First YALC 2017 authors announced

Guardian children's fiction winner Alex Wheatle, Waterstone's Book Prize winner Patrice Lawrence and Costa Children's Book Award winner Brian Conaghan are among the authors taking part in YALC 2017 in London this July.

www.londonfilmandcomiccon.com/index.php/yalc

Reigate and Banstead Writes secondary winner

We are delighted to share the winning story from Reigate and Banstead Writes, a short story competition for local students. 13 year old Ben Herneman from St Bede's School, Redhill, won the Secondary category.

Competition for great writing

The Young Muslim Writers Awards are back and they are looking for great short stories and poems from those aged five to 16 years.

muslimwritersawards.submittable.com/submit

Would you like to review Contagion?

Teri Terry's latest thriller, Contagion (Orchard Books) follows what happens when an unknown disease breaks out on a Scottish island, and then rapidly spreads. Would you like to review it for ReadingZone? (Ages 12+)

Waterstones' award winners announced

Kiran Millwood Hargrave has been announced as the overall winner of the Waterstones Children's Book Prize 2017 with her debut novel, The Girl of Ink & Stars (Chicken House).

Climate change challenge for young poets

Those aged up to 25 years are being challenged by the Young Poets Network to write, film or speak a poem about our changing world and climate change.

ypn.poetrysociety.org.uk/workshop/i-am-the-universe-writing-climate-change/

Writing competition for budding script writers

Fancy the idea of script writing as a career? Or do you just enjoy writing your own stories? Here's a great competition from First News to write a short monologue or dialogue.

www.waitingforcallback.com/write-a-monologue-or-duologue-for-us-for-a-chance-to-win-great-prizes/

BBC seeks the authors of tomorrow

The BBC Young Writers' Award 2017 is open for submissions and is looking for stories up to 1,000 words from young people aged 14 to 18. The closing date is 21 April.

www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/4PrGlh3csfFgrgdw43K698Q/the-bbc-young-writers-award-2017