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Creative Writing and Poetry Contest 2026

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Are you a young person with a passion for writing?

York Regional Police is hosting a Creative Writing and Poetry Contest this January.

If you have something special to say about the idea of community, please send it to us before February 1 at midnight.

You must be between 13 and 17 years old to participate.

Contest finalists will be invited to an event where the winners will be announced by our judges. Finalists will have the opportunity to meet the judges and our youth engagement officers.

Prize packages are provided by Indigo - Markville Mall.

Judges

Sarah Riddell – Superintendent of Community Services

A male officer and a female officer stand in front of a flag pole smiling

Adrienne Kress – Young adult author

Photo of woman smiling

Kate Blair – Young adult author

A photo of a woman smiling

Julie Thompson – Children’s author and York Regional Police constable

A woman stands smiling against a neutral backdrop

Submission Rules

  1. Submission deadline is Sunday, February 1, 11:59 PM
  2. Submissions must be submitted in PDF format to contest@yrp.ca with the following file name format: “LAST NAME, FIRST NAME – TITLE OF SUBMISSION, FICTION/POETRY” (please indicate whether your submission is fiction or poetry)
  3. Contestants must reside in the Region of York and must be between the ages of 13 and 17 years
  4. Submissions must revolve around the idea or concept of “community.”  This can be either direct or abstract
  5. Submissions must be no more than 1,250 words, double-spaced in 12 point Times New Roman font
  6. Submissions may be: fiction or poetry
  7. Submissions must include the title of the piece, as well as the name, address and contact information of each contestant on each page as a header
  8. Pages must be numbered clearly
  9. Submissions must be submitted in English
  10. Submissions must not contain any curse words, sexual content of any kind or gratuitous violence, blood, or gore
  11. Submissions must be an original work. Contestants must not use AI technology to compose their submissions. Any submissions suspected to be a result of AI or plagiarism will be disqualified
  12. Submissions in the form of a picture book/story which contain artwork that compliments the writing are acceptable