Monthly Archives: January 2012

2012 Winners

CONGRATULATIONS to the winners of the:

2012 Sixth Bi-Monthly Writing Contest

Holiday Anecdote

1st Place: Lori Coffin, Saratoga Springs, NY “Dear Oh Deer!”

2nd Place: Susan Dietrich Schneider, La Junta, CO “Not a Silent Night”

3rd Place: Joann Mazzio, Silver City, NM “When Santa Came to Our House”

Honorable Mention:
Elizabeth Rose
, Galisteo, NM “…in foreign parts.”
Rose Marie Kern, Prescott, AZ “The Thanksgiving Trip”
Darlene Buechel, Chilton, WI “Easy Bake Christmas”
Gary Smith, Rio Rancho, NM “I Met a Man Today”


2012 Fifth Bi-Monthly Writing Contest

Your Most Memorable Character

The judge complained that there were too many good entries, making them difficult to rank.

1st Place: Barbara Ragsdale, Germantown, TN “Simple, Huh?”

2nd Place: Eileen Wiard, Ranchos de Taos, NM “Alice Hughes: The Secret Guardian”

3rd Place: Wally Gordon, Tijeras, NM “Freedom”

Honorable Mention:
Patricia Lamborowski Williams
, Albuquerque, NM, “My Hero, My Nemesis”
Heidi Wells, Albuquerque, NM “Daughter of Elements”
Susan J. Alexis, Albuquerque, NM “Survivor”
Melissa Zamites, Rio Rancho, NM “Illegal Friend”


2012 Fourth Bi-Monthly Writing Contest

Happy or Sad Memories

1st Place: Desiree Perriguey, Albuquerque, NM “The Weight of Life”

2nd Place: Embree H. Bolton, Grenada, MS “The Flag…A Burning Issue”

3rd Place: Christine Marie Alemshah, Lake Forest, CA “I Love You, Daddy”

Honorable Mention:
Patricia Lamborowski Williams
, Albuquerque, NM, “Six Days Later”
J. Allen Whitt, Albuquerque, NM “Clyde”
Willma Willis Gore, Sedona, AZ “His Name was Bill”
Kathleen Adam, Albuquerque, NM “If It’s Not One Disappointment, It’s Two”
Jon Griffith, Cumming, GA “Dog Gone”


2012 Third Bi-Monthly Writing Contest

Anything Goes Poem

1st Place: Sally Clark, Fredericksburg, TX “Rear View Mirror”

2nd Place: Yoko Nagamune, Albuquerque, NM “Chest Drawer Handles”

3rd Place: Amara Cudney, Waikoloa, HI “Anger Flash Song”

Honorable Mention:
Jay Brooks
, Placitas, NM, “Rick’s Lament”
Amara Cudney, Waikoloa, HI “Venus Transit”
Anna Griego, Albuquerque, NM “Meditations of What Has Become Religion”
Katherine B. Hauth, Rio Rancho, NM “In Time”
Marie Toole, Delray Beach, FL “My Grief”


2012 Second Bi-Monthly Writing Contest

Story-Telling Hook

1st Place: Eric Schneider, La Junta, CO “Skeletons and Angels”

2nd Place: Donald Morgan, Albuquerque, NM “The Eagle’s Claw”

3rd Place: Elizabeth Rose, Galisteo, NM “Trigger”

Honorable Mention:
Dennis Kastendiek
, Albuquerque, NM, “Pennzoil Afternoon”
Sally Rodgers, Santa Fe, NM “The Six Degrees Club”
Lori Allison, Bloomfield, NM “Spooky Lucas”
Eric Schneider, La Junta, CO “The Buddha and Matthew”


2012 First Bi-Monthly Writing Contest

Personal Essay About Animals

1st Place: Sue Houser, Albuquerque, NM “A Prickly Turn of Events”

2nd Place: Susan J. Alexis, Albuquerque, NM “Communing with Grayfriar”

3rd Place: Ruth H. Marshall, Albuquerque, NM “Requiem for Another Soul”

Honorable Mention:
Laura J. Nitsos
, Albuquerque, NM “Diamond in the Dust”
Marylin Warner, Manitou Springs, CO “The Truth About Men and Dogs”
Janice S. Matthews, Albuquerque, NM “Farewell to a Fuzzy Buddy”
Paula K. Nixon, Santa Fe, NM “A Dog Called Poly”
Laurel Burnett, Albuquerque, NM “Rapscallion”
Susan Dietrich Schneider, La Junta, CO “Summer Walk”
Bernice G. Schneider, Albuquerque, NM “The Stepped-On Puppy”




2012 Winners

Congratulations to the Winners of the 2012 SouthWest Writers Annual Writing Competition

Winners of the SWW Annual Writing Contest were announced at the awards banquet on September 15. Below is a listing of the winners by category and place standing.

2012 Storyteller Award Goes To

Rachel Wierick
Things We’ll Ask God

Rachel Wierick won the $1500 grand prize Storyteller Award, as well as first place in the Juvenile/Young Adult Novel category for her entry.

1. Mainstream or Literary Novel

1st Place: Susan Salom Gay, Albuquerque, NM   Madame Thunderbolt

2nd Place: Karima Alavi, Abiquiu, NM   In the Shadow of the Tombs

3rd Place: James Brooks, Abilene, TX   Discovering Maggie

Judge: Chelsea M. Gilmore, Literary Agent, Maria Carvainis Agency

2. Mystery/Suspense/Thriller/Adventure Novel

1st Place: David L. Brown, Rio Rancho, NM   Retirement Man

2nd Place: Sue Anne Hodge, Pocatello, ID   Never Touch a Dead Body

3rd Place: George Snyder, Seal Beach, CA   The Farewell Heist

Judge: Thomas Colgan, Executive Editor, Penguin Books

3. Juvenile/Young Adult Novel

1st Place: Rachel Wierick, S. Pasadena, CA   Things We’ll Ask God

2nd Place: Kathleen Cherry, Kitimat, BC  The Funny Money Mystery

3rd Place: Marylin N. Warner, Manitou Spgs, CO   The Sister System

Judge: Katherine R. Harrison, Ass’t Editor, Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

4. Historical/Western Novel

1st Place: Elizabeth Rose, Galisteo, NM   Poet Under A Soldier’s Hat

2nd Place: David Connell, Severna Park, MO   Last Leaf To Fall

3rd Place: Donna M. Vesely, Anthony, NM   Destinies Entwined Like Eagles Falling Out of the Sky

Judge: Mike Harris, Publisher, La Frontera Publishing

5. Science Fiction/Fantasy/Horror Short Story

1st Place: K. Eisert, Placitas, NM   “To Err is Human”

2nd Place: Edward D. Anderson, Gainsville, FL   “The Switchback”

3rd Place: K. Eisert, Placitas, NM   “Parades”

Judge: Michelle Vega, Berkley Editorial, Berkley Publishing Group

6. Mainstream/Literary Short Story

1st Place: Karima Alavi, Abiquiu, NM   “Bangkok Ghosts”

2nd Place: Martha Dudley, Staunton, VA   “Johnny Liem”

3rd Place: Jan Smith, Taos, NM   “Breasts”

Judge: Sarah Marshall, Editor-in-Chief, The Portland Review

7. Nonfiction Book Proposal

1st Place: Todd Griffin,Cedar Crest, NM   The Model You

2nd Place: Jonathan Miller, Albuquerque, NM   Law, Lust and Love

3rd Place: David L. Brown, Rio Rancho, NM   How to be Safe in a Dangerous World

Judge: Sheree Bykofsky, Sheree Bykofsky Assoc. Literary Agency

8. Memoir

1st Place: Christine Dodd, Akron, OH   Smoke Drink F**k

2nd Place: Gina Troisi, Dover, NH   Shadows on the Sidewalk

3rd Place: R. C. Schenck, Jr, Albuquerque, NM   Roaring Fork: A Memoir

Judge: Paul Rhetts, LPD Press, Rio Grande Books

9. Nonfiction Essay

1st Place: Ramona Gault, Seattle, WA   “The Arroyo”

2nd Place: R.C. Schenck, Jr, Albuquerque, NM   “Billy Graham and the Ice Cream Man”

3rd Place: Elizabeth Rose, Galisteo, NM   “Lisa’s Road Lesson”

Judge: Leigh Ann Henion, Editor, Cold Mountain Review

10. Children’s Fiction or Nonfiction Picture Book

1st Place: Amanda Huneke, New Bern, NC   How to Play on a Windy Day

2nd Place: Jacqueline Robison, Albuquerque, NM   Teensy Tiny and the Magnificent Spinning All-Seeing Hat

3rd Place: Rebecca Colby, Harrogate, UK   Broomstick Rodeo

Judge: Sara Sargent, Ass’t Editor, Balzer + Bray/Harper Collins Children’s Books

11. Screenplay

1st Place: Amy Lanasa, Las Cruces, NM   When You Marry the Man…

2nd Place: Chip Casner, Flagstaff, AZ   Easter Island

3rd Place: Briley Webb, Scottsdale, AZ   A Picture is Worth

Judge: Greg Gertmenian, General Manager, Abbot Entertainment

12. Poetry

1st Place: Phyllis Hoge, Albuquerque, NM   “Peacetime”

2nd Place: Darrell L. Gasaway, Alto, NM   “Stew for Two”

3rd Place: Phyllis Hoge, Albuquerque, NM   “Surfaces”

Judge: Lisa Lewis, Cimarron Review




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