As we continue to build excitement for the 2024 Writing Contest, we’re thrilled to shine the spotlight on some of our brilliant former winners.
Let’s hear from a two-time winner, Joseph Legaspi.
What year did you win the Storyshares writing contest? 2022 for "Chance and Little Star" and 2023 for "Hiding the Dragon”.
Tell us about your book. "Chance and Little Star" is about a young teenage girl who has a fatal problem that no one can seem to help, except one boy. "Hiding the Dragon" is about a young teenage boy who falls deeply in love, but struggles to keep his love’s darkest secret, which he knows he must reveal.
How did you find out about the contest? I was a follower of Storyshares long before the contest, so was excited when I saw the contest announced.
What gave you the idea for your story? "Chance and Little Star" came from various characters that I already had been developing for other stories, but suddenly all came together well for this one. "Hiding the Dragon" came from my experience working in a community program that dealt with the type of problems brought up in the story.
What made you want to participate in the contest? I believe in the mission of Storyshares, and with my background in writing and literacy programs, wanted to see if I could contribute something of worth to it.
How has your life changed since winning the Storyshares contest? Winning both contests has given me tremendous encouragement to continue my other writing projects. I am truly, deeply grateful!
Anything else you want us to know? Thank you for this interview! And for having the contest -- I'm sure it will inspire many other writers to craft stories that will help continue to spread literacy and the joy of reading!
If you’d like to hear more from Joseph about his writing process, check out his interview with Dr. Laurel Paula Jackson, from her webinar Seeing What is Possible: The Importance of Representation in the Books That We Read.
Joseph’s books, Chance and Little Star, and Hiding the Dragon are ideal for engaging striving high school readers. They can be found in our eLibrary.