Writers At the Beach Writing Contest 2008

A special congratulations to the following winners and with many thanks to all of those who submitted your work, thus making this year's contest highly competitive.

POETRY
1st place: "Paradise Found" by Ellen Wehle of Haverford, PA
2nd place: "Meteor Shower, August 11, 2007" by JoAnn Balingit, Neward DE
3rd place: "Sea Change" by Sharlie West of Silver Spring MD
Hon. mention: "Witness" by Lee Bloxom of Richmond, VA

Judged by Shara McCallum, the author of two books of poems from the University of Pittsburgh Press, Song of Thieves (2003) and The Water Between Us (1999, winner of the 1998 Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize). McCallum directs the Stadler Center for Poetry and teaches at Bucknell University.

FICTION
1st Place: "Trust," Romana DeFelice Long of Newark, DE
2nd place: "At Hospitalfield," Andrew Blossom of Richmond, VA
3rd Place: "Rip Current," Shawn Proctor of Phoenixville, PA
Honorable Mention: "The House at the End of the Block," Mary Pauer of Bridgeville, DE
Judged by Leslie Pietrzyk, the author of the novels Pears on a Willow Tree and William Morrow's A Year and a Day. Leslie has a B.A. in English/Creative Writing from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from American University in Washington, DC. Currently she lives and writes in Alexandria, Virginia, and teaches novel-writing at Johns Hopkins.

NONFICTION
1st Place: Sea Changes -Meg Hanna House, Arlington VA
2nd Place: The Art of Bridge Building, Matt Oliver, Norfolk, VA
3rd Place: DEET TREATIS, Ken Ingham of Garrett Park, MD

Judged by Lisa Couturier, author of The Hopes of Snakes and Other Tales From the Urban Landscape, who has been featured in numerous periodicals, including: USA Today, The Washington Post, People Magazine, Nature Conservancy Magazine, Publishers Weekly, and Science News, among others. Lisa also has appeared on several National Public Radio programs, including: "All Things Considered," the "Diane Rehm Show," and "Living on Earth."