MARY MACKEY SHORT STORY PRIZE CATEGORY

1st Prize: $100.... 2nd Prize: $50.... Third Prize:.... $25

Category Details

Up to 5,000 words. One story per entry. 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.

About Judge/Sponsor

MARY MACKEY (Berkeley/Sacramento, CA) Her published works consist of thirteen novels, including The Year the Horses Came, The Notorious Mrs. Winston, and The Widow's War (San Francisco Chronicle bestseller); and five books of poetry including Breaking the Fever. They have sold over a million and a half copies and been translated into twelve foreign languages including Japanese, Hebrew, and Finnish. Four times her poetry has been featured on Garrison Keeler's Writer's Almanac. A screenwriter as well as a novelist, she has sold feature scripts to Warner Brothers as well as to various independent film companies. She occasionally writes comedy under the pen name Kate Clemens.  

LAST YEAR'S WINNERS (2012)

First Prize: Raul Palma of Chicago, IL for “Amaranthus”

Second Prize: Laurie A. Jacobs of Swampscott, MA for“Friday Night Dinner”

Third Prize: Liz Gordon of Niantic, CT for“Nobody’s Piece of Heaven”

Honorable Mentions: Miriam Karmel of Minneapolis, MN for “Acid Rain”; Robert Moulthrop of New York, NY for “Grace”; Tamra Wilson of Newton, NC for “Church Camp”; Eileen Kelly of Hyannis, MA for “Skipping”; Liz Iversen of San Francisco, CA for “Homecoming”