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Prizes awarded in each category:
FIRST PRIZE: $100
SECOND PRIZE: $50
THIRD PRIZE: $25
Winners and honorable mentions will be invited to read at the subsequent awards event held every March at the Koret Auditorium, San Francisco Main Library,
Civic Center.
JANICE FARRELL POETRY PRIZE
Sponsored by Janice Farrell.
Judge TBA*
Three poems per entry. One poem per page. One page poems only.
*Each year a local poet is invited to guest judge.At this point the judge for the current category is yet to be announced. Past judges have included Katherine Harer, Rich Yurman, Patricia Gale, Christopher J. Renz, O.P., David Smith-Ferri, Toby Kaplan, Joyce Jenkins, C. B. Follett, Susan Terris, Janell Moon, Alice Rogoff, Clive Matson, David Alpaugh, Forrest Hamer, Marcia Campbell, Andrena Zawinski, Grace M. Grafton,Adam David Miller, Stewart Florsheim. Marvin R. Hiemstra
MARY MACKEY SHORT STORY PRIZE
Sponsored/Judged by Mary Mackey Up to 5,000 words. One story per entry. Judge's Comments: I am looking for well-crafted stories that are original and compelling. The story must demonstrate a mastery of and love for the English language. It must move, not wallow. The characters need to be vivid, the dialogue convincing. Above all, something must happen. This need not be a grand event, but some change must take place: an event, a revelation, or perhaps an insight. Please do not submit your story until you have polished and revised it multiple times. A great short story changes the reader. I look forward to being changed.
KATHERYN KROTZER LABORDE
CREATIVE NONFICTION PRIZE
Sponsored/Judged by Katheryn Krotzer Laborde A narrative of up to 3,000 words that takes an experience or event and gives it personal meaning. Literary nonfiction (also known as creative nonfiction and literary journalism), is the child of fiction and journalism.
Unlike fiction, the characters and events are real, not imagined. Unlike journalism, the writer is part of the story she tells, if not as a participant then as a thoughtful observer. I will be looking for a strong voice, a solid sense of the story, and a clear sense of one's writing style. One last note: think about the STORY you are trying to tell and don't be a slave to the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but. This is art, not sworn testimony!
JOANNA CATHERINE SCOTT
NOVEL EXCERPT PRIZE
Sponsored/Judged by Joanna Catherine Scott
Send first 20 pages. Include a one page (single space ok) synopsis. Judge's Comments: I am looking for stories that absolutely make me turn the pages.
KATHRYN HANDLEY PROSE POEM PRIZE Sponsored/Judged by Kathryn Handley
Three poems per entry. One poem per page. Judge's Comments: Looking for beautiful language, strong images, consistent tone, and a lovely surprise tucked in the poem
MARY KENNEDY EASTHAM FLASH FICTION PRIZE Sponsored/Judged by Mary Kennedy Eastham
Under 500 words. Three (short-short)stories per entry. One story per page.
LINDA JOY MYERS MEMOIR VIGNETTE PRIZE
Sponsored/Judged by Linda Joy Myers
Up to 1,500 words. The root of the word memoir is “memory.” A memoir is a story told in the first person about personal experiences –that actually happened—this is important. The contract with the reader of a memoir is that what you are writing is true, and the truth is shaped into a story. Of course you may need to change names, and create the essence of dialogue and even weather, but the essential truth of people, places, events is there. A well-written memoir will use dialogue, scenes, sensual details, and draw the reader into a world the writer creates. The reader will be changed by the memoir story, and learn something new about people and how we all live here on the earth together and yet set apart by the silences that must be broken to connect us.
Write several drafts, tell your story fully, and keep that inner critic quiet. Read it aloud, and listen to your voice as you approach a later draft. Most of all, enjoy writing, remembering, and sharing your work. As we say at the National Association of Memoir Writers: Be brave—Write your Story!
RITA WILLIAMS YOUNG ADULT PROSE PRIZE Sponsored/Judged by Rita Williams
Grades 9-12 or equivalent age (which must be indicated on 3x5 card as well as mss). Up to 3,000 words in story, essay, journal entry, creative nonfiction or memoir.
SANDRA CARON YOUNG ADULT POETRY PRIZE Sponsored/Judged by Sandra Caron
Grades 9-12 or equivalent age (which must be indicated on 3x5 card as well as mss). Three poems per entry. One poem per page. One page poems only. Judge's Comments: I am drawn to vivid imagery through word choice and where applied rhyme that rings true (not forcing words into the verse). Look for the ability to succinctly capture an emotion, and a little shock value, used sparingly.
JAMIE CAT CALLAN HUMOR PRIZE Sponsored/Judged by Jamie Cat Callan
Up to 2,500 words. One piece, any form, per entry. Judge's Comments: Make me laugh out loud.
TARA L. MASIH INTERCULTURAL ESSAY PRIZE
Sponsored/Judged by Tara L. Masih
Up to 6,000 words.Judge's Comments: I am looking for essays dealing with matters of culture, race, and a sense of place, either within the smaller microcosm of self-identity or within the larger environment of family, society and world interactions. I seek essays in the traditional form, my definition being the conscious shaping of nonfiction prose around a central idea or subject. In E. B. White’s words, you will be putting your “finger on a little capsule of truth,” using reality to point to your truth, not fiction.
TILIA KLEBENOV JACOBS RELIGIOUS ESSAY Sponsored/Judged by Tilia Klebenov Jacobs
No preaching, no proselytizing, no explaining why your religion is right and everyone else’s is wrong. Yes to thoughtful writing about any of the following: religion in everyday life; approachable explications of religious texts; stories that fill in the gaps in Biblical narratives. To quote the Supreme Court: “Religion is the conduit of culture.” It’s part of how we breathe, whether we embrace or reject it.
KATHLEEN McCLUNG SONNET PRIZE
Sponsored/Judged by Kathleen McClung
Judge's Comments: Looking for contemporary, beautifully crafted sonnet–both Shakespearean and Petrarchan–on the theme of the beloved. I welcome celebrations, meditations, and passions of all varieties. As Edward Hirsch and Eavan Boland write, a sonnet “is a form of true power–,malleable, nomadic, humane. It speaks to something that is deep within us. It turns ur both inward and outward. It is both timely and timeless.”
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