2025 Folio Academy Mentorship Showcase 

On a barmy Saturday evening early July inside the labyrinthian London Library, writers, family, friends and supporters came together for the 2025 Folio Academy Mentorship Showcase featuring First Story alumna and Year 13 student Shah Begum. 

Founded in 1841, The London Library is one of the world’s greatest lending libraries with one million books spread across 17 miles of shelves.  It is a place to read, write and feel inspired.  

In reading her work to an attentive audience, Shah inspired and moved with a cluster of poetry that journeyed from the political to the personal.  Penned with mentorship of the acclaimed poet and author Joelle Taylor, the reception received was testament to her dedication (which saw her jotting down new ideas and editing during her final exams), vision and talent. 

The second of two students from GGS to take part in this prestigious mentorship programme open exclusively to First Story Young Writers Programme alumni, Shah was one of only four young writers selected nationally.  We are extremely proud of her and it was an absolute joy and privilege to hear her share her work including Soul Chronicles below which she described as being inspired by her friends and a reflection on the little moments that shaped them; ‘moments that felt ordinary, but somehow became sacred.’ 

Soul Chronicles by Shah Begum 

 

To water fights that drenched our socks, 

Oh reckless rain, baptizing us in joy unplanned. 

To skipping double maths for swings and corner-shop sweets, 

To the park bench, we split a portion of chips, 

Whispers of birthdays, secrets traded in silence. 

What sacred rites we built from classroom boredom. 

To piercing our ears in the girls’ bathroom,  

and doing yoga at the back of the class, 

Would thou trade a detention for a moment of sunlit escape? 

Our moments sealed in a treasure chest, fusing old memories with letters to the future 

Our rain-soaked hair and slow walks home. 

No storm could soak our joy, it ran deeper than that. 

 

The bell rang. My everything changed.  

 

Part-time shifts leaving us aching, 

Eyes closing like the doors of the last train. 

Plans scheduled over microwaved leftovers, 

The group chat pulsing — a heartbeat in pixels. 
Late-night: 
“u still up?” 
(Always.) 

 

We found each other in half-charged calls, 
In “just five more minutes” 
that bled into sunrise. 

 

Photos snapped in restaurant mirrors, 

Smiles burning bright in the flash. 

Stories relived like sacred rites, 

We scrolled through flight deals we couldn’t afford, 

Dreams pinned to payday and prayer. 

 

Still saying “we have to,” like that bends time, 

Carrying promises like our friendship bracelets: 

The broken swing in the park, 

The memory of rain that never quite dried.