Deadline extended! Submissions to the 2025 KYD School Writing Prize close Friday, 8 August 2025!
The KYD School Writing Prize gives a voice to young Australians.
Judge: KYD Editor Suzy Garcia
Prize: $500 cash prize and publication in KYD magazine!
In 2025, we are seeking entries from students that explore the idea of ‘leadership’.
We are looking for writing that responds to this theme as widely and creatively as possible in the following genres:
• Short fiction
• Essays
• Personal reflections
• Memoir and biography
• Genre pieces (fantasy, sci-fi, historical, romance, crime)
The prize is designed to sit within students’ current workload—whether for assessment, exam preparation, their project-based learning model or an extra-curricular writing club.
The prize aims to develop a sustained and enjoyable writing practice for students.
Entry to the KYD School Writing Prize is open exclusively to KYD School Members and their students. There is no additional entry fee.
KYD School Members also have free access to two 45-minute online courses designed to assist students in writing pieces to submit to the Prize.
For full terms and conditions on the 2025 Prize, click here.
Please note that Submittable is a separate platform to the KYD website, so you’ll need to create a new account there separate to your KYD login details.
Extra resources:
• View our School Writing Prize pdf
• Download a poster/flyer to print for your school
• Download social media tiles to share information about the prize
• Download our guide to preparing work for submission to the prize
• Download previous winners’ stories in a user-friendly pdf
• Download the full 2025 KYD School Writing Prize Submission Guidelines and Terms & Conditions
Previous winners
2024: Imii Lang (Year 12, Princes Hill Secondary College, VIC), for her fictional piece ‘Melting’. Read more about the winning entry and the judges report here.
2023: Claudia Sherman (Year 12, Kilvington Grammar School, VIC), for her fictional piece ‘Slipping Away’. Read more about the winning entry and the judges report here.
2022: Audrey McKenzie (Year 11, Footscray High School, VIC), for her essay ‘Per Aspera Ad Astra’. Read more about the winning entry and the judges report here.
2021: Zifa Tanner-Kamal (Year 10, The University High School, VIC), for her essay ‘The Despair of Growing Up in the Climate Crisis‘. Read more about the winning entry and the judges report here.
2020: Neha De Alwis (Year 12, Nossal High School, VIC), for her short story ‘Termites’. Read more about the winning entry and the judges report here.
2019: Bryce Groves (Year 10, Quakers Hill High School, NSW) for his memoir ‘Normal’, and Faye Velasquez (Year 10, Footscray City College, VIC) for her story, ‘Ovals, Ovals’.