The Great
ROBIN HOOD
Contest of Stories
A just-for-fun Short Story Contest for young writers, ages 9 and up.
Open for Entries Now!
Write a short story inspired by the legend of Robin Hood…
…Win 1 of 3 wondrous books!
1. Keeper of the Lost Cities – Shannon Messenger
2. The Letter for the King – Tonke Dragt
3. The Green Ember – S.D. Smith
Hear ye, hear ye!
Calling all Young Scribes and Tellers of Tales! By decree of The Merry Fellowship of the Storylights, a great Contest of Stories is hereby proclaimed!
All young wordsmiths, ages 9-15*, are summoned to craft a most wondrous tale inspired by the legend of Robin Hood. Write of daring heists, secret forests, noble outlaws, or villains most foul – let your quill run free with adventure, valour, and cunning!
Your tale may take any shape you choose – present day or olden times, new characters or fantastical reimagining – only be sure to keep that adventurous Robin Hood feel, such as bravery and noble defiance.
Great rewards await the finest scribes from each age group. So sharpen your wits, and ready your parchment! Open to young scribes across all realms and oceans – near and far!
See the Notable Decrees & Conditions of Entry below.
Aged Sixteen to Eighteen?
* A special branch of this contest awaits you!
Task 1: Write Your Story
Write a short tale of 800-1,000 words, inspired by the legend of Robin Hood. (A measly word count, ‘tis true – but strive to make it a complete tale if possible.)
What We Seek:
- A striking beginning to catch the reader’s eye.
- A true Robin Hood spirit – so plenty of adventure, danger, and valour.
- A fine balance of action and dialogue.
- But most of all, a tale well told… so take joy in the telling!
Entries close at sunset on the 28th of May, 2025
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Task 2: Submit Your Story
Once you’ve penned your fine tale, enter it using the button below.
Is Your Tale Still in the Making?
Sign up here, and we shall send a reminder as the entry deadline draws near. If this be your first time joining us, your email shall be added to our merry mailing list – used only to share word of future contests and noble giveaways. Fear not, you may leave the list at any time with but a single click.
Notable Decrees & Conditions of Entry
All tales shall be sorted by age, and from each category, a single champion shall be chosen. Aside from having their names sung throughout the greenwood and lauded for years to come, the winning scribes shall claim their choice of prize from three worthy titles:
Prize Choice #1: Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger
Prize Choice #2: The Letter for the King by Tonke Dragt
Prize Choice #3: The Green Ember by S.D. Smith
NOTE: Alas, no kiss from Maid Marian shall be awarded.
Entry Conditions:
- Entries are open internationally.
- Entries are open to young writers who are 9 to 18 years old and must be their own original work. No AI stories permitted.
- If you are under 13 years old, you must get the permission of a parent or guardian to participate.
- Only one entry per person. (However, siblings may use the same email address.)
- Entries close on Wednesday, May 28th, 2025, and the winners will be announced on June 4th.
- Entries must be between 800-1,000 words.
- To enter this competition, you must agree to both these entry and prize conditions, as well as our Privacy Policy and our website Terms & Conditions.
Prize Conditions:
- The book you choose for your winning prize will be a paperback copy. Cover may vary although we’ll try to keep it to what’s pictured above.
- If you already own the first book in the series, winning writers will be given the option to request another book from within the same series as their prize instead.
- The winning stories and Honourable Mentions will be posted here on our website.
- The winners will be personally notified by email (and we’ll need to ask for their postal address).
This Storylights Contest has been sponsored by:
The Brubaker Family, Pennsylvania
Three huzzahs for our heroes!
(Hearken, Noble Houses and Companies of Trade! Those who would show interest in sponsoring a future contest or giveaway – and thereby earn the praise and undying gratitude of all the realm – are bidden to seek further details here.)
The Storylights Team:
Amy Bryant
…an award-winning spinner of Fantasy Adventure tales for brave-hearted youths (soon to come), who remains a steadfast champion of young scribes.
Thor the Viking Sheep
…Chief Guardian and Mascot of Legendary Valour, who dauntlessly keeps watch for foes and offers questionable counsel, albiet with good intent.
Josh Bryant
…Master of Enchanted Webcraft, who raises 4 young hobbits with his fair lady Summer and gives counsel far surpassing that of certain woolly warriors. (Hush, say it not to Thor!)
“Will you come with me, sweet Reader? I thank you. Give me your hand.“
― Howard Pyle, The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Keeper of the Lost Cities
by Shannon Messenger
Twelve-year-old Sophie Foster has a secret.
She is a Telepath, and has the power to hear the thoughts of everyone around her – something that she’s never spoken about, even to her own family.
But everything changes the day she meets Fitz, a mysterious boy who also reads minds. She discovers there’s somewhere she does belong, and staying where she is will put her in grave danger. In the blink of an eye, Sophie is forced to leave behind everything and start a new life in a magical world.
Sophie has new rules to learn, and not everyone is thrilled with her “homecoming”. There are secrets buried deep in Sophie’s memory, secrets that other people desperately want.
Would even kill for . . .
On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness
(The Wingfeather Saga Book #1) by Andrew Peterson
Janner Igiby, his brother, Tink, and their disabled sister, Leeli, are gifted children as all children are, loved well by a noble mother and ex-pirate grandfather. But they will need all their gifts and all that they love to survive the evil pursuit of the venomous Fangs of Dang, who have crossed the dark sea to rule the land with malice. The Igibys hold the secret to the lost legend and jewels of good King Wingfeather of the Shining Isle of Anniera.
Full of characters rich in heart, smarts, and courage, On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness is a tale children of all ages will cherish, families can read aloud, and readers’ groups are sure to enjoy discussing for its many layers of meaning.
The Green Ember
by S.D. Smith
Heather and Picket are extraordinary rabbits with ordinary lives until calamitous events overtake them, spilling them into a cauldron of misadventures. They discover that their own story is bound up in the tumult threatening to overwhelm the wider world.
Kings fall and kingdoms totter. Tyrants ascend and terrors threaten. Betrayal beckons, and loyalty is a broken road with peril around every bend.
Where will Heather and Picket land? How will they make their stand?
The Letter for the King
by Tonke Dragt
The thrilling story of one boy’s battle against evil set in an enchanted world of chivalry, courage, and true friendship.
Sixteen-year-old Tiuri must spend hours locked in a chapel in silent contemplation if he is to be knighted the next day. But as he waits by the light of a flickering candle, he hears a knock at the door and a voice desperately asking for help.
A secret letter must be delivered to King Unauwen across the Great Mountains–a letter upon which the fate of the entire kingdom depends. Tiuri has a vital role to play, one that might cost him his knighthood. He must trust no one. He must keep his true identity secret. Above all, he must never reveal what is in the letter …
Tiuri’s journey will take him through dark, menacing forests, across treacherous rivers, to sinister castles and strange cities. He will encounter evil enemies who would kill to get the letter, but also the best of friends in the most unexpected places.
Privacy Policy
The Storylights
Firstly, we'll never sell or share any of your personal information with anyone else unless we're required to by law, and we only collect the minimum personal data that we need to run our services. For example, we need your name and email address so we can notify you if your competition entry has been selected for a prize, or to send you details about our next competition.
Secondly, any original story material that you send to us, either as part of a competition or not, remains your own personal intellectual property. However, by submitting your story to us, you grant us the right to display it on on our website, and we agree to always credit it to you the author. You retain full rights to your story, including the right to reuse it or resubmit it to any other competition or publication.
Terms & Conditions
The Storylights
By using this website, (for example, by submitting a form, or entering a competition or giveaway), you agree to be bound by and follow these terms and conditions:
- You agree that you are either at least 13 years old, or you have the permission of a parent or guardian to use this website.
- We understand that the name you choose to use on our website or submit with a competition entry, may be an alias or pen name (for young authors, this can be a good way to help protect your privacy), but you understand that we will treat that name like your real name, including when we provide credit to the author of a winning story.
- You agree that any written work that you submit to us as part of a competition or giveaway, is your own original work, written by you and not copied from or written by another person. (No AI work permitted.)
- You agree to not submit any written work to us that promotes or encourages violence, racism, self-harm, or any other activity that is either illegal or potentially damaging to other people.
- You keep all intellectual property rights to any of your own written material that you submit to us, but you agree to give us the right to display your work on our website as part of the services we provide. (For example, displaying competition winners and honourable mentions.)
- We reserve the right to judge competition entries at our sole discretion, and will award the winning entry based on whatever criteria we think to be fair.
- We reserve the right to exclude from competition, any entry that we feel goes against the spirit of the competition, or breaches one of our other conditions, like plagiarism.