Leslie Garrett Award For Literary Fiction

In memory of the late Knoxville author, Leslie Garrett.
Fee: There is no fee for entering this contest.
Guidelines:
Entry consists of one short story totaling no more than 3,000 words, double-spaced.
Only one entry per contestant.
See General Guidelines.
Judged by:
Jeanne McDonald
Jeanne McDonald has published fiction and nonfiction in magazines, journals and anthologies, including “American Fiction,” “Better Homes and Gardens” and “Poets & Writers.” Her novel, “Water Dreams,” was published by the University Press of Mississippi in September 2003. McDonald was inducted into the East Tennessee Writers Hall of Fame in 2007. She has co-authored two books of nonfiction with her husband, Fred Brown: “Growing Up Southern: How the South Shapes Its Writers” and “The Serpent Handlers: Three Families and Their Faith,” which won the Harry Caudill Award for Journalistic Reporting. She is a recipient of the Tennessee Arts Commission/Alex Haley Fiction Fellowship and many other awards.

Winner

An Encounter With Yesterday: Susan Lindsley

Second

An Immodest Proposal: Jane Sasser

Third

Living In Shitsville: Amber Hart

Novel Excerpt

Send us something that makes us want to read more.
Guidelines:
Entry consists of typed, double-spaced novel excerpt or novella totaling no more than 10,000 words.
Please, include the word count on the cover sheet.
See General Guidelines.
Judged by:
Pamela Schoenewaldt
Pamela Schoenewaldt is the USA Today bestselling author of “When We Were Strangers,” “Swimming in the Moon” and the upcoming “Under the Same Blue Sky,” all by HarperCollins. Her short stories have appeared in literary magazines in England, France, Italy and the United States. Her play, “Espresso con mia madre” (Espresso with my mother) was performed at Teatro Cilea in Naples. She taught writing for the University of Maryland, European Division and the University of Tennessee, and her interactive writing workshops inspire writers of all genre and stages.

Winner

Return To Taylor’s Crossing: Janie Dempsey Watts

Second

Prosperity: Gerhard Schneibel

Third

Our Little Domestic Heroine: Carol J Luthor

Libba Moore Gray Award For Poetry

In memory of Libba Moore Gray.
Guidelines:
Entry consists of no more than three typed poems totaling 100 lines or fewer. If more than one poem is entered, poems will be judged as a collection.
There are no restrictions as far as style, content or spacing.
See General Guidelines.
Judged by:
Marilyn Kallet
Marilyn Kallet is the author of 16 books, including “The Love that Moves Me,” “Packing Light: New and Selected Poems,” “Circe, After Hours” and “Last Love Poems of Paul Eluard.” She directs the Creative Writing Program at the University of Tennessee, where she is also Professor of English. She also teaches poetry workshops for the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, in Auvillar, France. She has directed the Young Writers’ Institute for 22 years. Kallet has been awarded the Tennessee Arts Commission Literary Fellowship in Poetry, and was inducted into the East Tennessee Literary Hall of Fame in Poetry in 2005. She has performed her poetry on campuses and in theaters across the United States, and in Poland as a guest of the U.S. Embassy’s “America Presents” cultural arts program.

Winner

Learning To Mother: Connie Jordan Green

Second

Flesh and Blood: Carlos Andres Gomez

Third

Migraineur: Jane Sasser

Creative Nonfiction

A piece written on a given topic. Creative nonfiction is the truth as you know it; the telling of a true story using the tools of fiction. However, names of people and places can be changed.
Guidelines:
Entry consists of one typed, double-spaced nonfiction essay of no more than 3,000 words.
See General Guidelines.
Judged by:
Jack Neely
Jack Neely is a columnist and local historian. He is the author of several books, including “The Tennessee Theater: A Grand Entertainment Palace,” Knoxville: This Obscure Prismatic City” and “Market Square: A History of the Most Democratic Place on Earth.” He is the founder and executive director of the Knoxville History Project, a nonprofit that, among other things, serves as a publishing house for local history and the new “Knoxville Mercury.”

Winner

Hangin’ At the Dump: Linda Myers

Second

Accommodation: Stephanie Levy

Third

At The Clinic: Diane Montgomery

Genre Fiction

Guidelines:
Entry consists of one short story in genre style (e.g. romance, mystery, science fiction, etc.) totaling no more than 3,000 words, double-spaced.
See General Guidelines.
Judged by:
Lowell Cunningham
Lowell Cunningham created the comic book series “The Men in Black.” This series spawned the 1997 film “Men in Black,” as well as its 2002 sequel, “Men in Black II,” its 2012 sequel, “Men in Black 3,” and an animated television program, “Men in Black: The Series.”

Winner

The Old Lady and the Coyotes: Susan Lindsley

Young Writers

Open to all high school students, grades 9 through 12, of the Greater Knoxville area of East Tennessee.
Guidelines:
Entry consists of one short story or stand-alone novel excerpt totaling no more than 3,000 words, double-spaced.
OR
Up to a maximum of three typed poems totaling 100 lines or fewer with no restrictions as far as style, content or spacing. Poems will be judged as a collection.
Do not include any identifying information on stories themselves.
If you are a teacher or school submitting entries on behalf of your students, please add the following in the email body (in addition to the information required by the General Guidelines):
School name
School address
School phone number
Please contact KWG if your school or club needs any additional information for bookkeeping or payment purposes, by going to the Contact page and select Contest Questions under Category,.
Judged by:
Lisa Soland
Lisa Soland is the author of two children’s books: “The Christmas Tree Angel” and its sequel, “The Unmade Moose.” She is a renowned playwright, with plays “Waiting,” “Cabo San Lucas,” “Truth Be Told,” “The Name Game” and “The Man in the Gray Suit & Other Plays” all published internationally by Samuel French Inc. With more than 40 international publications in all, her work can also be found in “best of” anthologies published by French, Smith & Kraus, Applause Books and Dramatic Publishing. Her book “The Writer’s Motivation” has inspired countless writers to fill the blank page.

Winner

At The End of Tornado Alley: Delaney Thurston