STORIES of family love enthralled judges of the GDNlife short story competition in both the adult and U18 categories.

Chris Noronha picked up the latest BD25 prize with her moving tale called We’re going to be fine and teenager Nanditha Dileep triumphed with The Brightest Star in the Sky.

Both entries have attracted more than 5,000 views and complimentary comments from visitors to Bahrain’s very own social media platform www.gdnlife.com

“We’re going to be fine, by Chris, struck a particularly personal note with me, even so, of the entries under consideration, it was the best,” said one of the judges, Rohini Sunderam, from Bahrain Writers Circle. “Very moving, a clear coherent narrative and I liked the letter format that the author used.”

Indian expatriate Chris, born and brought up in Bahrain and a former student at Sacred Heart School and the Indian School, was delighted.

“I had never in my wildest dreams, thought that I would even be considered,” she said.

“Ever since I was in school I used to love reading and still do, you should see my collection of books at home! I have quite an active imagination and that gave rise to me writing, be it poems or long, drawn out stories.

“This particular article was my way of expressing myself and venting as I am always reluctant to share my thoughts with others verbally but have no difficulty, whatsoever, when it comes to penning down my emotions.”

The sky’s the limit for 16-year-old Nanditha, who wins a cinema ticket for her entry The Brightest Star in the Sky and it’s not the first time that she has achieved literary success.

The Indian Grade 12 student of the New Millennium School Bahrain has lived in the kingdom since the age of two and has loved writing for as long as she can remember.

“Writing about the stars was a very personal topic for me,” she said.

“As my story goes, my father used to tell me bedtime stories every night when I was a little girl while I used to look out of the window at the stars.

“Somewhere along the way, I fell in love with the stars, and even believed that everyone had millions of stars in them.

“When I submitted the short story for the GDNLife contest, I didn’t even think I would win – I just wanted to write a story about the relationship I have with my father, as I felt that everyone has a special place in their hearts for their dads.

“I’m absolutely thrilled that my story won, since it has made the memories I have of my dad and the stars even more special.”

The schoolgirl has just released her debut anthology of poems on Amazon, called Rekindle the Stars.

Judge Chris Fenton, head teacher of the British Primary Department at Al Noor International School, was impressed.

“A lovely story that captures the innocence of children and the cyclical nature of parental wisdom,” he said. “Excellent writing – well done!”

August 2021 entries are invited so get writing today! Register, choose an image, create a title, paste and copy your words in text, and submit to share your work on www.gdnlife.com

Our panel of judges will also decide on who should walk away with the annual GDNLife Short Story of the Year prize trophies in both categories after the competition’s second anniversary in March 2022.

The winner of the GDNLife People’s Choice Award – the short story that has received the most views and likes – will also be announced.

Keen writers of all ages are being offered the chance to publish their work on Bahrain’s popular social media platform for a monthly prize.

As a result of the contest’s success there is now a special exclusive Short Story section on www.gdnlife.com for visitors to enjoy.

editor@gdnonline.com