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About Our Program
About Our Program
An annual event in Chatham County Schools, the Young Authors program was founded by a school librarian of 47 years, Mrs. Mary Lee Moore, in 1989 to celebrate student authors in grades K-8 across Chatham County Schools! Thus, we are excited to announce that our 35th annual Young Authors will take place January through March, 2026. Everything teachers, staff, students, and families need to help make Young Authors a successful and rewarding experience is on this page.
"Every student has an opportunity to be an author."
Posting about Young Authors on social media? Please tag:
#CCSYoungAuthors #CCSLibraryMedia
#CCSDigitalLearning #OneChatham
Mrs. Mary Lee Moore reads a story to Chatham County Schools students.
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Contest Information
Contest Information
*All participation in the Young Authors program is completely optional and for fun.*
All Young Authors have the opportunity to publish their stories on this website.
We ask that students submit their stories using one of the following methods: via Book Creator or by uploading their story as a PDF. (Instructions provided below.)
Young Authors also may enter a contest, for which each school will determine their top entries.
Authors of top entries from each school will be will be invited to attend our red carpet culminating ceremony on May 14, 2026.
While no grades are assigned to Young Authors program work, teachers may assign participation and other related grades to students for completing in-class activities associated with it at their discretion.
While students are strongly encouraged to participate in Young Authors, there is no requirement to do so.
For more information, please read the Letter Home to Families.
Submission Format
Book Creator
We recommend students create their stories using Book Creator. For help getting started, ask a teacher at your school who is familiar with Book Creator OR visit Book Creator's help center.
Students: When submitting, ask your school librarian for the invite code to their Book Creator library.
Students are welcome to create their stories without Book Creator; however, if they do, we ask that they submit their story as a PDF.
Example: if a student writes their story/draws their images on paper, the student would need to take photos of their work, convert them to PDFs, and then submit them.
Scroll further down this page for assistance with creating a PDF or click the "PDF Creation Help" link in the table of contents above.
Why PDFs?
PDFs (Portable Document Format) maintain the layout and design of a document across different devices and platforms. They're excellent for sharing documents without adjusting their formatting so that the document looks the same regardless of the device being used to view it. PDFs are also secure and can prevent editing, which is useful for distributing finalized documents or forms. In summary, they are the most attractive and consistent file format for reading books written by our Young Authors online.
Timeline of Events
Timeline of Events
January 12, 2026 - Program launch
January-March 2026 - Lesson/activity delivery and writing time; Tate Godwin author visits to schools
March 23, 2026 - Young Author stories due for publication (and judging if they opt in)
March 23- April 10, 2026 - Judging of contest submissions
April 13-17, 2026 - Winners announced and invited to Culminating Ceremony
May 14, 2026 - End-of-Program Ceremony (red carpet event) 6:00-8:00 PM at Central Services building
(Awards will be delivered to schools of Young Authors who are unable to attend the ceremony.)
Featured Author
Featured Author
Tate Godwin
Tate Godwin
CCS is honored to welcome author, illustrator and Chatham County native, Tate Godwin as this year's Young Authors Program featured author. In this capacity, Mr. Godwin will visit each of the district's elementary, middle, and K-8 schools in order to promote creative writing skills, engagement with the authorial process, and participation in the Young Authors Program.
Tate Godwin's Books
Tate Godwin's Books
Click the cover to learn more about Tate Godwin's debut graphic novel, Operation: Cover-Up.
And click this cover to learn more about Tate's upcoming graphic novel and sequel to Operation: Cover-Up, Operation: Make a Splash.
Tate Godwin's CCS Visit Schedule
Tate Godwin's CCS Visit Schedule
Optional Contest Component
Optional Contest Component
Students can opt-in to a district-wide Young Authors contest.
Using school-agreed-upon procedures, schools will determine their three strongest student Young Authors submissions and notify the Digital Learning Team (DLT) about their decision. Each school’s three strongest submissions will be recognized at the district-wide celebration.
Submission Procedures
Students wishing to enter the contest should follow their school's agreed-upon procedures for submitting their stories for judging.
Judging Procedures
Option 1: Schools determine a judging process, judging pool, and develop a standardized rubric (can use district-developed rubric) in order to determine their three strongest student submissions.
Option 2: Schools can turn judging over to the DLT. The DLT will solicit judges from across the district; student submissions will be divided up among the judges. Using a district-developed rubric, judges will determine the three strongest submissions from each school opting for this process.
The judging and submission processes are available in the document below. Also included are the new guidelines regarding submissions using Generative AI.
The rubric that all schools should use while judging student's submissions is below.
Posting about Young Authors on social media? Please tag: #CCSYoung Authors #CCSLibraryMedia #CCSDigitalLearning #OneChatham
Additional Resources
Additional Resources
Supplemental Lessons
Supplemental Lessons
These supplemental lessons and activities are designed to get students excited about becoming authors!
#CCSLibraryMedia #CCSDigitalLearning #OneChatham
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