Queen Camilla has urged young people to put down their phones and pick up a book as she spoke at the BBC 500 Words award ceremony at Windsor Castle.
The Queen met with each winner of the event during the ceremony, which was filmed for The One Show.
A variety of celebrities read some of the selected stories, including Jodie Whittaker, Joanna Page, and Sara Cox.
During the event, Her Majesty urged young people: “Anybody who hears these stories will see how inspired these children are, and I think to get children reading and writing stories, especially nowadays, is so important.
Queen Camilla has urged young people to read more and put their phones down during the BBC 500 words awards ceremony
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"Also, it gives them time to get away from some of their phones, So I think it's so important that children keep on reading and writing, it's the best thing you could possibly do and it will take you all on adventures all over the world.
The Queen said she hoped the competition, which she has supported since 2015, has helped children “discover a secret, that reading and writing are the best fun ever”.
She continued: “And don’t just take my word for it – many years ago, a famous author said this: ‘In the main, writing is just thrill: the thrill of exploring’.
“You have proved him right, as, through the magic of your pens and devices, you have brought your imaginations to life and led your readers on breath-taking explorations.
“The man who found writing so thrilling was AA Milne, who, exactly 100 years ago, published the first book that introduced us to his beloved bear, Winnie-the-Pooh.
“Pooh, like all of us here, had firm views about story-telling. He didn’t much like long, difficult words, but rather short, easy words like, ‘What about lunch?’”
Queen Camilla held a reception for finalists last week at Windsor Castle
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The ceremony celebrates the efforts of the young people and picks six winners from two age categories, five to seven and eight to 11, with gold silver and bronze being given in each group.
The Queen presented each child with a medal, including gold winners Zuren Zhang, in the age five to seven category, and Maya Ukwubiwe in aged eight to 11.
Zuren’s tale followed two intrepid rabbits, Stew and Pidd, as they stowed away on a rocket to Mars, hoping to find a planet full of carrots, while Maya’s spooky story featured children on an adventure at the circus.
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Illustrators brought the tales to life, creating pictures for each of the winning stories which were on display at the reception after the final.
Avid reader Camilla ended her speech with a quote from Milne: “Always remember: ‘You’re braver than you believe, stronger than you seem and smarter than you think’, which makes you all winners.”
Since the 500 Words competition was launched in 2011 by Chris Evans on the Radio 2 Breakfast Show, it has received more than one million stories from children throughout the UK.
Queen Camilla was introduced to Paddington during the reception
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The push from the Queen comes after it was revealed that only 33 per cent of children aged over eight say they enjoy reading in their free time.
This has fallen drastically from 51 per cent 20 years ago, according to the National Literacy Trust.
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