AS teenagers living in rural Victoria, it can sometimes be hard to have your story heard.

But Kerang’s Lauren Cordingley and Birchip’s Eliott Bidstrup have been lucky enough to have their unique stories told on a national platform as two of 35 winners of the ABC Heywire competition for 2024.

Heywire is a lived experience storytelling competition, with young people aged 16-22 living in region...