Hayley Watson, from South Molton, UK was highly commended for her writing in the Page Turner Awards. This was announced at a glittering online ceremony, where Paul Michael Glaser, from Starsky and Hutch fame, was a special guest to announce the winners.
The Page Turner Awards, sponsored by ProWritingAid and Campfire, offers authors, writers, and screenwriters the chance to enter the first 10 pages of their writing project, where a judging panel of literary experts and film producers will read the work.
Watson is a I'm a singer-songwriter/producer, who works in retail, and hopes to one day be published.
Her submission, Mirrored, is about a near-death experience that causes eighteen-year-old Matilda Clarke to fall into a present-day parallel universe, where interdimensional travel is public knowledge, and travelers are hunted, imprisoned, and experimented on.
Ever since reading The Hunger Games and the Divergent series as a teenager, Watson has been obsessed with writing unsettling versions of reality. The present-day parallel universe of Mirrored is used as a vehicle to comment on various modern-day issues, including the overuse of technology in society, the general decline of mental health, and the uncertainty of growing up on a slowly dying planet.
Mirrored allowed this young writer to discuss the many issues that young people – including herself –face today, such as the negative impact social media has on mental health, the anxieties of living in a world which always connected, and the breakdown of privacy both online, and offline.
Watson said, “As a young writer hoping to one day be published, The Page Turner Awards has given me a reason to be proud of my work, to have faith in my words, and to keep trying. It's easy to get lost in self-doubt, but with the judges' feedback and comments, and a shiny shortlist badge to present to agents, I am filled with more confidence than ever.”
She added, “What an incredible opportunity! I started working on Mirrored as a teenager, and over the last few years it has been a real labour of love. I'm so grateful to the organizers and judges for giving my work a platform and giving me a chance!”
This year, aspiring writers walked off the red carpet with life-changing prizes. One new unpublished writer won literary agency representation, while a screenwriter won literary management. Another new writer won a publishing deal, seven independent authors won an audiobook production from Spectrum Audiobooks, plus one other won a publishing package (including an edit, book cover and book trailer), and another author won a book adaptation.
The Page Turner Awards winners and Highly Commended writers can be found here:
https://pageturnerawards.com/2021-winners
Submissions for the 2022 Awards will open in January 2022. Find out how you too can enter your writing into The Page Turner Awards: https://pageturnerawards.com.
