Fear gripped me as I clambered onto the stage. Nevertheless, I took tiny steps onto the center of the dais. I was Paddington Bear in the talent show I had signed up for, and I instantly regretted dressing as a bear. But I never anticipated what I thought was embarrassment until after the show when I was appreciated for my performance. You might wonder what led me to present myself as Paddington, especially in front of my friends.
Category Archives: BTB
Musik-Ville
The village of my dreams is a little German village named Musik-Ville, meaning “place of music.” This place is entirely inhabited by living musical instruments. The instruments here can not only make music all by themselves but can also speak and move around. The cottages have doors and windows that can open all by themselves, as the inhabitants do not have arms. Technology does not exist in Musik-Ville, which means all the villagers can live in harmony.
The Queen
Andy had just asked him for his left arm, and he was not willing to part with it. It was his arm, for God’s sake! But the offer had been tempting. He was giving up his prized moustache.
Two to Tango by Gowri & Gayathri
At Beyond the Box, we are constantly thinking of ideas to give something unique, refreshing as well as challenging to our community of writers. Two to Tango is one such endeavour to encourage the participants to work along with another writer as a team and bring about a creative synergy. 40+ teams participated in Season 3 of this one-of-its-kind contest and the winners were chosen by prolific author Kanchana Banerjee. Below prompt was given to the writers and they were asked to narrate the same story from two different points of view.
Prompt – Write a fictional story in which a book reveals a secret. Feel free to creatively interpret the prompt in any genre of your choice.
Gowri Bhargav & Gayathri Achar (Team 44) received a Jury Special Mention in the adults’ category. Enjoy their story!
Character Sketch – Ginger
Book – Black Beauty
Author – Anna Sewell
Character – Ginger
Ginger was a tall, elegant chestnut brown female horse, boasting a thick mane and tail, adorned with a white stripe running down her face, which only accentuated her natural beauty.
World’s Weirdest Sandwich
This poem has been composed by 11-year-old Shaurya Gupta from Hyderabad and was chosen by the Jury as the Runner-Up of ‘Best Poem of the Year’ award at the BTB Wordsmiths of the Year Awards 2023.
Finally, I am conquering the feat
Of making the world’s most beastly sandwich seen
Poisonous if you do eat
Enough to make one’s mouth go scream
In the Shadows of Laughter
This poem has been composed by 11-year-old Aditya Shukla from Hyderabad and was chosen by the Jury for the ‘Best Poem of the Year’ award at the BTB Wordsmiths of the Year Awards 2023.
I grew up
Overshadowed by laughter,
Where the books spoke wisdom.
Two to Tango by Ethan & Leona
At Beyond the Box, we are constantly thinking of ideas to give something unique, refreshing as well as challenging to our community of writers. Two to Tango is one such endeavour to encourage the participants to work along with another writer as a team and bring about a creative synergy. 40+ teams participated in Season 3 of this one-of-its-kind contest and the winners were chosen by prolific author Kanchana Banerjee. Below prompt was given to the writers and they were asked to narrate the same story from two different points of view.
Prompt – Write a fictional story in which a book reveals a secret. Feel free to creatively interpret the prompt in any genre of your choice.
The Winners in the kids’ category were Ethan Gonsalves & Leona Saldanha (Team 16). Enjoy their story!
11 Tips for Writing a ‘Tips’ Article
In school these days, all of us have been learning different types of texts, and ‘tips’ articles are one of them. It can get confusing (I have first-hand experience), so I decided to write something to aid all of you.
1. Be Conversational
Use direct address with your reader. You don’t want your reader to feel left out or ignored in any way. They will feel encompassed in your words.
2. Maintain a Semi-Formal Tone
Have the perfect semi-formal tone to appeal to all audiences. A formal register frightens away adolescents, and a casual one might not resonate with more mature individuals.
The Orange Cat of Bengal
A few years ago, in the Bengali town of Kalyani, there lived a young girl named Radha. She was a simple girl. She lived with her mother in a 2 BHK apartment above a sweet shop. Her father had gone to Chennai 10 years ago to make his fortune, but never wrote to them or sent any money back home. Her mother worked as a peon in a big office, and earned 1000/- a month, just enough for the two of them. Every morning she woke up at 5:30 in the morning to go to school, and by the time she came back, her mother would have left, but not without setting up lunch in the kitchen.