RAINBOW STORYTELLING COMPETITION

PAST WINNERS & ENTRIES

2025

Poetry

Under 16

Winner

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Homophobia, violence

Content Warnings:

Dysphoria, self harm

Content Warnings: 

Slight transphobia

16 – 20

Winner

Content Warnings: Minor violence and transphobia 

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Internalised homophobia (implied)

Content Warnings: violence, sex, body mutilation.

Content Warnings: Sexually explicit. 

Content Warnings: Eating disorder. 

Content Warnings: Slight suicide themes.

Content Warnings: It has strong language and the theme of insomnia..

Content Warnings: Homophobia.

Content Warnings: Mentions of homophobia

Content Warnings: homophobic language/slur, religious homophobia.

Content Warnings: Homophobia, Religious themes.

Content Warnings: Strong language, theme of abuse, homophobia, violence.

Content Warnings: Implied dysphoria and mentions of death.

Content Warnings: Reference to death.

21 – 27

Winner

Runner Up

Content Warnings: mentions of suicide,  homophobia, transphobia, death, religion and bullying.

Content Warning: Use of Strong language.

Creative Storytelling

Under 16

Winner

Content Warnings: Dark themes, murder

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Mild emotional discomfort,
Emotional vulnerability.

Content Warnings: Traces of homophobia. 

Content Warnings: It may be upsetting to some. 

Content Warnings: Minor violence. 

Content Warnings: Instances of violence, graphic scenes, blood and injury.

Content Warnings: It may be upsetting to some. 

Content Warnings: It may be upsetting to some. 

Content Warnings: Rough language. 

Content Warnings: Mentions of homophobia.

Content Warnings: Mentions of homophobia.

Content Warnings: Character death (nonviolent).

Content Warnings: Queerphobia, strong language, self harm and a depiction of a panic attack.

Content Warnings: Blood. Transphobia, Homophobia, violence, strong language.

16 – 20

Winner

Content Warnings: Internalised homophobia.

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Blood.

Content Warnings:  Brief mention of a corpse.

Content Warnings: Body Horror, cannibalism, unhealthy relationships, violence/murder, vomiting.

Content Warnings:  Brief mentions of antisemitism and the holocaust / concentration camps

Content Warnings: Homophobia, self-harm, strong language.

Content Warnings:  Brief mention of a corpse.

Content Warnings: Graphic killing of an animal, sexual themes, sexual implications, strong language.

Content Warnings: Strong language, theme of schizophrenia and Hallucination, and insanity.

Content Warnings:  Two instances of profanity, brief mention of condoms, open/unresolved ending, anxiety attack conveyed over texts and google searches.

Content Warnings:  Homophobia, animal death.

Content Warnings: Depiction of a suicide attempt and its aftermath (non-graphic), references to moments of crisis and emotional vulnerability (particularly in relation to trans identity), also includes one line where strong language is used.

Content Warnings:  Slight strong language, themes of schizophrenia, hallucinations and delusions.

 

Content Warnings:  Implied homophobia.

Content Warnings:  Gothic Horror: Suicide Ideation, Self Harm.

Content Warnings:  Internalized Homophobia.

 

Content Warnings:  mild internalized transphobia.

Content Warnings:  Slight violence, alcohol use.

Content Warnings:  Heavy consent themes. 

Content Warnings:  Reference to death.

 

21 – 27

Winner

Content Warnings: Traces of internalized homophobia.

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Violence, homophobia, implied suicidal ideation

Content Warning: mention of the February Destiny Church events at Te Atatu Library during drag story time.

Māori and Pacific

Winner

Content Warnings: Mention of the February Destiny Church events at Te Atatu Library during drag story time

Content Warnings: Traces of internalized homophobia.

Content Warnings: Mentions of suicide, homophobia, transphobia, death, religion. and bullying.

Content Warnings: Use of strong language

Content Warnings: May be upsetting to some.

2024

Poetry

Under 16

Winner

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Homophobia, violence

16 – 20

Winner

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Strong language, homophobic language

Content Warnings: Death

Content Warnings: Death

Content Warnings: Homophobia

Content Warnings: Homophobia,racism, religion

21 – 27

Winner

Content Warnings: Religion, transphobia

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Gender dysphoria

Content Warnings: Sexual violence

Creative Storytelling

Under 16

Winner

Content Warnings: Mental illness, metaphor for self-harm

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Mentions of death, blood, hallucinations, and mental illness

Content Warnings: Mentions of blood, self-harm, and substance use/abuse

Content Warnings: Transphobia, violence

Content Warnings: Death, mental illness

16 – 20

Winner

Content Warnings: Violence, zombie/horror, death, suicidal ideation

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Police brutality

Content Warnings: Homophobia

21 – 27

Winner

Content Warnings: Strong language and substance use

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Violence, homophobia, implied suicidal ideation

Content Warnings: Violence, xenophobia, gore, self-harm, religious allegory

Māori

Winner

Runner Up

Content Warnings: Police brutality

Content Warnings: Gender dysphoria

Content Warnings: Sexual violence

2023

Poetry

Under 16

Winner

Content Warnings: homophobia, implied sexual themes

Runner Up

Content Warnings: gore

Entries

Content Warnings: mental illness

16 – 24

Winner

Content Warnings: gore

Runner Up

Content Warnings: gun violence, character death

Runner Up

Content Warnings: abuse

Entries

Content Warnings: violence

Content Warnings: death

Content Warnings: homophobia

Content Warnings: homophobia, religion, racism

Content Warnings: religion

Content Warnings: violence

Content Warnings: religion, abuse

Content Warnings: death, violence

Content Warnings: religion

Fiction (Prose)

Under 16

Winner

Runner Up

Runner Up

Entries

Content Warnings: violence

Content Warnings: violence, character death, transphobia, homophobia

Content Warnings: transphobia

Content Warnings: mental illness, character death

Content Warnings: homophobia

Content Warnings: homophobia

Content Warnings: homophobia, transphobia

Content Warnings: self-harm

16 – 24

Winner

Content Warnings: gore

Runner Up

Runner Up

Content Warnings: gore

Entries

Content Warnings: homophobia

Content Warnings: gore

Content Warnings: homophobia

Content Warnings: self-harm, homophobia, transphobia

Content Warnings: suicide

Content Warnings: mental illness

Content Warnings: violence

Content Warnings:  homophobia

Content Warnings: mental illness, substance use/abuse, character death

Creative Non-Fiction

Under 16

Winner

Entries

Content Warnings:  transphobia

16-24 entry

Content Warnings: violence

2022

Fiction

Winner

Content Warnings: character death, war, mental illness

Content Warnings: character death

Content Warnings: homophobia

Content Warnings: homophobia, character death 

Non-Fiction

Winner

Content Warnings: discrimination

Poetry

Winner

Content Warnings: character death

Content Warnings: homophobia

Content Warnings: transphobia

Content Warnings: substance use/abuse

Content Warnings: homophobia

Content Warnings: sexual assault, mental illness

2021

Under 16

Winners

Entries

16 – 24

Winners

Entries