the power of imagination

Poetry·Zoe Lynch, age 10 — A 10-year-old observes her parents working at their desks and discovers that hard work and joy can coexist when you find what you love.

Poetry·Ashley Class, age 10 — A young writer reflects on how staring at an empty wall sparks imagination, claiming it as the source of stories known across the globe.

Poetry·Malin Moeller, age 11 — A meditation on how dreams warp time and memory, leaving only fragments and distortions as evidence of the night's passage.

Poetry·Malin Moeller, age 11 — A meditation on how dreams distort time and memory, leaving only fragments and the physical evidence of restless sleep as proof of the night's passage.

Story·Mackenzie Crum, age 10 — A girl daydreams about owning a pony she can't afford until her struggling parents surprise her with the horse, strengthening their family bond across generations.

Story·Fiona Mulley, age 13 — A young actress playing Marmee in Little Women draws on her longing for her best friend who moved away to deliver a powerful performance on opening night.

Poetry·Jem Burch, age 13 — From an airplane window, the world transforms into miniature islands and tinfoil seas, rising through clouds into pure sunlight, chasing sunset into stars.

Story·Maeve Brett-Vasko, age 12 — A young soldier who can see death timelines on people's palms sacrifices himself to save his best friend during a fortress battle, transferring his gift to her.

Story·Noelia M. Colón, age 13 — A girl inherits a magic fiddle from a mysterious man in the woods, and when she plays it by candlelight, shadows come alive and dance on moonbeams.

Story·Ayla Schultz, age 13 — A girl crosses a desert alone, finds shelter in a mysterious house with an old woman who gives her a glass dragon, then wakes in town unsure if the house...