u/AnimalLate3876

I entered a story contest with this short story I'd written from summer to January, editing until April. I'm really proud of it and yes, I agree it could use some more polishing, but I think I did amazing. I drafted many more times than I usually do.

Anyway, today I saw the results and I didn't get in. I was sad but decided to read the first winner by a girl in my grade. I wanted to see what they did, though i could learn from it, last year one of the winers had such a good story so i though i'd be the same. There are 3 winners in each grade level, and it was . . . interesting. It felt confusing and like you weren't shown anything, just told. It felt like something I's write in 5th or 6th grade. I'm in 8th now, which isn't necessarily bad, and I know I write a bit advanced for my age, but still. the writing style was kind of plain, good idea but executed poorly.

I don't want to put this other young writer down, and I know I'm probably biased, but I just can't see how they chose that short story over mine. Mine was filled with atmosphere and symbolism, and the other was an adventure story, but it felt rushed and confusing, etc.

Any thoughts? I don't know how to sit with this . . .

Hi, I’m in junior high and the high school I want to go to mainly does musicals. I love drama and improv, and I really want to be in a musical with a decent role when I get there (they’ve done shows like Hadestown and Heathers).

I’ve been doing drama from grades 7–9, have 2 years of improv (and I’m continuing next year), and I’m also part of my school play, so I do have acting experience.

The thing is… I can’t really sing/ dont think i can rn, i've never taken lessons or anything, and I haven’t been naturally drawn to it before.

I’ve got about 1–2 years to prepare, so I’m looking for advice on what I should do. Should I take singing classes or smth?

Also, I want to try doing theatre outside of school. Would it be better to go straight into musical theatre, or start with regular plays? Is it harder to audition for musicals outside of school, or would that actually help me get experience and learn the basics?

Any advice would be really appreciated!