12th Annual Young Writers Competition Awards Ceremony

After 11 years at the Litchfield Inn, the Young Writers Competition Awards Ceremony has moved to The Mark Twain House & Museum! This competition, which highlights works of poetry and prose submitted by teenagers from throughout the state, this year inspired the participation of over 580 students this year -- the third highest number of entries in the competition's 12 years -- and is sponsored by IMPAC and the Connecticut State University System. The ceremony will be held on Sunday, May 31, 2009, beginning at 7 p.m., following a reception that begins at 5:30 p.m.

"There could not be a better setting to honor outstanding young writers than the Mark Twain House & Museum. The talent and creativity of a new generation of Connecticut writers is clearly evident, and the inspiration that Mark Twain's example provides is especially fitting as we recognize their excellent prose and poetry," said David G. Carter, chancellor of the Connecticut State University System.

"These students certainly understand what Mark Twain was saying in 1888. The Mark Twain House &Museum is honored to host the 12th Annual Young Writers Award Ceremony. Hartford's Nook Farm was a haven for 19th century writers, including Harriet Beecher Stowe, Charles Dudley Warner, and, of course, Mark Twain. I can not think of a more fitting location in Connecticut for this prestigious awards ceremony," said Jeffrey L. Nichols, executive director of The Mark Twain House & Museum.

The state winners in prose and poetry, to be announced at the Mark Twain House ceremony, will be invited, with a parent, to a week of festivities in Ireland connected with the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and the Dublin Writers Festival. There, they will also meet young writers from Europe and Asia. Their works will also be considered for publication in Connecticut Review, the literary journal published by the Connecticut State University System (CSUS).

*Caitlin

"The difference between the almost right word & the right word is really a large matter--it's the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning." -Mark Twain