MADISON -Joshua Macri of Madison recently ranked in first place in the Upper Elementary Division of the Huntsville Literary Association Young Writer Competition.

Ten-year-old Joshua will enter fifth grade this fall with the home-school program that Asbury United Methodist Church offers. He previously attended Rainbow Elementary School.

When Joshua first entered the young writer’s contest, he was a first-grader at Rainbow with a poem he entitled “Spring.” Next, he won second place in the lower elementary division (grades 1-2) in 2015. Joshua received an engraved glass plate and a cash award during an awards ceremony at the University of Alabama in Huntsville’s Chan Auditorium.

“He was thrilled and decided to try again the next year,” his mother Jennifer Macri said.

In second grade, Joshua entered a poem, “Rhythm of the Rain,” and won first place. “He was very excited. Again, he attended the awards ceremony but this time, as a first place winner, he was asked to read his poem aloud on stage,” Jennifer said.

In addition, first-place winners were invited to meet Judy Watters at WLRH to record their poem. “Josh was happy to visit the studio and see behind the scenes at a real radio station,” Jennifer said.

In 2017, Joshua again entered the HLA Young Writers’ contest with his poem, “It Wasn’t Me” and won first place for the upper elementary division (grades 3-5). That same year, he won first place in a separate statewide young writers’ book contest for his book, “Dinosaurs at the Door,” which he read at the Alabama Book Festival in Montgomery.

In 2018, Joshua entered the HLA competition as a homeschooler affiliated with Asbury School. He once again won first place in the upper elementary division for his poem, “The End of the Line.” He received his award at UAH’s Chan Auditorium on May 6.

“Joshua particularly enjoyed the remarks by author R.A. Nelson about just writing about what feels right for yourself,” Jennifer said.

The Young Writers’ contest is open to residents from Huntsville, Madison and Madison County. Carol Roach chairs the HLA contest. In opening remarks at the awards ceremony, Roach said more than 500 individuals submitted work overall to the competition this year.

For more information, visit hlahsv.org/Programs/young-writers/young-writers-rules.