atmospheric setting

Story·Whitney Lee, age 12 — A grieving teenager from New Jersey struggles to adjust to life with her aunt in Alabama until a chance encounter at a lighthouse during a storm offers unexpected comfort.

Poetry·Katie Ferman, age 13 — A girl catches fireflies on a spring night, trying to contain their light in her hands before releasing them back to the darkness.

Story·William Gwaltney, age 10 — A girl searches for the perfect apple in her grandfather's orchard, remembering her grandmother who died last year, and discovers a new way forward through shared grief.

Poetry·Taylor Nelsen, age 11 — A red leaf falls from a tree in autumn twilight and becomes caught in a spider's web, their patterns intertwining in the dawn light.

Story·Annakai Hayakawa Geshlider, age 11 — A Japanese boy falls into a creek chasing his lost shoe and discovers from a wise turtle that he has the magical ability to breathe underwater.

Story·Adam Rowe, age 13 — A bored five-year-old on the Titanic wanders below decks, meets a young mechanic who helps her understand her strict governess, and gains a new perspective on their relationship.

Story·Eleyna Rosenthal, age 13 — A princess fleeing assassins finds refuge with a werewolf who reveals his pack was banished by the same enemy, leading them to forge an alliance.

Poetry·Wujun Ke, age 13 — Standing on glossy rocks, a young observer contemplates the boundary-less unity of sea and sky, where murky greens and shadows merge into one living whole.

Poetry·Amanda Johnson, age 13 — A camping night unfolds through sensory moments: smoke rising, crickets chirping, a marshmallow catching fire, and finally the warmth of a sleeping bag as the fire glows through the tent.

Story·William Gwaltney, age 11 — A boy discovers a sea turtle nesting on an evening beach walk and spends his summer secretly protecting the eggs until they hatch.