The writing competition for global Chinese youth started from July 26 and attracted more than 100,000 teenagers, of whom over 40 reached the final.

Awards were won by Yao Jingwen, a high school student from Xiangfan City in central China's Hubei Province, and Cheng Fei, a middle school student from Xi'an in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, with articles named Love, Stray in the World and Zhuang Zi I.

It was the second contest held by Aesthetic Essay, a literary magazine founded by Jia Pingwa, a prestigious writer from northwestern China.

The first was held last year and startled the country by introducing five works into Chinese textbooks used by middle school students nationwide.

Such contests can help spot students with an aptitude for writing and raise their horizons, Jia Pingwa said.

In recent years, increasing numbers of teenagers have published literary works.

"In fact, China has a long history of child writers. For example, Du Fu, a famous poet in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), wrote excellent poems when he was very young," said Cao Wenxuan, a famous writer and professor with Peking University.

However, some famous teenager writers have shown arrogance, cynicism and apathy, said Cao. This should arouse the attention of the whole society, he added.

Each of the two winners will receive a prize of 10,000 yuan (US$1,204) and each of the finalists will be awarded 2,000 yuan (US$240.96).

(Xinhua News Agency August 4, 2003)