Students in grades 1-8 in Iowa City-Cedar Rapids Corridor area school districts, or home school students in those equivalent grades, are encouraged to submit one page of writing for the 2024 One Book Two Book festival from the Iowa City UNESCO City of Literature. This can be any type of writing: story, essay, poem, song lyric, graphic novel page, etc. The piece must be an original work, written this school year, and in polished form – ready for publication.
It should be on one side of an 8.5×11 page. It can be single-spaced, but must be at least 12-pt. and in Times or equivalent font. The page should have margins of 1” on each side. Submissions that are longer than one page will not be considered. The deadline to submit is Monday, December 11, 2023.
Click here to submit your writing for the 2024 One Book Two Book festival.*
*If you are unable to submit your writing using this link, you may instead:
- Mail your work to City of Literature, 123 S. Linn St., Iowa City, IA 52240
- E-mail your writing as a Microsoft Word attachment or PDF to info@iowacityofliterature.org.
- Share via Google Docs, to info@iowacityofliterature.org (Please be sure to set your Google Docs sharing settings so that we can view your submission).
The file name should include the student’s school, grade and name (e.g. Hoover-4-HannahSmith or Garner-6-JasonJones). Be sure to include the student’s name, grade, school, and parent/guardian’s contact email and phone number. If the submission is handwritten or drawn, either scan and email a PDF or mail the original. Originals will be held for one month after the festival; it is the guardian’s responsibility to follow up if it should be returned.
The student work will be judged by a team from ACT in Iowa City. Recognized students will be honored at a “Write Out Loud” event during One Book Two Book in February 2024. Two grade level winners will be chosen, one in each of the following categories:
- “The Write Stuff”: For language, clarity, structure, and emotional impact.
- “From the Heart”: For creativity, passion, and expressiveness.
These students will be invited to read their winning submissions. In addition, a percentage of all students whose submissions are deemed to be of outstanding quality also will be honored with a “certificate of distinction.” They also will be invited to attend the “Write Out Loud” event. All recognized students will receive certificates and prizes at the event. The grade-level prize winners will have their work published in a booklet available at the festival.
Questions? Contact John Kenyon with the City of Literature office at (319) 356-5245 or john-kenyon@iowacityofliterature.org.
