

We may publish several entries that we particularly enjoy, including work from different age groups. Not every submission can necessarily be published.

If Your Writing Is Selected

The parent or guardian will be contacted using the email address supplied with the submission.
The writing may receive light proofreading for spelling, punctuation and obvious typographical errors.
We will not substantially rewrite the young writer's work or change their individual voice.
The work will normally be published using the writer's first name or approved pen name and age only.
We will not normally publish the child's email address, school, home address or other private contact information.
MyNovel may share a link to the published story or poem on our Facebook Page or Facebook Group.

The young writer remains the author of the work.

Copyright

By submitting an entry, the parent or legal guardian gives MyNovel permission to:

review the entry;
publish the selected story or poem on the MyNovel website;
make minor proofreading corrections where necessary; and
promote the published work through MyNovel's social-media channels.

MyNovel does not take ownership of the work.

If we ever wish to use a story or poem for another purpose, such as inclusion in a printed or digital Young Writers collection, we will first request separate permission from the parent or legal guardian.

Privacy and Protection of Young Writers

The safety and privacy of young writers are important to us.

For this reason:

submissions must be made by a parent or legal guardian;
children should not send submissions directly to MyNovel;
we ask parents not to include unnecessary personal information about the child;
we will not publish a child's contact information;
we will not publish a child's photograph unless separate permission has first been obtained.

Parents and guardians may contact MyNovel if they have any questions about a submission or published work.

Parent or Guardian Permission

When submitting a short story or poem, the parent or legal guardian will be asked to confirm:

“I confirm that I am the parent or legal guardian of the young writer named in this submission. I confirm that the submitted work is the young writer's original work, and I give MyNovel permission to review and, if selected, publish the work on mynovel.co.za and promote the published work through MyNovel's social-media channels. I understand that copyright remains with the young writer.”

How to Submit Your Writing

The form below must be completed by a parent or legal guardian.

Please have the young writer's short story or poem ready before beginning.

Please do not include the child's surname, home address, telephone number, school details or other unnecessary personal information.

Submit a Young Writer's Work

Fields marked with * are required.

Submission Type *

Parent or Guardian Name *

Parent or Guardian Email Address * We will use this address if we need to contact you about the submission.

Young Writer's First Name or Pen Name * Please do not enter the child's surname.

Young Writer's Age *

Story or Poem Title *

Story or Poem *

Select Short Story or Poem above to begin.

Short stories: maximum 800 words. Poems: maximum 60 lines.

Parent or guardian consent *
I confirm that I am the parent or legal guardian of the young writer named in this submission. I confirm that the submitted work is the young writer's original work and I give MyNovel permission to review and, if selected, publish the work on mynovel.co.za and promote the published work through MyNovel's social-media channels. I understand that copyright remains with the young writer.

Privacy confirmation *
I confirm that I have not included the child's surname, home address, telephone number, school details or other unnecessary personal information.

A Message to Young Writers

Every author and poet began with a first piece of writing.

Your writing does not have to be perfect.

It can be funny, mysterious, adventurous, frightening, thoughtful, strange, beautiful or completely unexpected.

The important thing is that it is your work.

Use your imagination.
Play with words.
Tell us something only you could tell.

And most importantly: enjoy writing it.

For Parents, Grandparents and Guardians

If there is a young storyteller or poet in your family, encourage them to take part.

Writing helps young people develop creativity, confidence, communication skills and imagination. Sometimes all a young writer needs is a reason to begin.

MyNovel Young Writers may be that reason.

MyNovel

Helping writers turn ideas into books.

Self-publishing support in English and Afrikaans.

Editing • Proofreading • Formatting • Cover Design • Publishing Support • Author Tools