A BUDDING author put pen to paper and saw her story turn into a book when she won a writing competition.
Cerys Steggles’ dream came true when her story Cold Ears was picked out as the winner in Touchwood’s writing competition.
Her book tells the story of the shopping centre’s resident monkey, Gordon, who goes on a snowy adventure to his aunt’s ice-cream shop to pick up a banana split – with a few surprises along the way.
As well as seeing her story in print, Cerys also won £500 for her school and copies for all her classmates at Gabriel’s Catholic Primary School.
Sue Strong, Cerys’ family member, said: “We’re absolutely thrilled. Cerys has always said that she wanted to become an author so this has been a fantastic opportunity for her. She’s very excited to share Gordon’s story with her friends at school.”
Earlier this year the shopping centre challenged children to write a 750-word story about Gordon in a bid to have their story brought to life in a new book.
The competition proved hugely popular, receiving almost 700 entries.
Stories were whittled down by a judging panel who awarded first place to Cerys, second place to Lily Poole and third place to Harvir Singh Mudhar.
Lucy Burnett, marketing manager at Touchwood, said: “We’ve been completely overwhelmed by the standard of writing from our young authors.
“Gordon the Monkey was sent on some amazing literary adventures and we’d like to thank everyone who took their time to submit their stories.
“We’d also like to say a big congratulations to Cerys for winning the competition; her story brought smiles to the judging panel and we’re looking forward to Solihull’s young readers enjoying the tale.”
Readers can get their hands on a copy of Cold Ears from Touchwood’s Information Desk where the book will be sold to help fundraise for Cure Leukaemia.