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The 500 Words Blog: Let Your Imagination Play

Tips and tricks to ignite your imagination, and get those creative cogs turning.

500 Words judge, Becky Escreet, explains why the competition is for anyone with an amazing idea.

Christopher Edge, Word Expert at Oxford Universtiy Press, reveals how to find the spark of inspiration.

Sue Wilkinson from The Reading Agency reveals how reading can help you become a better writer.

Award winning author Jacqueline Wilson popped in to speak to Jo Whiley this week and inspired our pals in Radio 2 HQ to find out what wisdom other amazing others have to share.

What's it like to take Gold at the 500 Words Final and have your story read by David Walliams? 2017 winner, Livia Turner, gives us the goss...

How can you make your story stand out from the rest? 2017's Silver Winner, Ashleigh May, has some tips...

David Suchet reads Ashleigh May's story at the 500 Words Final

Being honest can be the key to brilliant writing. Hiya Chowdhury, Senior Runner-up in The Queen's Commonwealth Essay Competition, shares her experience of award-winning writing .

From Agent Wonka to Big Friendly Zombies, snozsprouts to puckleberries, this year’s entrants to the 500 Words competition show how Roald Dahl’s language continues to inspire them.

How does it feel to be part of the 500 Words experience? Bronze winner, Evie McKeon, spills the beans...

Noma Dumezweni reads Evie's story at the 500 Words Final

How do you create compelling characters? And make them feel real? Here's a tip or two from a superstar celeb and seasoned story writer...

Greg James absolutely LOVES stories. Share his joy of everything fictional in this clip...

So you’ve got a great plot, a perfect protagonist but you can’t quite nail that ending... So, to bring your story to its perfect conclusion, here are some common tricks novelists use to bring their plot to a conclusion. How will your story end?

So you've written the perfect 10/10 story but your last line is a bit lacking? Nailing the last words of a story can make the difference between a 'wow' and a 'WOW'. how 10 authors have done it previously.

Historian and joint Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces Lucy Worsley shares some intriguing stories from the Tower of London.

Sport has a thousand different stories which you can unlock for your 500 Words entry. Here are just a few (not to copy! But to take inspiration from)

Our truly talented 500 Words 5-9 category Gold winner describes the excitement of the 2016 500 Words Final.

Chief Yeoman Warder Alan Kingshott brought in some props to give Chris a 'show and tell' tour of the Tower, each with their own story to tell.

2016's 10-13 category Gold winner Ned Marshall has some advice for anyone who's still unsure whether they should write a story for 500 Words.

On the 16th June 2017, the world’s biggest writing competition for kids, lands at the Tower of London in a spectacular extravaganza. There’ll be live music, superstar celebrities and sensational stories. The 500 Words Final could be the red carpet premiere of your very own story.

are 10 reasons why the Tower of London is awesome – and why you need to be there.

Once we can read and write, it all seems quite easy. We might struggle to read or spell some words. We might not always understand everything we read, and sometimes, making our writing say exactly what we want it to say can be tricky. Generally though, we get along just fine. Yet, what’s going on in our minds as we read and write is pretty remarkable. How is it we do it, and how do we learn how to read and write in the first place?

Award winning author Tom Palmer has some hints on taking inspiration from your favourite sport, to get you over the 500 Words finishing line.

Alphabot has jargon buster full of fascinating words from the Middle Ages.

Jonathan Bryan is an extraordinary 500 Words writer who uses his eyes to select letters on an alphabet board to make words. He uses this system for all of his communication.

500 Words judges Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Malorie Blackman answered some of your questions during the special 500 Words Live Lesson.

Writer and storyteller Lari Don shares some thoughts on strong females, scrapping stereotypes and totally different toads.

Author Christopher Edge was over the moon when he found out that he was nominated for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2017, and we were over the moon to hear that 500 Words helped to inspire one of his stories!

Sometimes it's hard to find the perfect word, but thankfully our brainy buddies at Oxford University Press have been busy collecting all of the vocab used in the hundreds of thousands of 500 Words entries.

Losing faith in your story? Worried that it's just not good enough? Don't fret! Little Star Writing wants you to know why your story is unique to you.

Wish that you could wave a magic wand to summon the perfect protagonist for your story? The Worst Witch author Jill Murphy and C大象传媒 series writer Emma Reeves share some of their writing wisdom to help you craft dynamic dialogue, and create characters to enchant your reader.

Authors Andy Stanton and Andy Riley have ten tips to help you write a story that will have your reader rolling on the floor with laughter.

Step outside with Beetle Boy Author M G Leonard as she encourages you to explore the natural world to find inspiration for your story.

Chris Evans, Francesca Simon, Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Malorie Blackman impress HRH The Duchess of Cornwall with story tips!

Teacher Lauren Williams has an inspirational story about some of the pupils at Oxfordshire Hospital School.

Children's Laureate Chris Riddell has some scribblings and sketches to kick-start your story.

Awesome author and Illustrator Tom McLaughlin doesn't let dyslexia hold him back from writing, and neither should you.

Why a book at bedtime is so important for children's literacy, written by one of our fabulous 500 Words volunteer judges.

Four famous authors have some words of wisdom for budding young writers.

Librarian judge Elizabeth Ryan lets us know what features she looks for in 500 Words stories, and what she awards the highest marks to.

We could tell you how exciting the 2015 500 Words Final from St James Palace was, but Gold winning writer Sofia Zambuto could do a much better job (she did come top of the 5-9 category after all!)

It's not every day that you have the chance to meet Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall at the spectacular St James Palace, but that's exactly what our 10-13 category Gold Winner got to do at the 500 Words Final in 2015.

Teacher and volunteer judge Emma Harris explains why 500 Words provides the motivation to get kids engaged with creative writing.

Do you have specific learning difficulty (SPLD) that can make it difficult to organise and record your ideas in words on paper? If your answer is yes, then you are in good company.

Presenter George Sear's a bit of a bookworm, but he wasn't always such a big fan of reading. He tells 500 Words how finding the right book for him sparked his love of literature.

500 Words 2020

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All the information you need to enter the competition.
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