We’re celebrating the winners and finalists in the Kingsmead Young Writers’ Competition 2025

Aspiring young creative writers from across South Africa wowed us with their talent in the annual Kingsmead Young Writers’ Competition (YWC) – the country’s premier youth writing competition open to all learners aged 6 to 18.

Now in its fourth year, the competition continues to grow, with 813 entries received from schools nationwide. Entrants from Gauteng and the Western Cape led the way, showcasing the diversity and strength of South Africa’s young literary voices.

Hosted by Kingsmead College, a leading girls’ school in Johannesburg known for its commitment to literacy and education, the YWC offers young South Africans a unique platform to express their creativity across genres and styles. The competition provides constructive feedback from a panel of professional writers and publishers, helping to nurture future authors and storytellers.

The Kingsmead Book Fair — now in its 13th year — takes place this Saturday, 24 May 2025, and will feature a vibrant programme of discussions and panels with local and international authors. It has become a cornerstone of South Africa’s literary calendar, celebrating a culture of reading, writing, and storytelling. Book tickets here. 

How is The Book Tree Involved?

The Book Tree is proud to be the founder of the competition, which was started after Book Tree owner Corinne Rosmarin saw a need to celebrate and inspire a new generation of young writers.  After five years curating the Kingsmead Book Fair’s children’s and young adult programmes, Corinne turned her eye to getting children to write the stories they wanted to read. “I absolutely loved books and writing little stories as a child, and I wish there had been a competition of this nature then.  My dream is to involve all schools in South Africa and grow the competition to have categories for the different local languages and a range of genres such as poetry and graphic novels.”

This year’s theme invited entrants to explore one of four words – Seeds, Roots, Bloom, or Grow – as inspiration for an original short story. Winners in each age category receive prizes including cash awards from Standard Bank Wealth and Investment, book vouchers from Exclusive Books, personalised feedback, and publication in an online eBook.

Judge’s Feedback

The hard part is choosing the top entries.  So many of your stories stood out for various aspects, such as a clever plot or excellent use of vocabulary, so we had to narrow it down to the stories that combined most of these skills. And the stories that lingered in our minds. If your story wasn’t chosen this year, keep reading, writing and practicing your craft and enter again next year. Just because this wasn’t your year, don’t give up. Remember, most authors go through many rejections until they get published.

“There is no failure. Only feedback.” – Robert Allen

Celebrated author and judge Craig Higginson commented on the quality of submissions:

“It’s obviously really hard to choose as there are so many entries and such a wide range. I was looking for good writing — by which I mean a sophisticated use of language, a strong personal voice, a lively energy, a coherent and resonant narrative, and something original that is digging deeper than cliché.”

Carol Broomhall, publisher at Jacana Media, added:

“It is always such a joy to judge this competition. I would love to make every child feel special just for entering, as the stories are just so very sweet and imaginative.”

However, this year also highlighted some new challenges. Verushka Louw, Children’s Sales Representative at Jonathan Ball Publishers, noted the increasing use of generative AI tools in entries:

“I had a really hard time judging the stories this year. The appeal of using AI — ChatGPT, Gemini, etc. — is clearly visible. In the past, I would sometimes suspect adult help, but this year artificial intelligence definitely featured, and I think it will just keep on growing.” Entries flagged for potential AI use were reviewed using AI detection tools or verified through the learner’s school teachers to ensure authenticity.

General Feedback

It isn’t possible to give feedback to every entrant, but one of the main points that distinguished the top stories was the use of imagination and plot.

Think about what is going to happen in your story. Some stories were well written, but the action took too long to happen, or the story line was unbelievable. Some stories seemed more focused on showing the skill of creating dialogue, using figures of speech or describing a character’s appearance and background.  Weave those elements into a powerful plot. Tell us a new story.

In addition, the judges looked at the following points:

• Did you stick to the rules? If not, your story could have been disqualified. The story had to mention or be based around one of the following words: Seeds, Roots, Bloom, Grow. Did you stick to the word count?  So many stories went over or were too short. Did you write about violence, hate, or other inappropriate themes that are not allowed? Did you enter in the correct age category? This is the age you are when writing the story, not later this year.
• Did you have help?  Some stories did not pass our AI detector or they were clearly written with the help of an adult.  When we weren’t sure, we checked with the relevant teachers to see the general standard of your work.
• For the younger entrants who are still learning to write, we looked at how creative, original and memorable their stories were.  We love seeing the flash of a creative idea that is age appropriate to the child writing it. We are not looking for morals or themes but rather a writing voice that stands out.
• Finally, remember that judging is subjective. Just because our judges didn’t choose your story, it doesn’t mean you can’t be a writer. If you love writing – keep writing.

For tips on How to plot a Story read here.

Look out for the eBook of the finalists’ stories which will go up mid-June and diarise 2 February 2026 for next year’s competition!

FULL LIST OF WINNERS, RUNNERS UP and HIGHLY COMMENDED 2025:

Congratulations to our winners, runners up, and highly commended entrants!

There were many strong entries this year, so no matter where you placed in your age group, you can be very proud of being selected.

Age 6-7:

Winner:

Laura Van Zuydam – The Magical Seed, Kingsmead College, Gauteng

Runners up in alphabetical order:

Asmaa Haseena Maasdorp – Growing with My Granny, Kingsmead College, Gauteng

Demi Van der Merwe – Wool Tree Seeds, Eunice Primary School, Free State

Highly Commended in alphabetical order

Ayaan Amien – Grow up, Control Your ADHD, King Edward VII Preparatory School, Gauteng

Azhaaria Vadia – The Interesting Seed, Kingsmead College, Gauteng

Finn De Bruyn – The Root That Went Around the World, De La Salle Holy Cross College Junior School, Gauteng

Gemma Graham – The Boy and the Dragon Bloom, Trompsberg Primary, Free State

Iyana Mhlauli – Watch Me Grow! Cornwall Hill College, Gauteng

Jude Naidoo – Being Brave Is Growing, Holy Childhood School, KwaZulu Natal

Michaela Amperbang – Grow: The Champion of Art, Redhill Junior School, Gauteng

AGE 8-9

Winner:

Anna Strumpher – The Magical Seed, Knysna Montessori School, Western Cape

Runners up in alphabetical order:

Frances Gillibrand – The Missing Paw Paw Seeds, St Teresa’s School, Gauteng

Mia Eagar – The Tough Life of a Seed, Kingsmead College, Gauteng

Highly Commended in alphabetical order:

Benedicta Ngadi – The Scary Root, Cornwall Hill College, Gauteng

Hallelujah Khumalo – The Secret Of The Roots, Redhill Junior School, Gauteng

Joshua Joubert – The Four Roots of the Great Tree, Laerskool Jan Celliers, Gauteng

Kewamodimo Leballo – Grow Petite, Grow, Cornwall Hill College, Gauteng

Matthew Prozesky – The Silly Seed, Cornwall Hill College, Gauteng

Sophia Luus – Friendships Nestled in The Roots, Laerskool Jan Celliers, Gauteng

Thomas Feher – The Dino Who Started To Grow, De La Salle Holy Cross College Junior School, Gauteng

 AGE 10-12

Winner:

Luke Gounden – The Great Roots, St Benedict’s Preparatory, Gauteng

Runners up in alphabetical order:

Adrienne Sales – Bloom: The Journey of a Sunflower, St Teresas School, Gauteng

Asante Ntim – Kole: The Boy Who Chose to Grow, Home schooled, Gauteng

Highly Commended in alphabetical order:

Aaliya Reddy – Bloom Seeds: A Twist in Time, Craighall Primary, Gauteng

Imitha Nyangiwe – Grow: My Complicated Relationship With My Own Brain, St Katherines School, Gauteng.

Isla Carter – Deep Roots, St Katherines School, Gauteng.

James Heron – The Growth of an Extinct Bird, St John’s Preparatory, Gauteng

Kaboentle Ndala – Growing Magic, Redhill School, Gauteng

Karabo Toba – The Cursed Seeds, St John’s Preparatory, Gauteng

Liam Blumberg – The Seeds That Were Lost In The River, Herzlia Highlands, Western Cape

Olivia Pampel – Bloom: Escape from Ukraine, Brescia House, Gauteng

Olivia Neille – The Dry Seeds, De La Salle Holy Cross College Junior School, Gauteng

Tarek Bhana – Roots: Odyssey from India to South Africa, St Johns Preparatory, Gauteng

 Age 13-15

Winner: Anina Reed – Timeless Roots, International School of Cape Town, Western Cape

Runners up in alphabetical order:

Anna Monametsi – As The Rock Giant Grows, Home schooled, Western Cape

Othandwayo Skenjana – The Problem Growing a Dragon Seed, Hatfield Online School, Gauteng

Highly Commended:

Ameera Bhamjee – Just a Bloom Away, Houghton Muslim Academy

Kainan Potts – Bloom Disease, Home schooled, Western Cape

Sophie Wolstenholme – Roots, Kingsmead College, Gauteng

Lomso Mvunelo – Southside Bloom, Curro New Road High School, Gauteng

Letlotlo Sekhejane – Roots: Life in the Township, Ntha Primary School, Free State

Sam Cooke – Roots of the Golden Tennis Ball, St John’s College, Gauteng

Zoey Grove – Seeds and Mulch, Uplands College, Mpumalanga

Age 16-18

Winner: Kate Rankin – Bloom to Blade, Somerset College, Western Cape

Runners Up:

Liso Siswana – Buried Seeds, Buried Secrets, St Johns College, Gauteng

Maya Russell – The World Is A Seed, St Cyprians, Western Cape

Highly commended in alphabetical order:

Cara Moore – Sunflower Seeds, Parktown High School for Girls, Gauteng

Chloe du Plessis – The Seeds of The Chestnut Tree, Springfield Convent School of the Holy Rosary, Western Cape

Faheemah Surty – Ink and Identity Bloom, Ashton International College

Leano Mathibe – Seeds of Power Sown in the Mind, St Mary’s DSG Pretoria, Gauteng

Lebone Ramokgopa – The Last Bloom, St John’s Sixth Form, Gauteng

Lucy Machanik – Life and Growth, Wynberg Girls High School, Western Cape

Tara Thorvaldsen – Roots Beneath, Bones Above, Springfield Convent, Western Cape