Reflections on the Twist Fate Challenge

With a small twist of fate, any hero could become a villain, and any villain, a hero. That was the premise of 2016’s Twist Fate Challenge, a month-long challenge for youth ages 13-17 that kicked off during last year’s Teen Tech Week. A collaborative partnership between DeviantArt and Wattpad with the Young Adult Library Association and the National Writing Project as part of the Connected Learning Alliance, the challenge prompted youth to pick a story and character, and create an alternate scenario where a famous hero is the villain, or an infamous villain, the hero. They worked in their favorite modes and mediums, including pictures, written stories, comic panels, illustrations, etc.

Now finalists’ work is included in a published book! The Twist Fate book contains contributions from 60 deviants and 40 more from Wattpad chosen from thousands of participants. In this conversation, members of the editorial team will discuss their experiences engaging with youth submissions in such a wide range of genres and describe some of their favorites. They’ll also talk about how the competition supported connected learning and creativity.

Guests for this episode include:

• Christina Cantrill (host), Assistant Director of National Programs, National Writing Project
• Antero Garcia, Assistant Professor in the Graduate School of Education at Stanford University
• Sara Ryan, Author and Teen Services Specialist, Multnomah County Library

Resources for this episode include:

• Twist Fate
• The Twist Fate Book Has Landed!