creativity

Story·Lisa R. Neher, age 13 — A nervous girl drives to her school play audition, battles stage fright, performs her monologue, and finds relief in having tried her best.

Story·Laura Aberle, age 12 — A curious girl investigates her neighborhood's 'crazy' artist who painted a giant portrait on his house, discovering the painting is made of tiny diverse people and the man is misunderstood.

Story·Allison Stadd, age 12 — A girl struggling with writer's block finds inspiration in memories of her late father and writes through the night, discovering she's already won by making the effort.

Story·Jill Cooley, age 13 — A young ballet dancer overcomes stage fright to perform as Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, discovering that her emotional connection to dance matters more than technical perfection.

Story·Joshua Bernheisel, age 10 — After his mother's death, a boy who once hated writing discovers fiction and publishes a book dedicated to her memory, finding friendship with his former bully.

Story·Zoe Paschkis, age 14 — A girl accidentally stains her grandmother's quilt while secretly writing at night, then reveals her hidden writing to her mother, who shares her own story of artistic regret.

Story·Emily Blackmer, age 12 — A thirteen-year-old writer rises before dawn on the summer solstice to watch the sunrise alone, finding validation for her literary dreams in nature's voice.

Story·Emily Blackmer, age 12 — A thirteen-year-old writer rises at dawn on the summer solstice to watch the sunrise alone, finding validation for her literary dreams in nature's voice.

Poetry·Tae Kathleen Keller, age 8 — A young pianist arrives for her lesson in a room filled with vanilla candles and Sesame Street stickers, then leaves with an assignment to compose a New Year's song.

Story·Nora Rothman, age 11 — In 1850, a sixteen-year-old girl who dreams of more than housework meets a stranger who takes her poetry to a printing press, changing her life forever.