Grade 7 pupils in Mototi ward in Zvishavane will this year showcase their writing skills in the recently announced inaugural Ronasi Fiction Prize competition.
The writing competition is the brainchild of the Ronald Sigauke Memorial Fiction Prize, in collaboration with Chisiya Writers’ Workshop, for schools under Chief Mazvihwa and is set to benefit pupils from Gudo, Mototi, and Gwen'ombe Dip primary schools.
The Sigauke family initiated the prize in memory of Ronald Sigauke, who passed away in Harare at the tender age of seven.
Ronald always expressed his dream to pursue an advanced education while he was in primary school and was already showing signs of an emerging scholar. Although his school in Glen View was a 20-minute walk from home, he had asked his uncle, who is based in the United States, to send him a bicycle so he could pedal to school and arrive quicker.
The competition will honour his ambition by making education and bicycles the two themes on which contestants can base their stories. Contestants are only allowed to choose one theme and submit one story which can either be in Shona or English with a word limit between 800 to 1 500 words.
Using the theme “Education and Success”, participants are asked to compose a story in which characters make every effort to further their education. This could be a result of their own efforts, or the efforts of their guardians, parents, or school.
The writing competition coordinator, Emmanuel Sigauke, told IndependentXtra that “the story should show the challenges that they face and how they overcome them”.
“It may also be about other challenges or experiences, but it should still have the theme of education in the background. In other words, a story about someone losing a parent may connect to how that affects their educational success,” Sigauke said.
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Stories with a “Bicycle” theme can be about anything, but they must include a bicycle.
The deadline for submissions is February 29 and the top five stories will be announced on March 14 with winners expected to be announced on March 28.
Emmanuel Sigauke is a local writer, editor and publisher based in California in the US. Sigauke has worked with schools and colleges and believes that when generously encouraged, student writers can soar.
