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The First Page student writing challenge: Past winners and finalists

CBC Books | | Posted: November 25, 2021 9:14 PM | Last Updated: January 29

Image | The First Page Student Writing Challenge

Caption: The First Page student writing challenge asks students in Grades 7 to 12 to write the first page of a novel from 150 years in the future. (Ben Shannon, CBC)

The First Page is a national writing competition for Grades 7 to 12 students in Canada. The competition has been running on an annual basis since 2017.
Students are invited to write the first page of a novel, imagining how present-day issues and trends — from climate change to cryptocurrency — have played out 150 years in the future.
Over 2,000 students enter the prize each year, from which a shortlist is selected in each of the two categories: Grades 7 to 9 and Grades 10-12.
Past judges include YA writers Basil Sylvester, Courtney Summers, Erin Bow, Cherie Dimaline, Kelley Armstrong, David A. Robertson and Sarah Raughley.
Any questions? Email cbcbooks@cbc.ca(external link) and we'll get back to you as soon as possible.
Below, find an archive of all the winners and finalists since 2017.

2024: Grades 7 to 9 category

Image | The First Page 2024 finalist: Anya Thadani

Caption: Anya Thadani won the 2024 First Page student writing challenge in the Grades 7 to 9 category. (Submitted by Anya Thadani)

Winner: Fixed by Anya Thadani, 14, from Toronto.
"Fixed is a fantastic first page. It draws the reader in with natural world-building. I love the juxtaposition between the calm family scene inside and the snowfall outside, even before the knock on the door. A knock on a door is a classic conflict-builder and this first page subverted the expectations by having the people at the doorstep be helpful and intimidating," said 2024 First Page judge Basil Sylvester.
"It understands perspective and information flow so well and I immediately wanted to know what happens with the medication and how the family would react. It's a short and simple piece that uses tone and setting effectively to convey unease even while the narrator is telling us they are hopeful for the future. An excellent beginning with a fully realized narrative voice."
Finalists

2024: Grades 10 to 12 category

Image | The First Page 2024 finalist: Hayley Peters

Caption: Hayley Peters won the 2024 First Page student writing challenge in the Grades 10 to 12 category. (Submitted by Hayley Peters)

Forbidden Realities by Hayley Peters, 17 from Kleefeld, Man.
"Forbidden Realities immediately made me want to know what happened next. It took an idea from contemporary life and put it in a new context," 2024 First Page judge Basil Sylvester said in their citation.
"Many of the submissions this year felt like more or less complete short stories, but Forbidden Realities introduces conflict and gives the reader just enough information and context to have them engaged and wanting to turn the page to see how the conflict resolves. A dystopian vision that speaks to contemporary Canada."
Finalists

2023: Grades 7 to 9 category

Image | Christian A. Yiouroukis

Caption: Christian A. Yiouroukis is a finalist for the 2023 First Page Student Writing Challenge in the Grades 7-9 category. (Submitted by Christian A. Yiouroukis)

Winner: Where the Maple Leaf Grows by Christian A. Yiouroukis, 13, from Oshawa, Ont.
"It's reasonable for a young writer's anxiety and concerns over the future to reflect in stories presenting a worst case scenario — often those that showcase the catastrophic consequences of our reckless abuses of this planet and its vital, natural resources," said First Page judge Courtney Summers.
"While that perspective is absolutely valuable, what I loved about Where the Maple Leaf Grows was how deeply entrenched it was in optimism and how beautifully expressed that optimism was through the author's clever framing. The story immediately transports us into one family's life as they prepare for a community feast. The active and engaging voice paints a world that is very tantalizing in its hope. In few words, it gave readers a vision of a future we should work to make happen, rather than prevent from happening — I wanted to spend more time in it."
Finalists

2023: Grades 10 to 12 category

Image | Bee Lang

Caption: Bee Lang is a finalist in the First Page Student Writing Challenge in the Grades 10-12 category. (Submitted by Bee Lang)

Winner: One Question by Bee Lang, 17, from Edmonton.
"I was instantly compelled by the form and intimacy of this first page and how acutely and heartbreakingly the author captures the present day fears of a community whose human rights are increasingly under attack," said the prize judge Courtney Summers.
"The further degradation of those rights and the violence it will enable if we continue down that path was expertly rendered by the writing's tight emotional focus, sensory details, and subtle suggestions of its future setting. One Question is an important and urgent reminder that our future will be defined by many things and how we treat each other is among them. Choosing verse was a bold stylistic choice and it was easy to imagine the story continuing and expanding into a series of equally compelling vignettes."
Finalists

2022: Grades 7 to 9 category

Image | Joshua Zhuang

Caption: Joshua Zhuang, 15, has won The 2022 First Page student writing competition in the Grades 7 to 9 category. (Submitted by Joshua Zhuang)

Winner: Fugees by Joshua Zhuang, 15, from Toronto.
"This in media res beginning explodes with tension from the first word, drawing the reader in immediately. We're introduced to characters and their dilemma from the start. With only a few words, the author not only strongly conveys the conflict but also adeptly builds an emotional connection between the characters and readers, forcing us into the characters' shoes as we attempt an escape along with them," said the prize judge Sarah Raughley.
"Most importantly, while the escape attempt does not go as planned, we're left knowing that the plot is far from over. This is a story that forces us to think critically about immigration and displacement. Who does Canada's dominant society consider to be 'Canadian' and worthy of the full gamut of rights as citizens? And who do we criminalize as 'Other'?"
Finalists

2022: Grades 10 to 12 category

Image | Victor Li

Caption: Victor Li, 15, has won The First Page student writing competition in the Grades 10 to 12 category. (Submitted by Victor Li)

Winner: Still Water by Victor Li, 15, from Mississauga, Ont.
"With clear and clean writing, the author introduces us to the beginnings of a coming-of-age story in a world that's suffered an environmental collapse," said the prize judge Sarah Raughley.
"Evocative language and smart dialogue paint a picture of the cost of climate change on our planet's sources of water. Once luscious lakes have been transformed into toxic landfills. The innocence of the protagonists' voices, still young as they wonder if fish that eat garbage is edible, drives home the price children will pay for the older generation's mistakes. With poetic flare, the author leaves the door open for a much larger story of self-discovery."
Finalists

2020: Grades 7 to 9 category

Image | Sophie McGowan

Caption: Sophie McGowan, 12, won the Grades 7 to 9 category of The First Page student writing challenge 2020. (Submitted by Sophie McGowan)

Winner: Pollinator by Sophie McGowan, 12, from Burnaby, B.C.
"I love it when a simple concept has such complexity underneath the surface. Pollinator is at once evocative, poetic, and succinct. And thematically and structurally, this story took a different approach that was ironic, and meaningful," said the prize judge David A. Robertson.
"I loved the whimsical tone and how rich the imagery was; contrasting a smear of yellow pollen against the black stripes down the drones' centres was particularly effective."
Finalists

2020: Grades 10 to 12 category

Image | Caris Simmons

Caption: Caris Simmons, 17, won the Grades 10 to 12 category of The First Page student writing challenge 2020. (Submitted by Caris Simmons)

Winner: Chasing 1% by Caris Simmons, 17, from Calgary
"In writing, timeliness is important, but difficult to catch. Chasing 1% is a sophisticated meditation on the division of class through a literal separation; one class above, the other below," said prize judge David A. Robertson.
"But as with any good story, it goes deeper than that, addressing, as well, a division of age, starkly contrasting not just the "haves and have nots" but the entitlement of one generation against the 'grit' of another."
Finalists

2019: Grades 7 to 9 category

Image | Juliana Narvaez Gutierrez - The First Page

Caption: Juliana Narváez Gutierrez, 14, won the Grades 7 to 9 category for The First Page student writing challenge 2019. (Submitted by Juliana Narváez Gutierrez)

Winner: No Choice by Juliana Narváez Gutierrez, 14, from Greenfield Park, Que.
"Genre fiction has a tradition of the slow burn, where a seemingly everyday scene takes on greater and more unsettling weight as it progresses, culminating in a final, chilling twist. Science fiction also pushes us to look at ideas and issues we may not have considered before," said prize judge Kelley Armstrong.
"No Choice accomplishes both of those, the impact made even more effective by its deceptively cheerful narrative voice."
Finalists

2019: Grades 10 to 12 category

Image | Leonardo Mete - The First Page

Caption: Leonardo Mete, 15, won the Grades 10 to 12 category for The First Page student writing challenge 2019. (Submitted by Leonardo Mete)

Winner: Below Zero, Above Thirty-Two by Leonardo Mete, 15, from Kamloops, B.C.
"The best issue-driven science fiction approaches those issues obliquely, laying them out for the reader to experience and interpret," said prize judge Kelley Armstrong.
"Below Zero, Above Thirty-Two does that with a very well-written and evocative scene that reserves its final punch for the ending."
Finalists

2018: Grades 7 to 9 category

Image | Stella Xia

Caption: Stella Xia, 13, is won the Grades 7 to 9 category for The First Page student writing challenge 2018. (Submitted by Stella Xia)

Winner: Taxidermied by Stella Xia, 13, from Mississauga, Ont.
"This first page shows a gift for metaphor and vivid description," said prize judge Cherie Dimaline.
"We are brought into a world where the last tree was carved into a grave and the youth share their disappointment with robots. I was moved by the development of scene and structure and am eager to see what this young writer will create now."
Finalists

2018: Grades 10 to 12 category

Image | Peter Ola Paul

Caption: Peter Ola Paul, 16, won the Grades 10 to 12 category for The First Page student writing challenge 2018. (Submitted by Peter Ola Paul)

Winner: Greater Than Or Equal To by Peter Ola Paul, 16, from Winnipeg, Man.
"This entry is cinematic is scope," said prize judge Cherie Dimaline.
"With just a few lines and compelling narrative dialogue, the author lures you into a world that is as immediate and visceral as it is unique. It's quite an accomplishment to bring readers this far in with so few words. I want to know what happens next!"
Finalists

2017: Grades 7 to 9 category

Image | Nameless by Sari Warshawsky

Caption: Sari Warshawsky is the 2017 winner for The First Page student writing challenge in the Grades 7 to 9 category. (Courtesy of Sari Warshawsky)

Winner: Nameless by Sari Warshawsky, 13, from Montreal, Que.
"Nameless works on its own terms, but it also could be read as a sharp critique of the omnipresent world of social media that envelopes today's young people. It made my heart ache for today's kids, and it made me think," said prize judge Erin Bow.
Finalists

2017: Grades 10 to 12 category

Image | Abby Robitaille

Caption: Abby Robitaille is the 2017 winner of the The First Page student writing challenge in the Grades 10 to 12 category. (Courtesy of Abby Robitaille)

Winner: The Greater Good by Abby Robitaille from Oakville, Ont.
"I picked The Greater Good because it's just so much fun. If you read teen fiction, you've seen it before: the crowd of nervous teens waiting for some terrible trial or competition to begin. But here, it gradually emerges that the kids are waiting to see who is going to be picked as an apprentice to the evil dictator," said prize judge Erin Bow.
Finalists

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