South Brunswick Kids Publish Stories in Children’s Literary Magazine

South Brunswick children have been prolific this spring.           

Thirty-four South Brunswick children were published in the City Kidz World literary magazine for the 2013 spring/summer issue. Students, ages 4- through 14-years-old, wrote and illustrated stories ranging from short fiction to opinion articles.

City Kidz World magazine, written by children for children, is found in nearly all of the Central New Jersey libraries and YMCAs and there is a link on the magazine’s website at http://tinyurl.com/cv5adz6 that allows viewers to download a full copy of the magazine.             

Children in the magazine and their teachers are also provided with copies to share with other students, friends and families.           

Diane Henderson, editor of City Kidz World, said, “We are so excited to see how many children have become engaged in creative writing in Central Jersey. We, at the magazine, believe that it is important for children to have the ability to express themselves in print.  

“We realize that as technology continues to evolve, some children are becoming less interested in sitting down and taking the time to develop their own ideas and tell their own stories. We want to provide an opportunity for balance. We are providing a forum for their writing and recognition for their efforts in order to encourage to them to write regularly and for the long term. We believe that writing is a life sport,” Henderson said.

South Brunswick children who were published and their stories are: 

Abhinaya Mukundan – Monster

Aishwarya Mukundan - Should A Popular Book Be Banned At School?

Ananya Krishna – The Other World

Anoohya Arkala –The Edd Family

Ashna Narielwala - The Snow Princess

Bridget Lobo – Brownie’s Adventure

Ellison Murray – Golf (Artwork – Elephant)

Divyansha Kara - The life of Christy

Eshna Kamani -The Royal Family

Gopikrishna Rayini -The Great Tanki War

Hafsa Ramadan – Art Work

Hasika Arkala – The Witch

Ian Mathew Poonolly - When My Tooth Fell Out

Isha Shah - Winter is Gone

Isheeta Bhasin - Today’s World

Krish Shah - Dragon Ruling the World

Kritika Nagappa - Rules of School

Laya Venkatesan - Reaching Your Goal, The Fearless Trio

Manas Bommakanti - The Magic Piano

Meghana Reddy - Alice the Chef

Nandita Shyam - Bonnie and the Apple Murder

Neha Chaudhari - Breathing in Water

Nikhil Shyam - The Worst Day Ever

Nishi Kamani - Fairy Friends

Palash Shah - Imaginary World War IV

Param Shah - Alien War I

Rav Kaur- The Creation of Spring

Rithvik Mattipalli -The Story of Jay the Tiger

Rithvik Ramaan - The Dream Which Should Really Come True!

Sachchit Madhyastha - How I got lost in the Galaxies

Shachi Chemburkar - Angie and the Lake

Sharanya Madhyastha -The Dream House

Siya Gurugunti – Spring is in my Hand

Sreeram Nagappa - Turkey Protest            

Henderson said that the growth of the submissions to the magazine indicates that the magazine is making a difference.           

“The magazine has been publishing for five years. Five years ago a small team of journalists, who were also educators, worked diligently to get the magazine in the hands of the children," she said. "First there were only a few children writing – two or three. Some adults would contribute as well. Now, five years later, we have up to 50 or 60 students completing writing assignments for the magazine three times a year. We think that we are making a difference."

Henderson said the free magazine, which is placed around the in the community quarterly, is primarily sponsored by the Writing Studio, a private, creative writing studio that some of the children who submitted stories attend once a week.           

“The Writing Studio is a sister program that opened after the magazine, when families demanded more regular creative writing instruction for their children,” Henderson said. “There were some educators on our team who felt inspired to work with children regularly to help them develop a love of writing.”

There many students, however, not in the creative writing program, who submitted work for the spring issue, said Henderson.           

“At this point, we have children who have never heard of the Writing Studio who are sending stories to the magazine. Not only are the young, published writers developing their own writing, but they have become role models in the community and they are influencing their peers to pay attention to writing and storytelling. Our Facebook page and website have also attracted international participation and interest. We are inspired and hope to continue to provide copies of this literary magazine to children across New Jersey, nation and the world,” Henderson said.           

In addition to South Brunswick students writing for the magazine, two of the three children on the cover of the magazine are also from South Brunswick. They are Mahiyah Sampson and Rithvik Ramaan. Rithvik also wrote a story for the magazine.           

All students are invited to publish in the magazine by sending submissions to editor@citykidzworld.com. The next deadline is July 15.

Go to www.citykidzworld.com/writingcoach for more details.