Magazine International Competition

The very talented Arim Lee (9M1) has scooped First Runner Up in a Hong Kong wide writing competition. Arim will receive a cash prize, a trophy, certificate and magazine coupons. Kavinda De Alwis (11B2) also won with a Merit Award in the Senior Section and will receive a smaller cash prize and magazine coupons.

‘Magazines International’ runs an annual competition in Hong Kong for non-fiction writing. It is a well-known competition and many schools in Hong Kong enter, hoping to come out with some winners. A number of South Island students entered the competition way back in January, and we have been eagerly awaiting the results.

Arim succeeded with a fluidly written essay (here) all about what it means to be a hero. The clarity of the intent and the great use of imagery in the essay made it a sure-fire hit: “This is the first time I have entered in this competition, but I do enjoy writing and have entered in some competitions in my primary school. The topic for the article was ‘My Hero’, and I found it a bit difficult to write about this topic in a way that was not a cliche or a typical generic storyline. Instead of talking about who my hero was, I talked about the phrase “My Hero” and how it develops during your lifetime. For example when you are young a Hero is someone like Superman, or Cinderella. But as we grow up the phrase is changed into different words like Models, Superstars and more. And how all of this affects our definition of what makes a Hero.  It was really fun to write about and a different concept.” – Arim Lee

Kavinda’s elegant essay (here) focused on imagining what it would be like if the world were equipped with a ‘reset’ button and discussed the reasons why this would be a good idea.

Both students have done exceptionally well to win at this level with so many schools competing. We look forward to seeing their names in print again very soon!