Today, we’re open for submissions to the 2013 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards! Have you been working on a new comic this summer or perhaps trying a new art form or maybe you made your first video game or produced a film or designed a dress or wrote a play? If so, we can’t wait to see what you’ve created!

Last year, we reached an all-time high of 200,000 submissions from talented students across the country. This year, we anticipate even more! There are 28 categories to fulfill your every artistic and literary whim, and we’ll be giving away over a quarter of a million dollars in scholarships and awards! So what are you waiting for? Learn how to submit by clicking here.

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Drake Withers. Uniform Runners. Grade 11, Age 17. 2012 Silver Medal, Photography.

Great flash fiction works the same way as a finely-honed razor: it’s quick, precise and often, cuts deep. A tightly-written piece uses its economy to convey tone, voice, and also to capture a scene that is worth re-examining for its nuances. Seventeen-year-old Peter LaBerge uses this form to his advantage in Again, which earned a Silver Medal in the 2012 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Like a roller-coaster ride, it may make you both breathless while you read it and wanting immediately to return to its first word. Check it out!

She knew he was going back to fight again. She found the confirmation slip from the army this morning, under his coffee mug. She also knew he was hiding it from her. There was a smidge of coffee across the top, which had dried by the time she found it. It resembled blood. Read More

Caroline Drew. Galaxy Box. Grade 12, Age 17. 2012 Silver Medal, Photography.

Guest post by Alliance staffer Scott Larner

When I was fourteen, my grandmother bought me a collection of 50 leather bound books from The Easton Press, called Masterpieces of Science Fiction. This left little hope that I wouldn’t spend the next few decades of my life daydreaming of outer space and aliens. I was charmed by imaginative tales in Ray Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles, enthralled with the raucous adventures of Gully Foyle in Alfred Bester’s The Stars My Destination, and captivated by the Galaxy-spanning political intrigue in Frank Herbert’s Dune.

The monsters and violence brought me in and kept me reading, but as I got older and started thinking more critically about what I read, I realized there had been more at work in those books. Read More

Christine Catlin. Kitty. Grade 10, Age 15. 2012 Gold Medal, Comic Art.

Post by Miryam Coppersmith, Scholastic Awards Alum & 2012 Scholastic/Alliance Fellow

Who doesn’t love to make an argument? We form arguments whenever we review movies, discuss politics or talk to our parents (that last part is a joke—humor can be an essential part of an argument!) Forming an argument is an invaluable skill in college and any career you might pursue. It does not just take skill either; a successful argument requires a lot of creativity. Reading through this past year’s Scholastic Award-winning Persuasive Writing in the Alliance’s online galleries, I was struck by how personal all of the pieces were. Even in a category where you might not use the word “I” in your entire piece, your personal voice shines through. Here are some tips to make your argument the most convincing and eloquent it can be.
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Guest post by Alliance staffer Monica Johnson, Manager of Art & Exhibitions

I’m creating my very first web comic right now and it’s hard. But, I’ve learned a few things that might inspire all the current and future comic artists out there.

Make your own font! Traditionally, I’ve always kept my writing and my drawing separate, just like my peas and mashed potatoes. At first it was really challenging to figure out how to create and edit a comic in the most efficient and fluid way. I would write the dialogue, then storyboard the comic. Finally I inked the comic, scanned, and formatted it. But then I would want to edit the text, and that created a problem because to change the text meant redrawing, re-scanning, and re-formatting. Argh! Too much work if you ask me.

Then I made my own font! It’s the best thing that ever happened to my web comic. It’s my own handwriting and I can edit it in any writing or design program on my computer. Visit YourFonts.com to make your own! Read More

Mary Harvey. Are You Kitten Me? Grade 12, Age 17. 2012 Silver Medal with Distinction, Art Portfolio.

On his deathbed, actor Edmund Gwenn was said to utter the now-famous phrase: “Dying is easy…comedy is difficult.” What makes a great humor piece—and why is it funny? Often, the best examples, like this one from 2012 Scholastic Awards Gold Medalist Abigail Hartley, hold a mirror up to readers. In that mirror we may see flickers of ourselves, but also can smile at the foibles of others. Humor also has roots in pain: the wallflower, the outcast, the misunderstood voice makes itself heard and it’s one with which most readers can also identify. National Scholastic Awards juror DC Pierson said of this essay: “Great combination of voice and subject matter and perfect length. Great work!!!” See what you think, and learn more about this category at the bottom of this post! Read More