Applied Stories

An international creative writing contest for young women

After the success of last year’s Letters to Our Daughters, Mulberry Schools Trust warmly invites you to join their latest celebration of lyrical tribute writing, For Our Mothers.

This is an exciting opportunity to engage girls in your school aged 11-18 with creative writing, family history, and the unique role of mothers in all our lives - while penning a lyrical tribute to their own (or a maternal figure in their lives).

Who do you count as your mum? We're using 'mothers' loosely. There's biological mums of course, but also aunties, guardians, teachers, foster mums, or surrogate mums of any kind... All are worthy subjects.
If you were to interview this person about her life, what would you ask?
If you could give her a message, as someone she helped raise, what would it be?
Could you write your tribute with beauty and power?

Mulberry Schools Trust has once again commissioned digital production company Applied Stories to create a unique set of online resources to support schools taking part in For Our Mothers.

Tributes can be in any written form: a prose letter, a poem in verse, a short story or a combination.

You can now access a curated series of free online tutorial videos (see below), and a workshop plan for your school to hold its own creative writing workshop for mothers and daughters, to generate ideas for their tribute.

There is a suite of downloadable online worksheets to get you started, which can be used in timetabled classes, after school, or set as homework.

Schools who submit a set of tributes by the first draft deadline (25 April 2025) will be offered a live online workshop with professional writer Fin Kennedy, and advice on re-writing your class’s entries for a second draft deadline (2 June 2025).

A longlist of our favourite For Our Mothers tributes will be published in a new anthology in the autumn, with four finalists invited to perform their writing live at the Global Girl Leading conference in London’s QE2 conference centre in October 2025.

These speeches will be audio recorded for posterity and sent to each participating school, along with photographic portraits of writers and their mums or mother figures.

To register your school to take part, please email letters@appliedstories.co.uk no later than Friday 28 March 2025!

Frequently Asked Questions...

How do I register my school to take part?

Simple - just send an email to letters@appliedstories.co.uk There is a cap on total schools participating for capacity reasons, but if there is space we will let you know! Registration closes Fri 28 March 2025 with the first draft deadline Fri 25 April 2025.

Do you have to be in Mulberry Schools Trust to take part?

No - last year we had over 20 schools and just 7 were Mulberry Schools. The rest were from around the UK and internationally, including schools in Australia, Mexico and India.

Is there a fee to enter?

No, registration, access to the videos and worksheets, and competition entry are all free, as are the online and in-person workshops. For Our Mothers is generously sponsored by Mulberry Schools Foundation, the charitable arm of Mulberry Schools Trust.

Can sons, mothers or staff enter?

Unfortunately not. By all means watch the videos and have a go - your mum will be delighted! But we can only accept entries from girls aged 11-18 at the registered schools.

How many students do I need to include?

There is no minimum or maximum. Last year some schools sent just one entry, while others sent dozens! However please note we need at least five entries to the first draft deadline (25 April 2025) per school, to be able to offer a free re-writing workshop.

What's the written style and word limit?

Tributes can be in any written style, poetry, prose, letters or stories. Unfortunately we can't accept play scripts. Entries in languages other than English are welcome but we do require an English translation please. Teachers should familiarise themselves with the tone and content guidelines. Word limit is 400 words, or about one side of printed A4 in 12 point font.

What if mum isn't around?

That's fine - 'mothers' is a shorthand for any maternal figure in someone's life, including aunties, guardians, foster mums or surrogate mums of any kind. The sheet for interviewing your mum contains a set of adapted questions for these circumstances. We can also accept posthumous tributes. This Guardian piece might be helpful in thinking about the forms a 'mother' can take.

Do students get feedback on their writing?

Only our winners. However if you make the first draft deadline (25 April 2025) you can book a free re-writing workshop, which may include some general observations on that class's entries.

When do the sessions run?

All sessions are via pre-recorded video below, so can be scheduled at a time of your choosing. Each video is around 10 minutes long and designed to be played aloud to a full class with instructions to pause the video to complete creative exercises contained in the Resources folder. This means that one video and its exercise can fill a single lesson. Interviews with the writers are longer, at around 20 mins, and can be watched straight through together, or set as homework viewing. Some worksheets can be set for homework, such as interviewing your mum.

What are the deadlines?

Mon 24 Feb 2025 - project launches.

Fri 28 March 2025 - registration closes.

Fri 25 April 2025 - first draft deadline.

Mon 2 June 2025 - second draft/final deadline.

Fri 10 October 2025 (date TBC) - winning entries performed live at the Global Girl Leading conference in central London.

A full timeline can be downloaded here.

What are the prizes?

Sixty longlisted entries will be published in a new anthology. (You can download last year's anthology Letters To Our Daughters). Up to eight finalists will have 'talking portraits' made, with four invited to learn and perform their tribute live, at the Global Girl Leading conference 2025, supported by a professional theatre director.

Tutorial videos

Handouts walkthrough for Teachers

An introduction to the Resources folder and how to use the free handouts within it.

Finding your metaphor

Writer Fin Kennedy gives some examples of metaphorical writing, and sets students an exercise to adapt plain statements into their own metaphors.

Analysing 'Sonnets Are Full of Love' by Christina Rossetti

A deep dive into Sonnets Are Full of Love from 1862, including a worksheet for students to begin to map out their own Beginning, Middle and End.

Analysing 'The Raincoat' by Ada Limon

A deep dive into The Raincoat, a tribute triggered by a memory, and showing how words can conjure scenes in our mind. Contains a worksheet to develop scenes from a story about your own mum.

'A Rose in Two Lands' by Afsana Begum

Writer and Mulberry staff member Afsana Begum reads her own poem to her mum A Rose in Two Lands.

'Tapestry of Strength' by Tania Khan

Writer and former Mulberry student Tania Khan reads her letter tribute to her mum, Tapestry of Strength.

Interview with Afsana Begum

Writer and Mulberry staff member Afsana Begum discusses the process of writing A Rose in Two Lands, with tips for students about what she learned along the way...

Interview with Tania Khan

Writer and former Mulberry student Tania Khan discusses writing her letter tribute to her mum, Tapestry of Strength, with lots of advice for students on how to get mum talking...