⭐ A delicious history of prize winners. ⭐
2026 Winner and Finalists…
Poetry Prize Winner selected by Marya Hornbacher:
How to Be a Jewish Woman in Amerikkka while Your Friends Sleep Fitfully in War Zones by Mara Lee Grayson
Seven other finalists:
Farmworker Dies Fleeing an Immigration Raid in Southern California by Karla Hernandez Torrijos
Section 01 – Tree Removal by Sam Aureli
Hunting Season by Jamie L. Smith
at the immigration office by Cianga
Love Letter on Lombard Street by Audrey Lane
The Sun and the Prison by John Dennis
No Certificate by Todd Epp
Full details about the contest and our fabulous judge is available here.
The winning pieces are available in Issue #24 ~ Summer 2026.
2025 Winners…
- Poetry Winner selected by Julia Kolchinsky:
Autobiography of a Violin by Cassie Burkhardt - Flash Fiction Winner selected by Tom Paine:
While Making Out the Lineup for Tomorrow’s 12U Softball Championship Game by Jim Parisi - Flash Creative Nonfiction Winner selected by Kristine Langley Mahler:
I Conjure My Great-Grandmother and Ask for Her Life Story. She Visits My Dreams and Gives Me a Lesson on Revision by Alayna Powell - Short Fiction Winner selected by Michael Czyzniejewski:
When Mr. Boppo Joined the Cohort by Sharon Lee Snow - Winner selected by Brenna Womer:
The Laundry Hangs at Noon by Ginger Tolman
Full details including finalists and judges available here.
The winning pieces are available in Issue #20 ~ Summer 2025.
2024 Winners…
- Fiction: Jaime Gill for “Things To Talk To Jim About”
- Creative Nonfiction: Frankie Concepcion for “Origin Stories”
- Poetry: Randy Bynum for “Electric Eclectic Strong”
Full details including finalists and judges available here.
The winning pieces are available in Issue #16 ~ Summer 2024.
2023 Winners…
- Fiction: Tiffany Promise for “Birds of Prey”
- Creative Nonfiction: Rachel Sussman for “Selfishly, I Planted Flowers”
- Poetry: Kelsey Smoot for “For Kenny”
Full details including finalists and judges available here.
The winning pieces are available in Issue #12 ~ Summer 2023.
2022 Winners…
- Stage and Screen: Jennifer Downs for “Camp”
- Fiction: Alex Sese for “Love, Dad”
- Creative Nonfiction: Suzi Banks Baum for “Connect: Disconnect”
- Poetry: Jane Muschenetz for “For Those of Us Forced to Flee”
- Editor’s Choice: Helyn Trickey Bradley for “Backwards and Blind”
Full details including finalists and judges available here.
The winning pieces are available in Issue #8 ~ Summer 2022.
2021 Winners…
- Stage and Screen: Kara Davidson for “The Farewell Burn”
- Fiction: Koree Schueler for “Inspection Checklist”
- Creative Nonfiction: Sarah Lass for “Here, Gone, Again”
- Poetry: Pamela Sumners for “April is the Cruelest Month”
- Editor’s Choice: Helyn Trickey Bradley for “Backwards and Blind”
Full details including finalists and judges available here.
The winning pieces are available in Issue #4 ~ Summer 2021.