Author calls for children to great creative for new app

A children's author is calling on budding young writers in Gainsborough to get their literary careers in top gear and '˜express' themselves in an all-new national writing competition.
The new VUER service will be available as an appThe new VUER service will be available as an app
The new VUER service will be available as an app

Writer Isabelle King has been chosen by National Express to launch its Express Yourself short story competition, launched in celebration of the coach company’s new onboard entertainment system VUER (View, Unwind, Enjoy, Relax).

Isabelle, is joining the UK’s largest coach operator in a call for children aged seven to 16 to get creative and submit short stories inspired by the theme of ‘happy travelling’.

Youngsters are invited to let their creative juices run riot and submit original travel tales. Inspiration can come from anywhere – be it their own real-life experiences or something from the depths of their imaginations.

Winning stories will then be published in an online storybook in ‘VUER’, for passengers to enjoy as they travel.

Each winner will also get a £50 cheque as prize money.

VUER is an app offering a complimentary service of films, TV and magazines entirely free of charge.

The app, which allows customers to enjoy hours of free entertainment – as well as news, weather and journey updates and plus free WiFi - on their own devices from the comfort of their seat, affords the ideal platform to enable kids to have their stories seen by millions.

Isabelle said: “This competition is all about journeys as the people reading it are going to be coach passengers, but the journey you write about could be fictional or real.”

“I’d love every child in Gainsborough to have a go, it doesn’t matter if you think you’re not a writer, everyone has a story. Writing is one of the best ways of expressing your ideas, unlocking your creative side, and this is a great opportunity to share it. Good luck.”

Tom Stables, National Express UK’s coach managing drector Tom Stables said: “We are turning the tables are asking youngsters in Gainsborough to take us on a journey.

“Express Yourself’ is a really unique opportunity for budding young authors to get their literary careers in top gear and we’re looking for really inspiring stories to delight our customers.

“We can’t wait to start receiving the entries.”

To take advantage of VUER customers simply need to download the app from the Apple or Android app store on their phone or tablet before they get on-board to access the content, which is then streamed over Wi-Fi during the journey.

Entrants should write a story of up to but no more than 1,000 words and submit it to [email protected]

Alternatively, they can post their entry to The Story Team, National Express House, Mill Lane Birmingham B5 6DD.

The closing date is February 27.

To find out more about Isabelle’s books visit: http://www.isabelleking.net