Award-winning War Horse author Michael Morpurgo will judge a children’s creative writing competition as part of the Yorkshire Festival of Story (YFOS 21), an online event taking place next month.

Children across the UK are challenged to write a 750 word fairy tale featuring one or more trees. Open to children aged 7-11, the Children’s Fairy Tale Contest is run by the Hull Culture and Leisure Library Service and the Yorkshire Festival of Story.

The Writing Contest offers children at home or at school a fun and interactive way to engage with the natural world and pave the way for a better future for the planet, inspired by stories of change and collaboration.

Michael Morpurgo will judge each story and three winners will receive book tokens and a tree planted at Story Wood in the Yorkshire Dales. Each tree will have a QR code so visitors to Story Wood can scan and download each winning story. Michael will write a personal response to each winner and they will also receive a signed copy of his latest book, When the fish were flying.

Michael said: “A connection with nature is vital for young people and for all of us. I am excited that this contest focuses on nature writing and look forward to reading the articles.

YFOS is hosted by Settle Stories and will run for two weeks in November. After last year’s success, the festival, which will champion diverse voices, will be live again and the theme will explore what the world looks like and ask how we can pave the way for a better future.

The children’s fairy tale contest ends on October 18. You can find out more here.

The Yorkshire Festival of Story will take place from 12 to 28 November 2021.