She is 14 years and came tops when children all over the country competed in a writing competition organised recently by Citi FM, an Accra-based radio station.
Her entry was among the over 1,300 essays received for the contest, which required the contestants to write a story with their own fictional characters and ends with, ‘A bird in hand is worth two in the bush.’
Obviously, our personality for this week, Marilyn Nana Yaa Gyan, set herself apart from many children her age when she was shortlisted among the top 10 to qualify for the ultimate prize.
It was at that stage that the rare character of a sterling student stood out as her love for reading widely paid off when her story, choice of words and presentation projected her brilliance and rightfully earned her the first prize in the competition.
For her prize, Marilyn received GH¢5,000, in addition to souvenirs from the sponsors of the competition.
Over the years, Marilyn has been very attached to her books so much that she can hardly put a story book away once it catches her eye.
Speaking to the Junior Graphic in her school, the Falsyd Foundation School at Achimota, Accra, Marilyn, who is a JHS Form Three student and Vice-President of the Junior Graphic Fan Club there, said her love for reading nearly became an obsession when she was in JHS One and Two.
“I used to read many books, to the extent that sometimes even when a teacher was in class, I kept reading,” she confessed.
She said she had, however, had to apply the brakes a bit since she went to Form Three in order to have adequate time to prepare for the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
According to Marilyn, she loved reading story books so much and that habit she had cultivated for some time now enabled her to take two days or at most a week to read voluminous books.
Her favourite authors are world acclaimed writers such as Sidney Sheldon and Danielle Steel.
She said the books she had read since primary school had helped her learn about the cultures of other countries and the various characters and behaviours of people.
It was, therefore, not difficult to write essays or stories, since she had a wealth of knowledge she could draw from.
Marilyn said she picked up the reading habit when she was in Class Three from her elder brother who also read a lot.
Junior Graphic Fan Club
She said it was her passion for reading that made her join the Junior Graphic Fan Club at school.
“I love the programmes the club offers, especially the debates, and my favourite column in the Junior Graphic is the Auntie Betty column. I take the counselling offered in that column very seriously and I must say it has helped me a lot, as well as enabled me to offer good pieces of advice to friends who sometimes come to me with problems,’ she said.
She encouraged children to read in order to be exposed to many words and have a good command over the English Language.
For being the best during the Citi FM Write-Away Contest, Marilyn is most grateful to one of her teachers who persistently put pressure on her to enter the competition.
“I entered the contest just to yield to her pressure and look at what I have achieved in the end? A crown of glory, indeed, is the prize for consistent hard work,” she said.
Family and education
Marilyn, who is the second child of her parents, has three other siblings. She is grateful to her parents for supporting her during the competition.
Her chores at home, among others, include cleaning and cooking. She enjoys Technical Drawing and it is her hope to pursue General Arts at senior high school.
Though she is not certain on the career path she intends to pursue in future, Marilyn believes that whatever she settles on, she will continue to follow her passion which is writing.
Ever since she won the award, Marilyn says she has been encouraged to write more stories with the aid of her English teacher who gives her topics to write on.
Her hope is to get the stories published in future.
