It was a certain beautiful afternoon. I was in our garden harvesting maize. Our garden is situated in a swamp called Rhaga. Rhaga is a swamp situated in Nakivale where most inhabitants are locals, and not refugees. Our garden measures two hectars, which does give us a good amount of maize whenever we harvest. We hire a lorry to come and help us carry the harvested crops. This afternoon I was very tired since we had been harvesting all morning wand the work is almost reaching the conclusion. We were resting when some boys who were working in the next garden from ours started shouting. “Snake!!! Snake!!!” All of a sudden my brothers ran to them to check what had happened. I saw a black cobra running. I felt freezing because I was so scared. It looked like the one I always see in my documentary and movies. The other guys were still yelling whereby my brothers went to hunt for it but they couldn’t find it. It never harmed anyone, but until now I’m scared of going to Rhaga again.
Stone Soup Magazine for young readers, writers, and artists
Memory/Self as Character
This piece of writing is designed to prompt students to practice the writing fundamental to “show and not tell.” We all love a good character—someone who is complex yet relatable, full of all the human foibles we are aware of and who may act differently from what we could ever anticipate. For this piece of writing, students attempt to write a kind of self-portrait and/or to draw on a specific memory and re-create it vividly. Students were encouraged to draw on their senses and attempt to include dialogue in an attempt to illustrate, or demonstrate the relevance of the memory without summarizing why it matters. Students were instructed to use a “device” to help them to move through personality traits, interesting qualities, or amusing actions to form a narrative that lets the reader see them at their best and their worst. Students were given the following prompts to chose from: 1) Something, someone, some place that you loved, have loved, or hate or have hated? 2) Something (a person or experience) that changed you
Stone Soup’s Contest Series
Stone Soup is excited to announce our new contest series! We are now accepting submissions for our short story, poetry, and artwork prizes. We will select a single winner—one story, one poem, and one piece of art—from each category and publish them in the magazine. Winners will also receive three free expedited submissions ($30 value) and a year’s print subscription to the magazine ($90 value). The deadline for submissions is May 1, 2024! Below, find details about each category. Short Story: must not exceed 4,000 words Poetry: no theme, up to 4 poems per submission Art: work in any medium that can be printed on the page (drawings, paintings, photographs, collages, or images of 3D work like sculptures), up to 4 pieces per submission Submit through this link!
