Find Your Form | The Orwell Foundation

Are you a poet, playwright, journalist or game designer?

The Orwell Youth Prize encourages writing in all different forms: poems, essays, stories, articles, speeches, scripts, and game designs… but which form is right for what you want to write?

Once you’ve researched your topic, it’s time to start thinking about how to shape all your ideas into a piece of writing. There are different advantages and opportunities offered by all different forms of writing, and we encourage you to take your time, and try out different options, when thinking about which form you want to write in for your Youth Prize entry.

If you’re interested in exploring poetry as a form, Orwell Youth Fellow and 2021 Orwell Youth Prize Winner, Bella Rew, has created this helpful resource about the possibilities poetry gives you… Bella’s Poetry Guide

On that note, you might like to read our new resource from writer and poet Will Harris – and try some of Will’s challenges.

One place to start is trying out our ‘Find Your Form Quiz’…

For each of 1-4 below, select the statement that most closely fits how you feel. Then count how many of each letter you have chosen. This should give you an idea which way you are tending. Even if you have one each of A-D, just thinking about it will help you decide.

A	I feel intense, personal emotion on this topic.
B	I have a personal perspective I can bring to this topic.
C	A neutral, balanced tone and approach are ideal for this topic.
D	I could best explore this topic through characters and perspectives other than my own.

A	What I feel about the topic is complicated, difficult to put into words.
B	I have strong views and opinions on this topic.
C	This topic would benefit from dispassionate analysis.
D	This topic could be explored through the actions and thoughts of one main character.

A	The sounds and rhythms of the language of this topic are interesting, suggestive, provocative.
B	I want to include some humour, or some personal anecdotes and experiences.
C	This topic will be well served by precise factual information.
D	This topic might be best explored through imagining a world different from the ‘real’ world – or the world we’re in now.

A	As I think about the topic, images and associations occur to me.
B	I want to use a personal voice and focus to talk about this topic.
C	I want to know more about this topic after further research and explain it to others.
D	I can imagine a key event or turning point on which I could centre my writing.

Check the bottom of the page to see which form might be best for you, based on your answers!

Finding a form can be all about experimenting and exploring. You might start off writing an article and along the way it starts to become a fiction piece – or you begin a poem and then decide to turn it into a script! Take your time, try out ideas and find what works for you.

To help you with this process, check out our form guides below for more information on the different forms, as well as examples of writing in these forms from professional writers, and from previous Youth Prize winners and runners up.