Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
Cover photo by Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
Lari Li
Most writing competitions open up in the fall and winter, with decisions coming out right before spring. It’s never too late or early to prepare and enter though, so let’s shine the light on a special feature: the Scholastic Writing Awards!
First off, why Scholastic?
The Scholastic Awards is an extremely prestigious art and writing competition. Many students that got into top universities have included their Scholastic Award as one of the five honors and awards available when applying.
Scholarships up to $12,500 are available for National Medalists, and micro-competitions that award scholarships based on a themed essay are also available. Currently, there are seven scholarship competitions available on their site, which can be found here:
Lastly, Scholastic has many alumni that went on to become the greatest writers of their generation, as well as amazing alumni opportunities for grants and more. Notable alumni include Tschabalala Self, Stephen King, Kay WalkingStick, José Parlá, Amanda Gorman, Charles White, Joyce Carol Oates, and Andy Warhol.
Scholastic Competition Categories
Teens in grades 7-12 are able to apply in 28 categories of art and writing. The deadline for the Southeast Wisconsin region is December 12th, though it should be noted that this date is often pushed back due to technical difficulties, as experienced in years before this. Last year, the deadline for us was not until late February, but this doesn’t mean you should wait! Start drafting and brainstorming your works now.
The writing categories include: critical essay, dramatic script, flash fiction, journalism, humor, novel writing, personal essay and memoir, poetry, science fiction / fantasy, short story, and a writing portfolio for graduating seniors only.
The art categories include: architectural and industrial design, ceramics and glass, comic art, design, digital art, drawing and illustration, editorial cartoon, expanded projects, fashion, film and animation, jewelry, mixed media, painting, photography, printmaking, scripture, and an art portfolio for graduating seniors only.
A description of the categories is available here:
Make sure to read thoroughly and play to your strengths! Evaluate which categories you’ll be the most successful in, or which ones will be the most enjoyable for you to draft and commit to.
How to Enter
The process to enter is simple. All you have to do is make a Scholastic account. This is where you can keep track of your current works and previous awards. You just need your email, basic demographics, and school information. I personally prefer to draft all my works on Google Docs and then only copy them into the submission portal right before I submit, as navigating and formatting is quite difficult when you’re confined to a small box, which is what they want you to submit your work in.
The submission fee is $10 per work. However, I encourage you to submit multiple if you can! This increases your chances of receiving recognition or winning an award, and if one work doesn’t encompass your full voice well enough, multiple can do the trick.
The Awards
There are three regional awards that you can get.
Honorable Mentions
“Accomplished works submitted to local programs showing great skill and potential” are awarded to 15-20% of regional submissions.
Silver Key
“Stand-out works submitted to local programs that demonstrate exceptional ability” are awarded to 10-15% of regional submissions.
Gold Key
“The very best works submitted to local programs. Gold Key works are automatically considered for national–level recognition.” are awarded to 7-10% of regional submissions.
Gold Key winners then move on to the National competition, in which they’ll be considered for potential Silver and Gold medals.
Advice and Tips
Having won silver keys in 2019 and 2024 in the science fiction and short story categories, I’ve gathered all my experience throughout the years and compiled them into advice for competitors.
Play to your strengths
As mentioned earlier, make sure that your drafting process is enjoyable. You want to submit a work that you’re proud of, and one that you’re happy to commit time to. Carefully select a category, and don’t be afraid to change things up. It’s never too late to change categories, as you only permanently decide during the submission process. The organization doesn’t know which category you pick or intend to work on until after you’re done with your work and plan to submit.
Get eyes on your works
You’re able to add an educator to your work during the submission process. If you win a national award, your educator does too! Feel free to reach out to Kowalske or any of the Comm Arts teachers, as they’ll be happy to help. Asking your peers is another great way to gain new perspectives and read your work through the eyes of a judge, who might not be able to deduct what you’re trying to say, or if any of your sentences / wording is too vague.
Read the works of previous winners
The works of national medalists are available on the Scholastic website. It states their grade, category, and shows their work. This way, you’re able to get a feel on how your peers write, what you’re up against, or what makes them so successful. HOWEVER, it’s important to note that “Jurors look for works that exemplify the Awards' core values: originality, skill, and the emergence of a personal voice or vision.”
Copying or taking too much inspiration from winners takes away your personal voice and what makes YOU stand out. Whenever I read past winners’ works, I never read the whole thing or take anything notable out of it. I simply get a feel of their plot and personal writing style and acknowledge what made them successful. Then, I go and plan my own work. All of the winners have extremely unique voices that are personal to them. Trying to replicate that isn’t a good look on anyone else, which is why you need to focus on your own voice, thought process, and style.
Best of luck this Scholastic season, Chargers!
