The 10-year-old year four student from Taree entered this year's Australian Children's Music Foundation National Songwriting Competition and was up against other students from years four to six across the country.

Sam said it was an honour to win the Year 4 to 6 category.

The ACMF contacted his mum, Leaha, to let her know of the win and that evening when he got home from school she and his dad Joe told him the news.

"I couldn't believe it! I thought mum and dad were joking.

"We had to keep it a secret for two weeks which was so hard."

LISTEN: To hear Nanna Jean by Sam Stephens (and other winning songs), click HERE.

He chose to write his song in honour of his Nanna Jean, who holds a special place in his heart.

"My brother and I are very close with my great grandparents. We catch the bus to their place at least once a week.

"We miss Nan so much, losing her on the 7th of March this year was such a sad time for me and my family.

"We still continue to catch the bus to see Pop. We have always loved spending time with our grandparents.

"They always make us laugh and I feel very special to have had the time I got with my Nan."

Nanna Jean was the first song Sam has ever written and he said the experience has really helped his creative writing.

"Those who know me, know I'm a good talker," he laughed.

He worked on the song for a few months at home as well as with his music teacher Stacey Evans.

Once it was complete he had the opportunity to go into a professional recording studio with Jake Davey to record his song.

"Jake Davey's studio is epic. It was so much fun. I loved all of the tech and the microphone. I even got a little guitar sesh with Jake. He is awesome!"

Sam said one of the biggest things he's learnt throughout the songwriting process was that he felt happy to write his feelings on paper.

"I loved working with the song to get my ideas across."

Since winning the competition, Sam's attention has turned to preparing for the upcoming Stacey Lee Centre Stage performance of Perfectly Imperfect at the Manning Entertainment Centre on December 1.

"I have been rehearsing each weekend. I play the character Miles the butler. He has a funny personality of goofy and clumsy. I'm really enjoying musical theatre."

Did you know the Manning River Times is now offering breaking news alerts and a weekly email newsletter? Keep up-to-date with all the local news: sign up here.