Ever thought of writing a story in a day? Well, students from Swindon have done just that! Six schools:- Commonweal, Swindon Academy, Dorcan, Kingsdown, Warneford, and Greendown - have all taken part in an exciting event to write possibly the fastest story in the West!

The event took place on Tuesday 11th November across the schools. Commonweal’s teams of three girls and three boys had just 45 minutes to write 150 words of a story and send it off to the next school! The theme this year was horror, which opened up a lot of ideas and suggestions among the students. Sian Francis-Cox, from The Commonweal School, said: ‘I really enjoyed the event. It was interesting to hear other people’s ideas and the fact that it was a horror story made it fun to work with. I liked the fact that different schools wrote different sections- it gave it the element of surprise!’ But it’s not just the students who have been working hard; the library staff have a lot to be thanked for. Aside from organising it, they have been helping in their own ways - whether through offering support, typing away patiently at the keyboard, or providing ‘energy supplies’ in the form of Dairy Milks! Whatever their input, the library staff deserve to be thanked for their excellent efforts.

Once completed, the story will serve as a reminder of such an exciting event and a celebration of literature in Swindon. And, unless another is hastily written, it will remain under the grand title of ‘The Fastest Story in the West’.

By Siân Francis-Cox, Bethan Hire and Tallulah Lyons, Commonweal School