The Michigan Writers Cooperative Press has announced the winners of our 2010 publication contest. They are: Sarah Baughman for her essays, Growing In Seasons, John Mauk for his work of fiction shorts, The Rest of Us, and Jen-Sperry Steinorth's poetry collection, Forking the Swift.
Thanks to all who entered, and word is that this year the judging was especially difficult because of the excellence of the entries. Comments from Coop Press Judge and Board member, Michael Callaghan (himself a past winner of the contest with his 2005 poetry collection, The Grace of the Eye):
"This was definitely one of the most difficult years for the judges -- the quality of the manuscripts was so high. We'd been hoping for more prose submissions, given last year's publication of Jenny Robertson's Hard Winter, First Thaw--a wonderful oasis of storytelling that we'd been looking for in a prose or fiction submission. But while in past years the contest may have appeared to favor poetry, this year we were faced with such terrific quality in both poetry and prose.The judges hunkered down, read, listened and talked, and did so again. So, for the first time ever, we found two of our winners in prose.
"That said, the selections for poetry were most difficult. In any other year, any one of four or five might have come to publication--for their attention to the particulars of subject, and for what craft they've brought to the language. I couldn't be a judge for one of the manuscripts this year, as I recognized its author and had to call on other judges. But at the end--all votes were very clear: Jen-Sperry Steinorth's poetry manuscript, Forking the Swift, is original over each poem, each attentive to sound and where that sound can turn back to revitalize intent. I just hope that those who weren't selected this year continue to work hard and try again next year."
A reading by the winning writers will be held April 22 at The Writers House on the campus of Interlochen Arts Academy. All are welcome.
