Local student writer wins prestigious award

Her piece titled “World sweeps coal into dustbin of history” earned her the contest’s top award, and she is slated to be honored in a ceremony at Carnegie Hall later this summer.

The award marks some of the first recognition Hao has received and she expects it will continue to fuel her passion for the craft.

“It feels pretty good because it is one of my first writing awards,” she said. “I guess it will motivate me to write more and achieve more.”

Hao earned the award over more than 350,000 entries in the competition recognized as one of the nation’s most notable writing challenges. The awards were established in 1923, and have been given to many teens who went on to become world-class writers, actors and entertainers. Alumni also includes Joyce Carole Oates, Robert Redford and Andy Warhol.

For her part, Hao said she spent countless hours developing and refining her 1,236-word submission over three months with help of a tutor.

“I kept rewriting it over and over again,” she said.

She eventually submitted the piece and earned regional recognition, which granted her access to joining the national challenge late last year. She found out in March she’d won the gold medal.

Hao’s essay deftly introduces the real world repercussions of energy production through the lens of a fictional family working in Bangladesh’s coal mining industry which is getting scaled back in favor of renewable energy.

“It’s a critical essay, but the anecdote is historical fiction,” said Hao.

While the piece largely touches on the benefits of renewable energy, she said it was also important to address the implications of transitioning away from established industries.

Hao partially credits her essay’s success to her interest in the matter it examines.

“I felt like it was a big issue in the world that needed to be solved,” she said.

An investment in any topic she writes on is essential to her creation process, said Hao.

“It has to be something that I’m interested in or that I have prior knowledge in,” she said.

Beyond her passion for the subject, Hao said her essay benefited from applying skills developed in her speech and debate class.

“I linked everything together again. I addressed the issue and refuted it as well,” she said.

Looking ahead, Hao said she expects the award will drive her to further hone her craft. Beyond critical essays, she expects to explore history, humor and adventure genres.

“I’m pretty interested in a lot of things,” she said. “And I’m pretty curious about any topic.”

Her ambition grows from her interest in writing, which initially was borne from an activity she picked up for amusement in her free time.

“It’s just a hobby that I’ve taken up,” she said.

All things considered, as she joins the ranks of prestigious winners and looks ahead to the award ceremony, Hao succinctly and humbly summed up her journey.

“I guess it feels pretty nice,” she said. “And it’s just been a fun time.”

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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