authentic voice

Personal Narrative·Taryn Morlock, age 11 — Scientists are using gene-editing to modify pig organs for human transplants, removing problematic sugars and viruses that cause rejection.

Poetry·Yutia Li, age 9 — A playful cosmic origin story traces from a tiny speck's explosion through the Big Bang to Earth's formation and the first single-celled life.

Poetry·Sterling Waterfield, age 11 — A young philosopher questions why things are named what they are, why humans dominate, and ultimately decides to accept the world's strange design.

Poetry·Kieran O'Donnell, age 11 — A philosophical meditation on how cold is merely the absence of heat, exploring the nature of opposites and what truly exists versus what we perceive.

Story·Thomas Faulhaber, age 13 — In a world where middlenames determine destiny, a boy named Robin Burke struggles with his musical heritage until riots against the naming system expose its fundamental flaw.

Story·Sydney Burr, age 11 — A girl who writes by a mountain stream is transported into her own story about an Egyptian pyramid, where she meets her protagonist and must find a way out.

Story·Sabrina Feldberg, age 12 — A Chicago teen resenting her family's move to San Francisco transforms into a fish at the beach, navigating dangers before accepting her new home.

Story·Lucy Zanker, age 11 — A girl and her robotic brother accidentally launch themselves into space on their father's NASA rocket, forcing her to disassemble him to return home safely.

Poetry·Tommy Swartz, age 12 — A 12-year-old's anxious inner monologue cycles through worries about jokes, death, regrets, and daily stresses in short, punchy lines.

Story·Rhianna Searle, age 12 — After Trump's 2016 election, two sixth-grade best friends—one Democrat, one Republican—struggle when politics threatens their friendship, until a handmade bracelet offers reconciliation.