It is no easy feat to plan, write and illustrate a book within twelve hours. Throw in some compulsory characters, keywords and the challenges of group work and you have the Write A Book In A Day competition.
A team of Year 7 and 8 students from Delany College, Granville recently took up the challenge to write a book in a day. Working in the school library over a 12 hour period (from 8am to 8pm), Delany’s talented authors and illustrators managed to accomplish their task with a book titled ‘Opal Your Eyes’.
Founded in 2002, the Write A Book In A Day competition is a fundraising initiative aimed at raising money for The Kids Cancer Project, with all books being donated for patients to read while undergoing treatment in hospital. Teams are tasked with planning, writing and illustrating a book while adhering to a 5,000 word limit and a unique set of parameters.
For Delany’s team, the challenge was to come up with a story that incorporated a scientist, a trapeze artist, a camera, a bridge and a lost ring.
Delany’s Assistant Principal, Anthony Blomfield said the students did a phenomenal job working together to combine these key elements into their story.
“This was an important project for our school to be involved in as it provided our students with hands-on learning experience, engaged them in teamwork, inclusiveness and collaboration all for a great cause,” Mr Blomfield said. “Due to the kind efforts of the Delany College teaching staff, our families and friends, we were able to exceed our initial fundraising goal.”
Congratulations and well done to Delany’s team: Scarlett Lawler, Khan Salicioglu-Achi, Thomas Rose, Joseph Koroma, Ethan Dogra, Rhys Ramos, Lyriah Filo, Simran Kaur, Sia Comfort-Swaray.
Catholic Schools Parramatta Diocese
www.parra.catholic.edu.au
Facebook | Delany
-
![598270595434072_1314466047147853-1]()
01 Oct 2025
From Facebook
✨ Year 11 English students have had an inspiring year full of creative and thought-provoking experiences! 🎨 At the Art Gallery of NSW, the Rites of When exhibition showed how different art forms come together to create powerful stories, insights that helped students nail their Multimodal Presentation assessment. 🎭 English Advanced students brought Shakespeare’s Othello to life with a live performance at Riverside Theatre, deepening their understanding of the text. ✍️ A creative writing workshop with author Will Kostakis sparked fresh ideas and practical tips for imaginative storytelling. 🎶 To wrap up the year, students enjoyed A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings—a magical realist performance blending music, puppetry and live video projection that connected beautifully with their HSC Common Module studies. What a year of learning beyond the classroom! #Year11English #CreativeLearning #HSCPrep #ArtGalleryNSW #Othello #WillKostakis #MagicalRealism![598270595434072_1313558267238631-1]()
30 Sep 2025
From Facebook
🎭 Year 12 Drama students hit the stage! They kicked off with a dynamic Group Devising Workshop at the Seymour Centre sparking creativity for their HSC Group Performance💡 Then it was off to the Sydney Theatre Company for a moved reading of Fangirls and Neighbourhood Watch, two iconic Australian plays that will boost their prep for the written HSC exam. 📝🎬 A day full of inspiration, collaboration and powerful storytelling! #Year12Drama #HSCDrama #SeymourCentre #SydneyTheatreCompany #Fangirls #NeighbourhoodWatch #DramaStudents #CreativeLearning #HSCReady
More News
01 Oct 2025
From Facebook
✨ Year 11 English students have had an inspiring year full of creative and thought-provoking experiences! 🎨 At the Art Gallery of NSW, the Rites of When exhibition showed how different art forms come together to create powerful stories, insights that helped students nail their Multimodal Presentation assessment. 🎭 English Advanced students brought Shakespeare’s Othello to life with a live performance at Riverside Theatre, deepening their understanding of the text. ✍️ A creative writing workshop with author Will Kostakis sparked fresh ideas and practical tips for imaginative storytelling. 🎶 To wrap up the year, students enjoyed A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings—a magical realist performance blending music, puppetry and live video projection that connected beautifully with their HSC Common Module studies. What a year of learning beyond the classroom! #Year11English #CreativeLearning #HSCPrep #ArtGalleryNSW #Othello #WillKostakis #MagicalRealism
30 Sep 2025
From Facebook
🎭 Year 12 Drama students hit the stage! They kicked off with a dynamic Group Devising Workshop at the Seymour Centre sparking creativity for their HSC Group Performance💡 Then it was off to the Sydney Theatre Company for a moved reading of Fangirls and Neighbourhood Watch, two iconic Australian plays that will boost their prep for the written HSC exam. 📝🎬 A day full of inspiration, collaboration and powerful storytelling! #Year12Drama #HSCDrama #SeymourCentre #SydneyTheatreCompany #Fangirls #NeighbourhoodWatch #DramaStudents #CreativeLearning #HSCReady
29 Sep 2025
From Facebook
Our Year 11 & 12 Studies of Religion students had the incredible opportunity to attend a mini-lecture and workshop with Dr Emmanuel Nathan from Australian Catholic University. They explored powerful topics like Pope John XXIII and Holocaust Theology, gaining valuable insights and skills to help them shine in their HSC! #SOR #HSCPrep #InspiringLearning #ACU #HolocaustTheology
25 Sep 2025
From Facebook
A beautiful day filled with gratitude, pride and emotion as we celebrated the Year 12 Graduation Mass and Ceremony 🙏🎓 Watching our students walk this special journey of faith, friendship and growth has been nothing short of inspiring. We not only honoured their achievements but also the values, memories and community spirit that will stay with them forever. Congratulations to the graduating class of 2025!! May you continue to shine brightly as you step into your next chapter 💖 #ClassOf2025 #Graduation #FaithAndEducation
25 Sep 2025
From Facebook
What a special night for our Delany College Year 12 students as they celebrated their formal with teachers who have guided and supported them along the way. A beautiful reminder that education is more than just learning, it’s about the people who walk beside you on the journey 💙 Congratulations to the Class of 2025! The future is yours! 🌟 #DelanyCollege #ClassOf2025 #Year12Formal #ProudMoments
12 Sep 2025
Bishop’s Awards celebrate student excellence across Parramatta Diocese
The annual Bishop of Parramatta Award for Student Excellence honours Year 12 students who demonstrate strong leadership, a spirit of service and a lasting impact on their school community.
01 Sep 2025
Celebrating Faith, Learning and Mission at 2025 Education Mass
Students, parents and carers, educators and clergy from Catholic schools across the Diocese of Parramatta gathered in a spirit of unity and celebration for the 2025 Education Mass on Wednesday 27 August.
19 Aug 2025
From Facebook
🎉 WEEK 5 ACADEMIC JUGGERNAUTS – STAGE 4 🎉 Huge congratulations to our standout students this week! 🌟 Year 8: Levi Fifita Levi has been smashing it with his focus, maturity and consistent effort. Keep it up! 🌟 Year 7: Makayla Merhi Makayla has shown incredible growth through her hard work and dedication to learning. Amazing job! 🙌 Special shoutout to all students nominated by our staff - you are seen, appreciated and celebrated! 👏 Year 7 Nominees: Eyad Wehbe, Leya Sande, Mareta Awad, Alakor Ngor, Mikhael Holzmann, Ravpreet Kaur, Mustafa Niazy, Gwen Schembri, Irene He Year 8 Nominees: Akuee Akot, Jessie Debah, Derek Custodio, Connor Pollard, Arshia Afsharpour, Mika Apikotoa, Sean Ejim, Kesaia Sikulu, Sebasjin Tuki Keep up the amazing work, everyone! 💪📚 #AcademicExcellence #Stage4Superstars #Week5Winners
14 Aug 2025
From Facebook
Be Bold. Be Kind. Speak Up. 💬💪 Bullying doesn't stop on its own, it takes all of us. Whether it’s in the classroom, the playground or online, we all have a role to play. 🧡 Students can speak up, stand together and support those being targeted. 🧡 Parents & teachers can guide and model positive behaviour, helping young people grow with respect and empathy. Let’s create a culture where kindness leads and bullying has no place. 👊 #BeKind #SpeakUp #StopBullyingTogether #StrongerTogether
14 Aug 2025
From Facebook
🎉 Stage 4 Academic Juggernauts – Week 4! 🎉 A huge congratulations to this week’s standout students! 👏 🌟 Year 7: Melissa Trinh Recognized for her impressive multilingual abilities and dedication to supporting her peers - amazing work! 🌟 Year 8: Aeva Mendez Her enthusiasm for learning and jaw dropping performance tricks have truly set her apart - well done! 🙌 Shoutout to our other outstanding nominees: Year 7: Makayla Merhi, Arjav Aryal, Nattakorn Choettrakun, Magdalena Gjorevski Year 8: Lukacs Bausse, William Bazouni, Jana Akkouche, Nour El Fouani Keep striving for greatness! 💪✨ #AcademicExcellence #Stage4Stars #JuggernautsOfTheWeek
11 Aug 2025
From Facebook
What a show! 🎭 The 2025 CAPTIVATE Immersion Program Emu Wars brought together 48 students from 14 secondary schools across the diocese for an unforgettable performance at The Joan, Penrith. Based on the 1932 'civil war' between the Australian Army and a flock of emus in the Campion District of Western Australia, it has gone down as one of the most comical events in Australian Peacetime History. Shoutout to Delany College’s own Jack Fitzpatrick (Yr 12) and Aeva Mendez (Yr 8), who nailed a tough audition, then dedicated their Winter Holidays to rehearsals before taking the stage. Bravo! 👏🐦 Students from the various performing arts - dance, drama and music - were required to adapt their skills across all three areas to present a performance which told the story of the Emu Wars. Two performances were held, a school matinee on the afternoon of Thursday 24 July, followed by a public performance on the same evening. Jack and Aeva not only highlighted their own personal skills in the performing arts, but also integrated with the other performers to present a truly inspiring and professional performance, developed and rehearsed in a little over ten days.
06 Aug 2025
From Facebook
Our Year 10 students took part in the Be Street Smart excursion at Qudos Bank Arena, receiving a strong and important message about road safety. Huge thanks to our incredible Delany PDHPE team for guiding and supporting them throughout the day! 🚦👏 #RoadSafety #BeStreetSmart #DelanyCommunity
06 Aug 2025
From Facebook
📍 Year 11 Retreat • Let the journey begin! 🚌 Bags packed, spirits high and memories ready to be made! Our Year 11's are off to their retreat! We can’t wait to see the friendships grow and the reflections unfold over the next few days. 💙✨ #Y11Retreat #OnTheWay #NewAdventures #MakingMemories
04 Aug 2025
From Facebook
🎉 Big congrats to our Stage 4 Academic Juggernauts for Week 3!💥 Your hard work and dedication are inspiring! ✨ Year 8: Olivia Katrib & Hakim Assan-Larry ✨ Year 7: Zayn Alameddine & Angelina Farah Keep smashing those goals! 💪📚 #AcademicExcellence #Week3Winners #ProudMoment
30 Jul 2025
From Facebook
🌟 Huge congrats to Stella Fitzpatrick, Luke Laoulach & Kayi Salicioglu-Achi for proudly representing Delany College at the Rainbow Crossing Young Champions Awards on Sunday, July 27! 🌈✨ All three were recognised as finalists for their incredible initiatives, hard work & commitment to community service throughout the year. 💪❤️ We're so proud of you! 🙌🎉 #DelanyPride #YoungChampions #CommunityHeroes #StudentLeaders #ProudMoment