A young author in the Highland School District has been recognized for her work putting pen to paper. Eighth grader Gretta Piette was named the Midwest region winner of the Gold Key at the 2022 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards at the Belin Blank Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development at the University of Iowa. She talked with KCII about her inspiration for the winning short story titled “Silent Dancers” and discussed the plot. “Anything sci-fi or fantasy. I love Harry Potter. The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings, fantasy. My story takes place in early 1900’s London. It takes place in a school of ballet and the main character is a girl named Florence, who has worked very hard to get into this school and is very passionate about dancing. Odd things happen. Some fellow dancers disappear and some new dancers come in and they seem a little bit odd to Florence. I describe it more suspense than horror.  But it definitely has a bit of freaky. We had just read Edgar Allen Poe, The Mask of the Red Death. So it mostly came from that. I love writing suspenseful moments, sort of like freak-out moments, like I don’t know what’s going on. I love writing those parts!”

The Gold Key is the highest honor given for  pieces that exemplify values like originality, technical skill and the emergence of a personal voice or vision. The awards, which began in 1923, have had several notable winners including Stephen King, Charles White, Joyce Carol Oates and Andy Warhol. As a Gold Key winner, Piette will also be considered for national awards like the Gold and Silver Medals with Distinction, Silver Medal and Scholarship awards. Catch the In Touch With Southeast Iowa Program with Gretta Piette during the morning, midday and evening magazines Monday or online at KCIIradio.com.