THREE writing competitions are being held to mark the centenary of the death next year of the prolific Victorian novelist and short story writer, the Rev Sabine Baring-Gould — who is probably most famous for penning the hymn Onward Christian Soldiers.

The competitions are part of commemorative events being held in Tavistock in 2024 to celebrate the life of Baring-Gould. They are being hosted by Tavistock Subscription Library, which he used to visit regularly while living at his family home Lewtrenchard near Tavistock where he was both squire and parson.

Sabine Baring-Gould not only wrote novels, collected myths and legends, for example, ‘The Book of Were-Wolves’ and a book on Iceland and its sagas. He also collected folk songs and was an amateur archaeologist.

Baring-Gould had very little formal education and and yet he is known to have published over 1,200 novels, short stories and articles and this remarkable writer’s own love story may have been the inspiration behind Bernard Shaw’s Eliza in his play Pygmalion. He died at Lewtrenchard in his 90th year in 1924.

The three competitions are as follows:

1. A short story competition open to anyone over the age of 18.

2. A short story and drawing competition for the under 18s,

3. A poetry competition for anyone over the age of 18.

Entries are open now. There will be prizes of £50 awarded in the various adult categories with the prizewinners being notified approximately two weeks prior to the prizegiving which will be during the week of commemorative events beginning April 16, 2024.

Entry fees for the competitions will be used to support the work of the Tavistock Subscription Library in conserving its collection of local history, writing and heritage related books and related educational activities.

For more information about how to enter each competition go to the library website at tavistocksubscription library.co.uk and follow the competition link.