Marshall Cavendish

New Authors Aged 11 and 15 Lead the Rise of Stories On Global Social Issues At Budding Writers Project 2005

17 November 2005, Singapore – " I feel that children should know about the lives of unfortunate children around the world and that they should not take their freedom for granted ," said 15 year-old Naomi Goh, who with her 13 year-old sister put together the winning poem, Dayo’s Song . The sisters’ submission was one of two Best Works selected for top honours in the annual Budding Writers Project 2005 out of over 400 entries of various genres. The other Best Work winner, 10 year old Lee Wei Jie said, " I’m very lucky to have this chance ," who like the sister team won a publishing contract to turn his Rubbish Problem into a book.

Dayo’s Song is a significant milestone for the competition as it is the first book on poem to be published as by Marshall Cavendish. Both books will be launched on 17 November at the Budding Writers Awards Ceremony and Book Launch, which will be graced by Her Excellency Mrs S. R. Nathan. Organised by Marshall Cavendish, in collaboration with the National Library Board and National Book Development Council of Singapore, the Budding Writers Project is now in its seventh year.

Rise In Students’ Awareness Of Global And Social Issues
The 2005 Best Works reflect a rising awareness of global and social issues among our Singapore students. The Rubbish Problem discusses the environmental repercussions on thoughtless dumping and disposal of waste in a village surrounded by the sea, while Dayo’s Song is an illustrated poem about the abduction of a girl who was subsequently sold as a slave.

Powerful and Fluent Expression
The panel of reviewers selected Wei Jie’s The Rubbish Problem and Naomi and Rebecca’s Dayo’s Song for their " great fluency of thought and expression " , as well as the power to move the reader with " much thought and emotion put into the expressio n". Wei Jie wrote and illustrated The Rubbish Problem , while for Dayo’s Song , Naomi was the writer and Rebecca was the illustrator. Wei Jie further impressed judges with his illustrations that " communicate so clearly " and which are " simple, yet detailed in the right places and beautifully composed " . As a result, he won the honour of Best Illustrated Wor k too .

The panel of reviewers, comprising of education consultants, ex-principals and artist, included Mrs Carmee Lim; Dr Cheah Yin Mee; Ms. Paramita Bandara; and Mr. Einstein Kristiansen.

Special Achievement Award
This year, Marshall Cavendish is giving away a special achievement award to 16-year old Amanda Chong -- a Budding Writers winner in Year 2000 -- for her subsequent international achievements of winning both the 2004 Commonwealth Essay Competition with the essay titled " What the Modern Woman Wants " and this year’s Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award with the poem titled " How to Watch a Child Die " .

Hard Work and Mentoring During Authors’ Attachment at Marshall Cavendish
Upon being selected, the young authors experienced an attachment at the international publisher’s office during the June holidays, where they turned their manuscripts into books. Subsequently, they were introduced to the printing process on 2 November. " The whole experience of getting a book published was quite different from what I imagined it to be. I was amazed to see how much more work was needed in the process of editing and planning the layout so that the book will be suitable for publication ," said Naomi.

Dr Cheah Yin Mee conducted a Book Appreciation Project at Zhonghua Secondary School and West Grove Primary School as part of the Budding Writers programme. She introduced students to the winning works and facilitated a brainstorm on ideas for possible projects as an extension to the winning story. Students were then organized into groups and were assisted in their idea development and their writing. Selected projects will be on display during the Awards Ceremony on 17 November.