Jessica, of Quorrobolong, has made the top 40 of the inaugural Optus Sound Scribe competition.

The competition provides people aged 16 to 24 living in regional Australia the opportunity to report on their town’s music and entertainment scene.

Readers can vote for their favourite scribe, with a swag of excellent prizes up for grabs for the winners and voters.

The winning scribe will receive a major gig in their town, as well as a trip to LA, a placement at a Sydney music magazine and an internship to work behind the scenes at a major Australian music festival.

Jessica, 20, is a second-year communications student at the University of Newcastle and is ecstatic to be chosen as a finalist in the competition.

“I live breathe and worship music! I’m an obsessive downloader and I never save any money because I’m constantly splurging on festival and concert tickets. But music enriches my life in a way that money never will so I can’t complain,” she said in her submission.

Jessica will be writing at least one blog a day for the next three months as part of the competition, but says she is used to multi-tasking.

She juggles her studies with competing in dressage at national level. She is a member of the Australian youth development squad and has a scholarship with the NSW Institute of Sport.

While other riders aim for horse-related careers, Jessica has always aspired to work in an industry separate from the sport, and the Optus Sound Scribe competition is the perfect stepping stone into music writing.

“It’s a great experience and will give me an indication of where I want to go with my journalism career,” she said.

Throughout the competition Jessica is looking forward to attending local gigs such as the Wollombi Music Festival on September 11, and catching bands at local pubs.

She encourages any local band that wants a bit of exposure to contact her via Facebook, Twitter or her blog on the Optus Sound Scribe website.

All who vote or submit an artist question can win great prizes too, including music vouchers and a Nokia phone every week.

To vote for Jessica and the chance to have a big-name act play in Cessnock, go to www.optussoundscribe.com.au, click on Jessica’s photo and “sign” her petition.