Six Make the Shortlist for our March Writing Contest
We are so pleased to announce that SIX writers have made the shortlist for our March Write Prompt Challenge.
We try to choose images that can take authors in countless directions, and the photo of a person with a torch took people to some wild places. These writers approached the provided image with wonderfully unique views that were clever and surprising.
Congratulations to Jen Colclough, Gareth Marks, Chris J. Meyer, N.E. Rule, Andrew Shaughnessy, and Katarina Vuckovic — we wish you well as you go on to the final stage of judging!
Jen Colclough| shortlisted for the story, 'The Order of Prometheus'
Jen Colclough is a poet, novelist, and ESL Instructor from Nova Scotia, Canada. She holds a Master of Arts in Classics from Western, as well as a Bachelor of Arts with Honours from Acadia University. Her poems have been featured in several journals and anthologies, including: The Heimat Review, Ionosphere, MORIA Literary Magazine, OpenDoor Magazine, Tidewise Illustrated Quarterly, and Free the Verse. Her short story, “The Opposite of Hunger,” was published in The Petal Pages Anthology. Finally, her academic article "Memorialization in Thucydides’ Plague Episode," appeared in Vol. 11, Iss. 1 of the Journal of Ancient History in May 2023.
Gareth Marks| shortlisted for the story, 'The Ruins'
Gareth Marks is an emerging writer of poetry and short stories from Stratford, Waterloo. He studied mathematical physics with a minor in English at the University of Waterloo, and is currently living in the UK where he's pursuing a PhD in theoretical physics.
Chris J. Meyer | shortlisted for the story, 'The Enduring Legacy of Cornán Caisil'
Chris J. Meyer is a burgeoning creative writer. His writing journey began as a plant scientist, publishing several technical pieces in journals titled Annals of Botany and Journal of Experimental Botany. Although Chris no longer conducts research, he maintains a love for plants and science, which is good because he spends much of his time teaching botany at the University of Guelph. His short stories appear in Blank Spaces and its accompanying fiction anthology Will There be a Sunset. He and his wife are the minions of three conures and countless houseplants in Guelph, Ontario. Instagram: @dr_chrisjmeyer
N.E. Rule | shortlisted for the story, 'Noelle’s Arc'
N.E. Rule attended Metropolitan Toronto University for business communications and creative writing. It wasn't until Covid hit that she had time to get back to her love of writing fiction. Since then, Nancy’s stories have been published online and ni print anthologies by various publishers including — Black Hare Press, Off Topic Publishing, and Readers Digest to name a few.
Andrew Shaughnessy | shortlisted for the story, 'Roll With It'
Andrew (Andy) Shaughnessy is a Toronto-based intellectual property litigation lawyer and writer. He is a three-time bronze medalist and four-time short-lister in Blank Spaces Magazine writing competitions. His short stories and poems have appeared with Blank Spaces Magazine, Off Topic Publishing, Syncopation Literary Journal, and Last Stanza Poetry Journal, among others. He is the 2023 Mississauga Library Poetry Prize Winner. He overuses m-dashes (and parentheses) and has (the love of) a dog.
Katarina Vuckovic | shortlisted for the story, 'The Wall and The Wave'
Mainly a poet, Katarina also loves to write short stories and creative non-fiction. She’s been published in The New Quarterly, and her poems were shortlisted for the Bridport Prize in 2023. She enjoy exploring that fuzzy area between dreams and reality. Her writing is inspired by nature, and everyday life.
Watch for our announcement of the top three in the coming weeks!
