From Salima Alikhan (art judge):
I was honored to be asked to judge Kahani's Third Annual Young Writers and Illustrators Contest. I am so very happy to find that there are lots of little souls out there who already bring stories to life through pictures, and who do it so well.

I never imagined that the children would have such a gift for understanding the process of illustrating a story! Both winning entries were alive with vivid detail and humor, and with vibrant characterization perfect for illustration. The pictures are perfect snapshots of the action in the story, and are a joy to look at.

It’s my hope that the children continue letting their imaginations take hold of the stories they read, as well as continuing to draw, of course. I’ll be looking for their books on the shelves in a few years!

From Sonali Fry (writing judge):
It was a pleasure to judge Kahani’s Third Annual Young Writers and Illustrators Contest. I was so impressed by the quality of the submissions that I received! Each story was unique and special, and it was very difficult to choose the finalists from such a talented pool of authors.

As an editor, I look for stories that will captivate readers and hold their attention. When judging this contest, I also had to see who could effortlessly integrate the words vote, cobra, and school into their stories. The use of the words had to seem natural—not forced. As a writer myself, I know how difficult this task must have been!

Here is my advice to everyone who entered this contest: Continue to imagine, create, and write. The craft of telling a story is valuable gift that should be enjoyed. So be sure to share your stories with your family and friends! And, if you start a story and you can’t seem to finish it, put it away and revisit it at another time… Because who knows what ideas you’ll come up with as your creativity develops!