World Wonders
Global Classroom Creative Writing Anthology 2015
Upper Secondary
WRITING
Upper Secondary Judge’s Thoughts
Georgina Harding
“This has been really fun, judging such stories! Wonderful to read things written with fresh and open minds, and with ambition and
love of words.
But it’s been hard, too.
Hard to choose between such disparate voices, every one of which deserves to be heard: from the unforgettable dream-place of
Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds to the macabre prison of a tortured man, from the rich language of Gollum’s Cave to the clear and
sincere observation of a volunteer at a school in Tanzania, from the sense-laden imagining of a passenger on a plane landing in
Colombia or the vivid observations of a traveller in Tanzania or a deeper, almost spiritual experience in the Kalahari.
What shines through in all of these stories is the value of minds that are open to place, real and imagined, to accurate observation
and to the experience of others. These are essential qualities in a writer, just as essential as a way with words. I hope you will all go
on writing - playing with words, pushing words to express more, experimenting with words and with narration and with structure,
but most of all, seeing and imagining in the world about you.”
‘I was thinking about unforgettable places all around the world and lots of them for me were amazing buildings, like the Taj Mahal in India and
the Eiffel Tower in France. These are real places but I began imagining what it would be like if all of these were together in one place – now
that place would be unforgettable!’
Georgina Harding
Georgina Harding’s novels have had widespread critical acclaim and been shortlisted for several awards. Her first novel, The Solitude of Thomas Cave, was published in
2007 and was described as ‘divine and mesmerising’ by The Times. Even though she is preparing for the publication of her latest novel, due to be released in March 2016,
Georgina made time to read through the short stories written by our upper secondary students.
Her latest novel is due to be released in March 2016.
Illustration by Jasmine Hawken, Year 4, Compass International School Doha, Rayyan & Gharaffa
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