Spencertown Academy Arts Center has proudly offered this competition since 2015. Our goal is to encourage creative writing among students in grades 9-12 (including homeschool) living in Columbia County, NY and Berkshire County, MA. This year’s contest attracted 31 creative individuals, writing in either Fiction or Non-Fiction (personal essay) categories.
Works were judged in an anonymous process by published authors and publishing professionals, who volunteered their services for this contest.
This year’s judges include:
David Cudaback – David is a retired magazine writer and editor.
Kathy Zdeb – Kathy is a retired newspaper, freelance and public health science writer.
Emily A. McCully – Emily is the author of an O’ Henry Prize story, two adult novels and many children’s books.
Elaine Khosrova – Elaine is the author of Butter, A Rich History, and has worked for various national magazines.
We really cannot thank them enough for their time and the thought they put into their co-operative decisions.
Each category has three prizes – $300, $200 and $150.
Please note: This year in the fiction section, there was a first place winner, a tie for second place, and a third place winner. In the non-fiction, there was a first, second and third place winner.
This Year’s Winners
FICTION/SHORT STORY
Final works in the Fiction category were selected by and Emily A. McCully and Elaine Khosrova.
First Place: Hazel Moody
10th Grade, Hawthorne Valley Waldorf School
In the Last Chapter, I Start the Story Again
Second Place: Jiongnan Wu
11th Grade, Hawthorne Valley Waldorf School, Cycle
Second Place: Nazmun Bhuiyan
11th Grade, Hudson Senior High School, Clair de Lune
Third Place: Keira Noonan
11th Grade, Ichabod Crane High School, Corporate Nightmare
Nonfiction/Personal Essay or Memoir
Final works in the Nonfiction category were chosen by David Cudaback and Kathy Zdeb.
First Place: Halimah Hotbani
12th Grade, Hudson Senior High School
Naseeb
Second Place: Ummuy Chowdhury
12th Grade, Hudson Senior High School
Her Hands, My Shelter : A Mother’s Quiet Rebellion (A Broken Promise)
Third Place: Phalyn Renderer
12th Grade, Wahconah Regional High School
Rocks
Enjoy reading these impressive works by seven talented teenagers.
Spencertown Academy Arts Center’s programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
This program is generously supported by Hawthorne Valley.