WRITING AWARDS FOR UNDER 26s/19s/15s
£3,125 in prizes and the opportunity to be published
The Wills Writing Awards, launched today, 'offer the two things aspirant writers always want - fame and money! They are the best thing young racing scribblers have ever had' says Brough Scott, Chairman of the judges for the ninth successive year.
The annual Awards, started in 1993 in memory of journalist and amateur jockey Martin Wills, are for creative writing (fact or fiction) around a horseracing theme. They are open to young people resident in the UK or the Republic of Ireland, with three categories: under 26, under 19 and under 15. Each category offers substantial prizes, the main one being £1,250.
Previous winners have gone on to write for the national and racing press, the news agencies and the broadcast media.
Those aged under 26/19/15 at 1 January 2011 are invited to submit a single article by 28 February 2011 via the 'Entry Requirements' section of the Awards' website www.willswritingawards.co.ukhttp://www.willswritingawards.co.uk/> . Employees of the national and racing press, in a journalistic capacity, and previous winners in their category are ineligible. Entries are judged anonymously.
Particular importance will be attached by the judges to originality, imagination, entertainment and construction. Quality of writing is key; a detailed knowledge of horseracing is unnecessary.
The maximum word counts are 1,200 (under 26s/19s) or 800 (under 15s).
The article must not be published prior to the announcement of the winners of the Awards. No correspondence will be entered into and the judges' decision is final. Schools should, please, not submit more than three entries per class.
The six prizes, for the winner and runner-up in each category, are £1,250/£750 (under 26s), £500/£250 (under 19s) and £250/£125 (under 15s). In addition, the winners will be published in the Racing Post and The Irish Field. The under 26 winner will also have the opportunity of work experience at the Racing Post.
The Awards will be announced and presented at Newmarket's prestigious Craven Meeting in mid-April 2011, when all six prize winners will be given an expenses paid day's racing, including a reception in a private luncheon room generously made available by the Racecourse. There will also be a tour of two leading stables.
The six 2011 judges are: Brough Scott (Chairman), three times Sports Feature Writer of the Year, Racing Writer of the Year in both 1977 and 2010, and a leading figure in three spheres of racing journalism - the national press, the trade press and broadcasting; Marcus Armytage, racing writer at The Daily Telegraph and Grand National winning jockey; David Ashforth, Racing Writer of the Year in both 1996 and 2008, who has recently retired as a senior writer and columnist at the Racing Post; Matthew Engel, who worked for The Guardian for almost 25 years (including as Washington Correspondent), edited 12 editions of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack and now has a column in the Financial Times; Sean Magee, a versatile racing author and journalist who has collaborated with several leading racing personalities, most recently with Mick Fitzgerald in The Cheltenham World of Jump Racing; and Catherine Wills, DPhil art historian sister of Martin Wills and a member of the Jockey Club.
The Martin Wills Memorial Trust commemorates Martin Wills, an amateur jockey, point-to-point rider, racing enthusiast and journalist who died in April 1992, aged 39.
Information on the Awards is available on www.willswritingawards.co.uk built by racecar
