One hundred NSW seniors have shared personal stories in the milestone 10th edition of Seniors’ Stories – marking 1,000 short stories published since 2013.
This year’s theme ‘What Made Me’ has produced stories of hardship, resilience, life-changing moments, and generational life lessons in the 260-page book.
Several short story writing workshops were delivered by The Fellowship of Australian Writers (FAW) to provide participants with writing tips, guidance, and inspiration to share their story.
The NSW government introduced the Senior’s Stories competition in 2013 as a way of recognising and valuing the experiences of NSW seniors, as well as showcasing their talent.
The competition is open to all Seniors Card and Senior Savers Card holders and offers the opportunity to showcase different cultures, backgrounds, languages, and histories told through real, lived experiences.
One story this year, written by 62-year-old Cassandra French, tells of her formative childhood years growing up on an island where she shares snippets of how it was key to ‘developing her sense of self’.
Celebrating insights
NSW Minister for Seniors Jodie Harrison said, ‘The stories in this book celebrate the insights and experiences of seniors in NSW and recognise the ongoing value of those contributions. This year, we saw one of the highest submission rates, with over 500 short stories shared with our judging panel for the milestone 10th edition of Senior’s Stories.
‘Eleven stories were translated into the author’s native language including Cantonese, Italian, Spanish and Hungarian, showcasing our diverse communities across the state,’ she said.
‘Congratulations to all our authors who submitted and to those who feature in the book.’
Seniors’ Stories author Cassandra French said, ‘I often think about different parts of my childhood, and I wanted to tell people what I feel made me who I am. I noted down a few ideas at the workshop, and it took me to that place I grew up in.
‘I have lots of stories to tell and I really like writing, so I decided to discipline myself to get this done. I absolutely encourage others to take part, especially if they like writing – we all have stories to tell by this age.’
Seniors’ Stories Volume 10 will be available at all local libraries across NSW by the end of November. Previous editions can be downloaded as a PDF or audiobook from here.
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