Arizona Authors Assocation Literary Contest Winners

The 2024 Arizona Literary Magazine is on sale now.

Send check or money order to:

Arizona Authors Association

PO Box 538

428 E. Thunderbird Rd.

Phoenix, AZ 85022

Or pay with PayPal to:

arizonaauthorsassociation@gmail.com

2022 Unpublished Categories

POETRY
1st Place: A Dutch Hunter's Muse by Andrew Means
2nd Place: My Mother With Alzheimer's by Nancy Scheneman-Brehm

3rd Place: The Future Held in Store by Janet Alcorn

HM: Nature's Child by Dawn Pisturino

ESSAY
1st Place: A Flight Through Monument Valley by Marsha Arzberger
2nd Place: Iceland, Isle of Extremes: Fire and Ice by Rico Austin
3rd Place: Two Rios by Jan Nichols
HM: Dogs Have Always Liked Me by John R. Hansen

SHORT STORY
1st Place: When The Water Was Gone by Jeff Marshall
2nd Place: Dead Birds by Monica Bauer
3rd Place: Passing the Memory by John Floyd
HM: The Good Samaritan by K. Patrick Malone

NOVEL
1st Place: The Snare by Monica Bauer
2nd Place: Smokey Summer of 1962 by Nadine Armstrong
3rd Place: Through the Lace Curtains by Nadine Armstrong

See all the winners of the 2022 contest and many of their entries in the 2023 Arizona Literary Magazine. Click on the Picture to Purchase this Issue:

2022 Published Categories

NONFICTION
1st Place: The Forgotten Botanist by Wynne Brown
2nd Place: Restless Gold by David Salvaggio
3rd Place: Manifesting Justice: Wrongly Convicted Women Retain Their Rights by Valena Beety
HM: People, Places, and Dogs: Columns from the Casa Grande Dispatch by Bill Coates

FICTION
1st Place: Carillon Chase by D. R. Ransdell
2nd Place: Boca by Moonlight by Brad Graber
3rd Place: Brotherly Love by D. R. Ransdell
HM: Hardland: A Novel by Ashley E. Sweeney

CHILDREN'S PICTURE BOOKS
1st Place: Alice and Jack Hike the Grand Canyon by Pam Schweitzer and Amy Graves
2nd Place: Moms, Dads, and Lily Pads by Karla Moeller
3rd Place: Fishy Tales by Vicki Riske
HM: Buster the Bridger Mountain Bear by Wayne Edwards

JUVENILE/YOUNG ADULT

1st Place: The Tale of the Tarot by David Schneider

2nd Place: Lunchbox Cop: Cleaning up the Streets by Bill Poole

OLDIE BUT GOLDIE

1st Place: The Stasi File by Peter Bernhardt

2nd Place: Kiss of the Shaman’s Daughter by Peter Bernhardt

3rd Place: I Was a VIP on 11/22/63 by Dr. Diane Holloway Cheney

HM: Beyond the Gate by Dana Davis

2023 Winners

$300 Grand Prize: Winnie Goes To School by Joy K. Ball

$150 First Prize: Red Romeo by Peter Bernhardt
$150 First Prize: Elephants Are Not Artists by William Hart

$150 First Prize: Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill

$75 Second Prize: Sisters of Castle Leod by Elizabeth Bernard

$75 Second Prize: To Travel Well, Travel Light, by Mary Coday Edwards

$75 Second Prize: Freester's First Easter by Kris Benny

$50 Third Prize: Marcus, King of the Dandelions by L. Malungu

$50 Third Prize: Rescue Ranch Rising by Heidi Thomas

$50 Third Prize: Daughter of the Trolls by McKenzie Catron

$25 Fourth Prize: Gracias, Maestra! by Nora Cruz

$25 Fourth Prize: The Map of Orbus Terrarum by D.J. Schneider

$25 Fourth Prize: Torment: Descension by Daniel Foster

BEST OF CATEGORY:

Unpublished:

Novel: Rootbound by Lisa Binsfeld
Short Story: Rebel Memories by Dev Solovey

Poetry: Mourning Doves by Janet Alcorn

Published:

Fiction: (Tie) Linden Falls by Joshua Hershey

(Tie) A Machine Divine by Derek Hackman

Nonfiction: The Value Equation by Christopher H. Volk

YA/Juvenile: (Tie) Adventure in the Land of Changes by Rick Poplinger

(Tie) The Wayward Mage Vol 1 by A.S. Norris

Picture Book: The Fingerprints of God by Melanie Burgess

Oldie But Goldie: Dragum by K.C. LaSaga

2021 Unpublished Categories

POETRY
1st Place Church of Summer Desire by Lori DiGuardi
2nd Place The Adventure of 1914 by Marty F. Feess

ESSAY
1st Place Hike by Teri Dunn
2nd Place Ramon and Moritz: A Partnership of the BLack Coast by Mark D. Walker
3rd Place Essay Rush by Jan Nichols
Honorable Mention A Summer Gift by Teri Dunn

SHORT STORY
1st Place Dog by Rico Austin
2nd Place Escape by Barb Renner
3rd Place The Duel on Granite Mountain by Mark Ford
Honorable Mention: Christmas at Topock Hobo Jungle by T.J. McMichael

NOVEL
1st Place: Delta Dawn by Janet Alcorn
2nd Place: The Long Now: Aldin by Cherrie Anderson Smith
3rd Place: The Mystery of the Unseen Hand by John Hansen
Honorable Mention: Walking Across Walden by Todd Herzog

See all the winners of the 2021 contest and many of their entries in the 2022 Arizona Literary Magazine. Click on the Picture to the left to Purchase this Issue:

2021 Published Categories

NONFICTION
1st Place: Military Wives in Arizona Territory by Jan Cleere
2nd Place: One Hundred Sixty Acres of Dirt by Marsha Arzberger
3rd Place: Remove to Play by Lia Woodall
Honorable Mention: My Dog Is My Relationship Coach by Maureen Scanlon

FICTION
1st Place: Blood and Silver by Vali Benson
2nd Place: On Traigh Lar Beach by Dianne Ebertt Beeaff
3rd Place: Desert Fountainhead: A Tale About the Borderlands by Robert Marek
Honorable Mention: Needles Arizona by Bill Coates

JUVENILE/YOUNG ADULT
1st Place: Shorty, Alien Dog by Bill Lynam
2nd Place: Sally The Stray Puppy by Lynn Marie Lusch
3rd Place: Blood and Silver by Vali Benson
Honorable Mention: Boy to Successful Man by Rico Austin

CHILDREN'S PICTURE BOOKS

1st Place: Who Will Save the Desert? by Judy L. Paris

2nd Place: Blake's Big Day by Sande Roberts

3rd Place: Above the Clouds: What Really Happens in Heaven During A Thunderstorm? by Stephanie Barton

Honorable Mention: The Little White Lie by Analynn Sardella

OLDIE BUT GOLDIE

1st Place: Paris Lamb by Marcia Fine

2nd Place: Jewish Thighs on Broadway by Penny Orloff

3rd Place: Symbols of the Grid by Jeri Castronova

Honorable Mention: You Want My Dog to Get a Job? by Lynn Marie Lusch

2020 Unpublished Categories

POETRY

1 – The Gift of Her Journals – Andrew D. Hirss of Missoula, MT

2 – Grounded - Nancy Scheneman-Brehm of Flagstaff, AZ

3 – John O’Donoghue’s Greatest Gift to Me – Leon O’Chruadhlaoich of Dallas, TX

HM – Witness – Deborah H. Doolittle of Jacksonville, NC

ESSAY

1 – 128232 = Life – Jan Nichols of Glendale, AZ

2 – Letting Go of a Wheelchair - Jamie Nielsen of Flagstaff, AZ

3 – Dances with Wolf Spiders – Susan G. Smith of Oracle, AZ

HM – I Am Becoming a Better Person Because of Covid-19 – Rico Austin of Scottsdale, AZ

SHORT STORY

1 – Collateral Damage – Janet Crum of Flagstaff, AZ

2 – Bundle and Save – Brandy Isadora of Paradise Valley, AZ

3 – Where’s My Money? – William Lynam of Prescott, AZ

HM – The Tattered Wedding Dress – Constance Osterlitz of Phoenix, AZ

NOVEL

1 – Rooster Vegas And His Amazing Cat Sphynx: The Deserted Steamship – Ron V. Bartlow of Flagstaff, AZ

2 – The Dinétah – Cherrie Alexandra Smith of Flagstaff, AZ

3 – No Space for Love! – Ellen Martig of Phoenix, AZ

HM – The Attic – Richard McMaster of Surprise, AZ

2020 Published Categories

NONFICTION

1 – Confessions of an Investigative Reporter – Matthew Schwartz of Tucson, AZ

2 – The Expendable – John Lewis Floyd of Tucson, AZ

3 – Louis James: America’s Titan of the Shakespearean Stage, 1875-1910 - Thomas P. Collins of Prescott, AZ

HM – Unadoptable? Faith Beyond Foster Care – Janelle Molony of Phoenix, AZ

FICTION

1 – Answer Creek – Ashley E. Sweeney of Tucson, AZ

2 – Orange Crush – Jan Tenery of Oracle, AZ

3 – Substitute Soloist – D. R. Ransdell of Tucson, AZ

HM – Love and Death in Rhodes – Marcia Fine of Scottsdale, AZ

CHILDREN’S LITERATURE

1 – Sea of Surprises – Caren Cantrell of Cave Creek, AZ

2 – What Do You Do When the Couch Eats Your Shoe – Debi Novotny of Fountain Hills, AZ

3 – SPRING! Time to Build a Nest – Barbara Renner of Phoenix, AZ

HM – Saved by the Burp – Rodo Sofranac of Phoenix, AZ

See all the winners of the 2020 contest and many of their entries in the 2021 Arizona Literary Magazine. Click on the Picture to the left to Purchase this Issue:

ARIZONA AUTHORS ASSOCIATION LITERARY CONTEST
Past Winners

2019 Unpublished Categories

POETRY:

1st Place THE PEAKS—by Mark Ford

2nd Place SOUL SIFTER—by Marilyn McDonald

3rd Place TIME IS A BANDIT—Sherry Goldberg

HM WESTERN GIRL—Julie Morrison

ESSAY:

1st Place WISHFUL THINKING—by Rose Garlasco

2nd Place HUGS NOT WALLS: REUNITING THE CHILDREN—by Mark Walker

3rd Place FIRST LOVE—LASTING LOVE—by Julia Watson

HM NOTRE DAME—by Rico Austin

SHORT STORY:

1st Place PROOF TEXT—by Janet Crum

2nd Place PHANTOM WAGONS—by Constance Osterlitz

3rd Place SURVIVING ENGLISH IV—by Duke Southard

HM STRANGE EVENTS IN SLATER CANYON—by Mark Ford

NOVEL:

1st Place A GALLERY OF SHADOWS—by K. Patrick Malone

2nd Place VANISHING, INC.—by Janet Crum

3rd Place A SPY IN SILKS—by Kara Krelove

HM A LOVE DIVIDED BY TIME—by Richard McMaster

See all the winners of the 2019 contest and many of their entries in the 2020 Arizona Literary Magazine. Click on the picture at right to purchase this Issue:

2019 Published Categories

NONFICTION:

1st Place AMERICAN HEROES: FASCINATING FACTS AND INSPIRING VOICES—

by Marty Feess

2nd Place THE LEAST LIKELY CRIMINAL—Published by Laura Orsini

3rd Place LEFT FOR DEAD AT NIJMENGEN, THE TRUE STORY OF AN AMERICAN

PARATROOPER—by Marcus A. Nannini

HM BETTER THAN ME—by Albert M. Quihuis

FICTION:

1ST Place ANGEL FIERCE—by Vijaya Schartz

2nd Place FALLACY OF CLOSURE—by Duke Southard

3rd Place FINAL TIPPING POINT—by Duke Southard

HM FINAL GRAINS OF SAND—by David Harder

CHILDREN’S LITERATURE:

1st Place THE SECRET OF DELPHI—by Craig Sodaro

2nd Place NEEDLES, THE FIRST CHRISTMAS TREE—by David Kurud

3rd Place BELLA’S SECRET—by Lynn Marie Lusch

HM SATURDAY SAFARI—by Caren Cantrell