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Each year, the Young Writers group reaches out to schools across the country, asking students to turn in some of their writing. Some classes set aside days to give students time to work on the project. It’s part competition and part writing assignment, to help students work on expressing themselves through written work. Everyone is given the same prompt, the same place to start from and then has to take it from there. Winners end up each year in The Glitch, the yearly book of short stories published by Young Writers. This time around, there was a student from Prince Edward County Middle School on the list. 

Dakota Mericle was published in The Glitch for his story Why So Soon?, about a boy fighting with the personification of Death. The story details a boy’s fight to get back to the land of the living after an accident, and the challenges he faces in doing so. 

“The Glitch invited students to write a mini-saga, a story told in up to 100 words, inspired by a glitch,” Young Writers staff said in a statement. “We asked students what happens when an ordinary day turns extraordinary? What are the effects on the world if one thing is changed forever?” 

Young Writers also provided some support for everyone who entered the competition. Students were allowed to look at entries from previous years, given a graphic organizer and word bank to help spark creativity. Entries had to be submitted by the end of February and then finalists were narrowed down, based on what each student demonstrated during their writing.

The staff singled out Dakota’s work, Young Writers officials said, based on the Prince Edward Middle School student’s imagination, creativity and use of language.  

Dakota meanwhile said that he likes writing because he can share his big imagination.