Kent District Library, Schuler Books, Traverse Area District Library and Bayliss Public Library are proud to announce the semi-finalists in the thirteenth annual Write Michigan Short Story Contest. Over 1,000 Michigan writers from all over the state entered the contest.
Winners will be chosen by public voting at www.writemichigan.org through January 31 for the $250 Readers’ Choice award, and by a panel of judges for the $500 Judges’ Choice and $250 Judges’ Choice Runner-up awards. Winners will be announced February 5.
The top five stories in each age category (Adult / Teen / Youth), as chosen by the celebrity judges, as well as the Readers' Choice winners will be published by Chapbook Press. Copies of the anthology will be available in March 2025.
Semi-finalist Stories:
Adult
A Day in the Life, Gregory Stevenson, Clarkston
A Place at the Table, Alexander Davidson, Clawson
Blue Star Mother, Vicki Paulissen, Dexter
Buddies, Camille Vettraino, Beulah
Forty Autumns, Edward Burkhead, Jackson
Serina, Susan Morrel-Samuels, Chelsea
Something About Him, Abbie Pedrotte, Saginaw
The Tour, Amy Lusk, Saginaw
The Weighing of a Life, Tracie Swiecki, Ann Arbor
Yellow Eyes in a New World, Max Bufkin, Grand Rapids
Teen
A Road to Travel, Zak Burns, Farmington Hills
Beauty in the Breakdown, Tessa Swinger, Farmington Hills
Music, Natalie Koepke, Williamston
Passenger Planes and Burning Buildings, Kate Messina, Sterling Heights
Perception, Isabella Stirrup, Grand Rapids
Some Things That We Hide, Joyce Tchuente, Belmont
Swimming, Carlene Sutherlund, Grand Rapids
The Cow that Jumped Over the Moon, Lorna Garlets, Kalamazoo
The Forest of Fog, Miriam Wieringa, Kentwood
Three Legged Race, Sophia Wegner, Rochester
Youth
A Friend to Follow, Jesca Westra, Grand Rapids
Freefall, Luke Smith, Ada
Is this real?, Frank Yanover, Traverse City
Paulina’s Journey, Brooklynn Romero, Grand Rapids
Raising The Barre, Naomi Wilhelm, Grand Rapids
Safe, Liliana Harkema, Grand Rapids
Sorrel the Spy, Bonny Garlets, Kalamazoo
Suicide Hotline, Make the Call, Frances Heethuis, Grand Rapids
The Pirate Cove’s Treasure, Addison Craig, Ada
The Present, Kayla Simons, Armada
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