Three students – from Kirkland, Snoqualmie and Seattle – are the champions in Washington’s 2010-2011 Letters About Literature contest.

The contest encourages students to write letters to their favorite authors, living or dead.

This year’s winners are:

• McKenna Conlin, a sixth-grader at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School in Kirkland, is the Level 1 (grades 4-6) champion. Conlin wrote her letter to Sherman Alexie about his book “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.”

• Abby Bateman, a seventh-grader at Snoqualmie Middle School in Snoqualmie, is the Level 2 (grades 7-8) champion. Bateman wrote her letter to Katherine Paterson about her book “Bridge to Terabithia.”

• John Kang, an 11th-grader at Lakeside School in Seattle, is the Level 3 (grades 9-12) champion. Kang wrote his letter to Mary Paik Lee about her book Quiet Odyssey:  A Pioneer Korean Woman in America.

The contest awards ceremony is at 1:30 p.m. May 6 in Secretary of State Sam Reed’s office in the Legislative Building, Olympia.

“Congratulations to McKenna, Abby and John on being named this year’s champions,” said Reed, who praised all students who took part in the contest. “These three remarkable students and their parents should be proud of their accomplishment. I look forward to meeting and recognizing them at the awards ceremony in May.”

The 2010-11 contest, which ran from September to early December, received entries from 3,376 Washington students.

“We’re very pleased that more students each year are participating in the Letters About Literature contest,” said Acting Washington State Librarian Rand Simmons, who praised parents, teachers and librarians for their support. “In an age when students’ attention can be diverted in many different directions, it’s encouraging that books can still inspire so many of them. Books convey the power of thoughts and ideas, and this contest shows how authors’ words can impact students and us all in a positive way.”

The 2010-2011 contest had 173 semifinalists at all three levels. From the 173 Washington semifinalists, the state judges selected three champions, three second-place runners up, and 14 honorable mentions. The three champions’ letters have been sent to the Library of Congress for the national competition. The results of the national judging will be released in mid-April.

To enter, readers in grades 4-12 write a personal letter to an author, explaining how his or her work influenced their perspective on the world or themselves. Students can write about works of fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. They cannot write about music lyrics.

National winners will receive a $500 Target gift card and a $10,000 grant for their community or school library.