Year 11 students Emma Nicholas and Jessica Faulkner recently recorded success in public speaking, creative writing and drama competitions.

Miss Nicholas was announced the winner of the Rostrum Voice of Youth competition and will go on to be one of two state finalists at the state competition in June.

Separately, Miss Faulkner has had success at the Launceston Competitions, winning first place in Creative Writing and winning the Nuts and Bolts Perpetual Trophy and the Royal Society St George Award for her drama performance at the competitions.

The two Year 11 students were up against their peers and Year 12 students in both of their respective competitions, which is credit to their success.

Miss Nicholas said she chose to do the Rostrum competition after electing to participate in her school’s debating elective.

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“I wanted to build my confidence and improve my public speaking skills,” she said.

The competition sees competitors speaking on a prepared speech for eight minutes and an impromptu speech for three minutes.

She said to prepare for the speech she wrote it out in full and practised speaking aloud, to find the natural pauses and sections she could use to connect with the audience.

To remember the words, she uses cue cards that prompt strategic points throughout the speech.

Miss Faulkner has been competing in the Launceston Competitions since she was in Grade 7.

“I find it so much for to be someone different to myself, to embody that character,” she said.

She had to submit a 1000-piece creative writing piece for that section and perform two drama performances – one from Shakespeare and an Australian piece.

“I chose [Shakespeare’s] The Jailer’s Daughter and did a reading from Picnic at Hanging Rock,” she said.

Miss Faulkner said she loved both pieces because of its dramatic prose and vivid imagery.

“I like the Jailer’s Daughter because, of how crazy she goes in the monologue, it’s just so different to me.”

Miss Faulkner has won at previous Launceston Competitions and said it was testament to her teachers.