Earlier this year, I announced the BTS Essay contest here on The BTS Effect. The contest was designed for students at any level and open internationally. Participants were tasked with writing a 1,000-2,000 word essay addressing the topic of “life lessons” learned through BTS or their work.

I’m very excited to announce the winners of the contest in this post! The original plan was to have one winner (who would receive a $100 USD prize) and at least five finalists. The winner would be published here on The BTS Effect, and finalists would be published over on The BTS Effect’s Medium publication. However, thanks to a generous donation, we were able to select two winners (both of them received their $100 USD prizes earlier this month, and both are published here on the main website).

I am very grateful to everyone who entered this contest. Thank you so much for sharing your words and stories with us. I encourage you to keep writing about BTS and your experience as an ARMY. I would also like to extend a huge thank-you to our guest judges from Bangtan Scholars and ARMY Writers Club, as well as the generous donor who made it possible for us to choose two winners.

I hope to hold another contest like this in the near future! If anyone has suggestions for topics for the next contest, please feel free to tweet me or leave a comment below. I’m also interested in partnering with BTS fanbase accounts for future contests! If you’re part of a BTS fanbase account or ARMY-related organization, please get in touch if you’d be interested!

The BTS Effect always accepts submissions for the My ARMY Story section of the Medium publication. If you’d like to learn more about submitting your story, please click here.

BTS Essay Contest Winners

Congratulations to our winners, Jageunsi and Moon! You can read their essays by visiting the links below!

“Painting the World Purple” by Jageunsi

“What a Relief that We Never Walk Alone” by Moon

Contest Finalists

Additionally, we chose a handful of finalists. Congratulations to the finalists below! I will be publishing their essays on Medium over the coming weeks. I will update the list below with links to each essay, so please check back (or check on Twitter) for each essay’s release! Finalists are listed in no particular order.

Please check back soon for the ongoing announcement of finalist entries!

“How to Live: A Guide by BTS” by S. Cairo

“BTS: When Do You Hit the Brakes, and When Do You Accelerate?” by Zara Sofea

“The BTS Effect” by Eden Smith

“BTS and Their Language of Dreams” by Carolina Rocha

“The Epiphany: Leaving the Cult of Coolness… to Find Something Much Cooler“ by Lisa Joan Ireland

“Collecting Stardust” by Swarnim

“How BTS Pushed Me to Embrace My Culture” by AM

“In Regard to Pressure, Time, and BTS: A Road Story“ by Jessica

“When Does the Most Beautiful Moment in Life End?” by Romi

Want to keep up to date on The BTS Effect and related projects? Sign up for the newsletter here!