2004
West Virginia Writers Annual $4,500

Spring Writing Competition Winners

1^st Place – "Best Friends" by William L. Harris, Charleston (Kanawha)

2^nd Place – "What Is This Thing" T. Jefferson, by Marcia Wilson-Cales, Lewisburg (Greenbrier)

3^rd Place – "Broken" by Laura Leigh Morris, Mannington (Marion)

Honorable Mention, in order:

• "4-H Leadership in West Virginia" by Mary Lucille DeBerry, Morgantown (Monongalia)
• "My Father, Abe Lincoln, and I" by Jeanne Wilson, Grantsville (Calhoun)
• "Wallpapering" by Harriet Whipkey, Glenville (Gilmer)
• "On The Heels of Hopkins" by Shiela McEntee, Charleston (Kanawha)
• "Remembering Dan" by Susanna Holstein, Sandyville (Jackson)
• "Button Jar" by Sara Crickenberger, Charleston (Kanwaha)
• "The Long Road Home" by Robin Holstein, Diamond (Kanawha)

Appalachian Writing, 82, Judged by George Brosi.

1^st Place – "Small Fires Bright and Beautiful" by Fay Thompson, Ripley (Jackson)

2^nd Place – "Henry The VIII’s Favorite Daughter" by Susan Johnson, Richwood (Nicholas)

3^rd Place – "An Empty Box" by Jeanne Wilson, Grantsville (Calhoun)

Honorable Mention, in order:

• "On Strike" by Fay Thompson, Ripley (Jackson)
• "Evil Eye" by Fay Thompson, Ripley (Jackson)
• "Blood Kin" by Patsy Evans Pittman, Vienna (Wood)
• "Streets of Rust" by Harry L. Smith, Charles Town (Jefferson)
• "On top of Branch Mountain" by Kathy Sholl, Shepherdstown (Jefferson)
• "Rob Johnson’s War" by Sally Brinkman, Berkley Springs (Morgan)
• "Tater Plantin’ Time" by Nadine McKinney, Peytona (Boone)

Children's Books, 60, Judged by Cheryl Ware.

1^st Place – "The Flight of the Nautique" by Craig Etchison, Fort Ashby (Mineral)

2^nd Place – "The Gelch and the Princess" by Holly Shanholtzer, Huntington (Cabell)

3^rd Place – "A Mouse in Your Pocket" by Maxine Arbogast, Star City (Monongalia)

Honorable Mention in order:

• "Even Donkeys Have Fairy Godmothers" by Llewellan McKernan, Barboursville (Cabell)
• "The Sepocs" by Stacie Naylor King Hurrican (Putnam)
• "Molly and Her Puppies" by Cheryl Kobe, Murraysville (Jackson)
• "Wendy Weasel, Fifth Grade Insectomaniac" by Cheryl Kobe, Murraysville (Jackson)
• "Hound Dog and Rooster Call Up the Sun" by Susanna Holsteinnson, Sandyville (Jackson)
• "This Is Edgar" by Brad Johnson, Elkins (Randolph)
• "Boulder Village" by Lisa Sheldon, Creston (Calhoun)

Genre Fiction, 35, Judged by Richard Peabody.

1^st Place – "Too Much Dead Time" by Jim Koenig, Harper’s Ferry (Jefferson)

2^nd Place – "The Balancing Act" by Lucia Murabito, Morgantown (Monongalia)

3^rd Place – "Foul Ball" by Cheryl Kobe, Murraysville (Jackson)

Honorable Mention in order:

• "Coffee at Kafka’s" by Terry Lively, Pinch (Kanawha)
• "The Answer" by Lois Casto, Ripley (Jackson)
• "All Our Bones Are Snatched Away" by Geoff Fuller, Morgantown (Monongalia)

Novels, 40, Judged by Brad Barkley.

1^ST Place – "The Counsel of the Ungodly" by Joseph Bird, St. Albans (Kanawha)

2^ND Place – "This Is Edgar" by Brad Johnson, Elkins (Randolph)

3^RD Place – "Head Games" by Cynthia Bias. Charleston (Kanawha)

Honorable Mention:

• "The Judge's Wife" by Jann Hoke, Branchland (Lincoln)

Emerging Writers Poetry, 102, Judged by Kirk Judd.

1^st Place – "Lament Lit Green for John O'Brien" by Bill Green, Elkins (Randolph)

2^nd Place – "Maxine’s Peanut Butter Cookies" by Susanne Holstein, Sandyville (Jackson)

3^rd Place – "Perennials" by Rae Anne Blair, Shinnston (Harrison)

Honorable Mention in order:

• "Treading Water, WV to Missouri" by Lynne Bartlett, Bluefield (Mercer)
• "Enchanting Time" by Susan Shaw Sailor, Fairmont (Marion)
• "Last Request" by Phyllis Wilson Moore, Clarksburg (Harrison)
• "I Will Not Watch the News" by Morgan Richards, Wayne (Wayne)
• "Pipedreams" by Cheryl Moses, London (Kanawha)
• "Martin Luther King Day" by Tessa Evanosky, Hinton (Summers)
• "Runt Shoal" by Julian Martin, Charleston (Kanawha)

Poetry Any Form, Any Length, 129, Judged by John McKernan.

1^st Place – "Mallhopping With the Great I Am" by Ed Zahniser, Shepherdstown (Jefferson)

2^nd Place – "December Craft Projects at Alderson Women’s Prison" by Susan Johnson,

Richwood (Nicholas)

3^rd Place – "Four Attempts to Tell A Story" by Lori Wilson, Morgantown (Monongalia)

Honorable Mention in order:        

• "Grave of A Chinese Laundress" by Susan Sheppard, Parkersburg (Wood)
• "Last Days in Escondido" by Lori Wilson, Morgantown (Monongalia)
• "The Clothes I Used to Wear" by Thomas P., Charlton Heights (Fayette)

Short Story, 82, Judged by Lee Maynard.

1^ST Place – "The Prisoner" by Llewellan McKernan, Barboursville (Cabell)

2^nd Place – "A History of the Kiss" by Don Narkevic, Weston (Lewis)

3^rd Place – "Papa’s Purple Head" by Jeanne Wilson, Grantsville (Calhoun)

Honorable Mention in order:

• "Flaming Jesus" by Natalie Sypolt, Masontown (Preston)
• "The Results of Owen Bruffy’s Cat Scan" by Susan Johnson, Richwood (Nicholas)
• "Smile Days, Sleep Nights" by Julian Martin, Charleston (Kanawha)
• "Thicket" by Stan Cavendish, Charleston (Kanawha)
• "Lion" by Emily Ann Caldwell, Charleston (Kanawha)
• "Going to See the Giraffe" by Bill Robinson, Cross Lanes (Kanawha)
• "Pam’s Castle" by Nadine McKinney, Peytona (Boone)

Emerging Writers Fiction & Non-Fiction, 96, Judged by Sandy Tritt.

1^st Place – "The Sweet Smell of Revenge" by Carolyn Hawley, Poca (Putnam)

2^nd Place – "On The Heels of Hopkins" by Sheila McEntee, Charleston (Kanawha)

3^rd Place – "The Snowball" by Cheryl Kobe, Murraysville (Jackson)

Honorable Mention in order:

• "Urban Legend 335.63" by Ashley Jenkins, Newburg (Preston)
• "And Some Life, On The Side" by Suzanne Samples, Harrisville (Ritchie)
• "First Runner-Up" by Suzanne Samples, Harrisville (Ritchie)
• "Second Chances" by Barbara Nelson, Cross Lanes (Kanawha)
• "Head Games" by Cynthia Bias, Charleston (Kanawha)
• "A Mountaineer’s St. Patty’s Day Abroad" by Ben Campbell, Hico (Fayette)

The Charleston Gazette and West Virginia Writers

Spring 2004 Young Writers Competition Winners

Student Short Story Fiction, 62, Judged by Lawrence MacKenzie.

1^st Place – "Untitled" by Jonathan Ritchie, Charleston (Kanawha)

2^nd Place – "Daddy’s Special Present" by Rebecca Lynn Smith, Oak Hill (Fayette)

3^rd Place – "Dramamine" by Sean Geary, Hurricane (Putnam)

Honorable Mention in order: 

• "Into a Civilized World" by Andrea Mancuso, Kingwood (Preston)
• "Threat of Evil" by Kendra Kemenyas, Berkeley Springs (Morgan)
• "Heaven or Hell" by Erica Wriston, Mt Zion (Calhoun)
• "Flowers and Tears" by Tori Biggs, Beckley (Raleigh)
• "Shadow Bear, by Ethan Kirl" Mineral Wells (Wood)
• "Over the River and Stuck in the Woods" by Christopher Drescher, Charleston (Kanawha)
• "The Legend of Orchard Kingdom" by Zach Williams, Richwood (Nicholas)

Student Non-Fiction Articles/Essays, 21, Judged by Karen Vingle.

1^st Place – "The Internet" by Beth Morrow, Frankford (Greenbrier)

2^nd Place – "Father Knows Best" by Jessica Ann Rees, Beckley (Raleigh)

3^rd Place – "The Crusader" by Will Johansen. Charleston (Kanawha)

Honorable Mention in order:

• "Learning to Persevere Through Adversity" by Kaitlin Maditz, Fairmont (Marion)
• "How 911 Affected Me" by Clare Maloy, Charleston (Kanawha)
• "Appreciating Dad" by Adriane Koenig, Harper’s Ferry (Jefferson)
  

Student Poetry, 41, Judged by Ed Zahniser.

Note: 2 poems may be submitted as one entry.

3^rd Place – “Town” and “Slipping Evenings” by Reny Wilcher, Charleston (Kanawha)

Honorable Mention in order:

• "Rose Petal Winter" by Claire Berlin, Weston (Lewis)
• “Graffiti Train” and “Halloween” by Paula Kaufman, Charleston (Kanawha)