This year Austin Authors has held two very exciting writing contests! The club started the year off with the fall writing contest. It was called “Gross Me Out” and it tasked students throughout the school with the challenge of writing a short story that, in alignment with the title of the contest, would gross the reader out. The winner of the fall contest was Liv Thomas ’26. She wrote a descriptive paragraph from the point of view of blood.
That wasn’t the only contest that Austin Authors hosted this year. There was also a contest in the winter called the “Snow Day” Creative Writing Contest. Participants were given three options to choose from when writing their story. They could personify a winter object, describe how it feels to be cold, or describe the “most perfect Winter Wonderland.” They had around a month to write these short stories, and the winners received a gift card. The winners were Torin Baggs ‘24, Hayden Bai ‘25, and Liv Thomas ‘26. Their stories are below:
The Winter –by Torin Baggs
The brisk tendrils of winter’s breath dance upon exposed skin, weaving through the fabric of one’s being with an unrelenting touch. A shiver, an involuntary quiver, courses through the body as a silent symphony of chills plays beneath the surface. The air, once a gentle ally, transforms into a biting adversary, nipping at any warmth it encounters. Fingers, once nimble and sure, become reluctant accomplices in the daily ballet of routine. They lose their dexterity, as if the very essence of movement is suspended in the icy tableau. Muscles tighten, seeking refuge from the relentless intrusion, as if the very sinews of the body conspire to resist the encroaching coolness. The landscape, once vibrant with the hues of life, adopts a muted palette, a monochrome tapestry of muted greens and faded browns. Nature itself seems to hibernate, withdrawing into a state of suspended animation, awaiting the inevitable thaw of spring. The breath, when exhaled transforms into wisps of fleeting clouds, a visible testament to the invisible battle against the chill. Each inhale feels like a hesitant embrace of the frigid atmosphere, a reminder that warmth is a precious commodity to be savored in the face of winter’s unyielding grasp.
In this realm of frosty enchantment, the body becomes a vessel for the ambient temperature, a canvas upon which the story of winter is written in the language of sensation.
A Winter Utopia— by Hayden Bai
Every year all the water molecules expect winter, a chance of peace.
When most of the animals start to rest in this freezing weather, the water molecules are finally alone in nature. They finally have a chance to be the sole enjoyer of the outside world. The water in the clouds is fully prepared to return down to the world. Some of them might return to the river where they originally came from. They soon overcame the power of the river with ice sheets covering the rivers. They descend down to the world in the form of snow, quickly filling the ditches and covering the fields, taking all the spaces they can fill. They filled in all that they could fill. United, they make themselves the only substance visible in the world…
But there are more of them, descending from the clouds, who also want to keep this new form of theirs. That’s what everything wants, a sense of peace achieved by their structural stability. The newly arrived snowflakes want that too. They have to depend on their friends or foes who have already arrived and compiled an environment that is suitable for them to stay in. Soon they are trialed by their nature, gravity, being pulled down, condensed. All of them want to take the space of the others, no matter if they were once friends or foes…
Spring arrives, snow melts, water returns to the world. Once again, they start to expect winter…
by Liv Thomas
Riddle me this, I drip, I run, I crawl, I stay with you, and stamp a memory into you. What am I? Blood. Your blood, your dog’s blood, or a stranger’s blood. We are so common, yet so peculiar. I love hearing your heart wrenching throaty screams when you get a good look at me. The panic you go into when you see me especially. And not just a miniscule papercut either, more like when I stab you. Doesn’t it bring you glee when you see me? But which do you prefer, the oozing, liquified and spilling blood, soaking your clothes wet? Or maybe you prefer me congealed, hard and crusted to your clothes, stiffening your blouse. I think it is even funnier that as I stiffen your clothes, it stiffens your body. It’s ok if you can’t decide, I can’t either. However, maybe you would like to find out.
Overall, Both of the writing contests were a huge success. Thank you so much to everyone that participated! We look forward to hosting more events like these in the future.