Leighton schoolgirl wins prize in Jacqueline Wilson writing contest

Leighton schoolgirl Scarlet MacKenzie who has won a prize in a Jacqueline Wilson competition

Budding wordsmiths were encouraged to use their imaginations for a possible follow-up story about the leading character in the popular author’s latest book, Clover Moon.

And the judges were so impressed with Scarlet’s entry – Clover Moon’s Great Escape – they wrote: “Fabulous story-writing, Scarlet! We felt as if we were right beside Clover and Hetty as they made their daring escape from the Foundling Hospital.

“We wonder how they’ll survive out on the streets of London . . . perhaps you’ll write a second instalment?”

Proud dad Andy - a former sports reporter on the LBO – said: “When we told Scarlet about her win, she was ecstatic. She couldn’t sleep for thinking about it and when I dropped her at school she was leaping about excitedly, hugging all her friends and telling them the news.”

He added: “Scarlet is an avid reader – she normally has about four books on the go at any one time.

“She’s a great influence on her six-year-old sister Zara, who also goes to Greenleas.”

Scarlet’s poem about her mum Claire – head of corporate affairs at Travis Perkins – was published in a book last year called Mum in a Million – From Me to You.

> Read her winning entry at http://www.jw-mag.com/2017/01/17/amazing-author-competition-runner-3/