In keeping with the theme the Museum is celebrating this year, the 200th anniversary of Austen’s third novel Mansfield Park, the topic of the competition, An Interesting Remembrance, is inspired by a quote from the novel: “She could scarcely see an object in that room which had not an interesting remembrance connected with it...”    Mansfield Park (Chapter 16) Jane Austen

For the 2014/15 writing competition young writers can write a poem or short story based on their creative response to an object of their choice.  The object does not need to be valuable; often, the most ordinary objects are the ones that tell the most powerful stories.    

Poems need to be no more than 40 lines and short stories no more than 400 words.  There are two categories to enter:  11-14 year olds and 15-17 year olds.  Closing date is Wednesday 31st December. Winners will be notified by Friday 27th February and invited to attend the awards ceremony at Jane Austen’s House Museum, Hampshire, on Saturday 28th March, 2015.  Prizes will include publication on the Jane Austen House Museum website, goody bags, book vouchers and the unique opportunity to attend a writing workshop with the judges on the morning of the prizegiving.

The judges will be: 

• Poetry – Maura Dooley: award winning poet; lectures in creative writing at Goldsmiths College, University of London; current poet-in-residence at Jane Austen’s House Museum.

• Short Story – Rebecca Smith: novelist; teaching fellow in creative writing at Southampton University; former writer-in-residence at Jane Austen’s House Museum.