The MARION Science + Storytelling Prize invited ACT-based writers of all ages to creatively explore the wonders of science through storytelling. We’re celebrating the best original, imaginative short written works, in essay form, poetry, short stories, or hybrid writing that respond to the 2025 National Science Week theme:
Decoding the Universe – Exploring the unknown with nature’s hidden language.

This theme invites reflection on the ways we understand and interpret the world, from DNA and data to bird calls, star patterns, magnetic fields, fungi networks, and mathematical systems. Writers were encouraged to consider how nature “speaks” and how we, as humans, listen, translate, and create meaning from these hidden systems.

We will be awarding works across three categories:

OPEN (aged 18 and over)
65+ (aged 65 and over)
Youth (aged 17 and under)

Winners and runners-up will be awarded a prize from a $1,700 pool.

MARION strives to ensure that this is a safe and accessible event. On the day, we request everyone who is able to wear a mask, please do so. If you do not feel well or have been in contact with a confirmed, or suspected case of COVID-19, have COVID-19, or are awaiting PCR test results, please stay home.

The Space at Tuggeranong Arts Centre is accessible via a lift in the building. For more information on accessibility at the Tuggeranong Arts Centre, please visit this page.

All attendees are invited to stay after the awards ceremony and participate in the August edition of Come Write, which will run from 11am - 1pm in The Space. For more information on Come Write, please visit the event page here.