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Carson McCullers Literary Awards - Columbus State University

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Department of English

The Carson McCullers Literary Awards

The Carson McCullers Literary Festival

Friday and Saturday, February 17-18, 2023
CSU Riverpark Campus,
Main Stage Riverside Theatre Complex

Presented by
CSU's Carson McCullers Center and The Chattahoochee Valley Libraries

Friday, 7:30 pm
Reading and Presentation on Graphic Memoir by Thi Bui

Saturday, 9:00 am
Master Class on Graphic Narrative by Thi Bui

Saturday, 10:00 am
Screenings and Q&A with TV Writers
Natalia Temesgen (Dear White People, Julia, Reasonable Doubt), Edgar Momplaisir (Black-ish) and Anna Salinas (Loot)

Saturday, 11:30 am
Carson McCullers Literary Awards Ceremony

This event is sponsored in part by the Columbus Cultural Arts Alliance, the Muscogee County Friends of Libraries, and the National Endowment for the Arts. NEA Big Reads is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnetshio with Arts Midwest

For more information:
Carson McCullers Center
706-565-1200


The Awards Ceremony will be held on the CSU River Park Campus:
Main Stage at the Riverside Theatre Complex

  • Saturday, February 18, 2023

Carson McCullers Center for Writers and Musicians Website


2022 CMLA Award Winners

CMLA Anthology 2022 (PDF)

HS Poetry Winners:

1st Place: “The Teenage Fallacy,” by Sujana Vangala, Northview HS
2nd Place: “Pretty People,” by Kadyn Moore, Heritage HS
3rd Place: “ebony sun,” by Kyra Richardson, Alabama School of Fine Arts

HS Fiction Winners:

1st Place: "My Soundtrack,” by Madison Hoar, Alabama School of Fine Arts
2nd Place: “The Unexplored 95%,” by Izzy Cox, Alabama School of Fine Arts
3rd Place: “The Words of the Devil” by Ella Jervis, Rainey-McCullers School of the Arts

HS Nonfiction Winners:

1st Place: "Satsuma," by Joseph Barns, LAMP High School
2nd Place: "Memory Bread," by Sarah Phillis, Rainey-McCullers School of the Arts
3rd Place: "Mitosis," by Izzy Cox, Alabama School of Fine Arts

HS Playwriting Winners:

1st Place: "A Play in Progress," by Jocelyn Peebles, Harris County High School
2nd Place: "Gay Polyamorous Cowboys," by Ella Jervis, Rainey-McCullers School of the Arts
3rd Place: "Lorelei," by Sarah Phillis, Rainey-McCullers School of the Arts

HS Screenwriting Winners:

1st Place: “Emily,” by Dylan Black, Harrison HS
2nd Place: “Seen,” by Elizabeth Webb, Heritage HS
3rd Place: “Look Away,” by Khayla Truitt, Rainey-McCullers School of the Arts

HS Expository Essay Winners:

1st Place: "Thoughts on Healthcare," by Izzy Cox, Alabama School of Fine Arts
2nd Place: "The Crucible: How Fear Perpetuates Suffering in a Community," by Emma Delaney, Heritage High School
3rd Place: "Gone but NEVER Forgotten," by Samuel Mansi, Heritage High School

CSU Poetry Winners: Sara Ayres Jordan Prize

1st Place: "Neville to Percival," by Bailey Parker
2nd Place: "And You Fall in Love With Them Both," by Sidney DuCleroir
3rd Place: "Fear," by Youbin Park

CSU Fiction Winners: Sara Ayres Jordan Prize

1st Place: "Out By the Tracks," by Zagreus Rivers
2nd Place: "Sir Lancelot and the Red Villa of Cortenova," by Jessica DeMarco-Jacobson
3rd Place: "Purple Prose and Other Clichés," by Bailey Parker

CSU Nonfiction Winners: Sara Ayres Jordan Prize

1st Place: "Snapshots of a Silent Composer," by Ana Dinis Perez
2nd Place: "Freedom From Speech," by Youbin Park
3rd Place: "Death of a Small Town and the Memories They Hold," by Kailey Katzfey

CSU Screenwriting Winners:

1st Place: "A Father's Story," by Dallas Curry
2nd Place: "The Games We Play," by Latisha Spikes-Brown
3rd place: "Room for Two," by Donni "Les" Anderson

CSU Playwriting Winners:

1st Place: "Dad's Not Dead," by Maja Nearing
2nd Place: "The Call," by Kiera King
3rd Place: "My Sin To Hide," by Christina Ricks

CSU Expository Essay Winners:

1st Place: "Text without Context:” Jessard Deal’s Literary Allusions in Louis Owens’ The Sharpest Sight, by Maja Nearing
2nd Place: "Binaries, Identity, Community, and Bridging the Gap," by Melanie Miller
3rd Place: "Gawain Reborn," by Sidney Ducleroir

2021 CMLA Award Winners

High School Poetry: Brick Road Greear Prize for Poetry

First Place: Gabrielle DeWeese, “Taurean Fathoms,” Alan C. Pope High School
Second Place: Rebekah E. Smith, “I am a Columbus Author,” Rainey McCullers School of the Arts
Third Place: Sydney Womack, “Aesthete,” Columbus High School


High School Fiction: Dr. Joseph Francavilla Prize for Fiction

First Place: Macy Cardwell, “The Song We Were,” Homeschool
Second Place: Charlotte Young, “The Invaders,” Columbus High School
Third Place: Jasmine Drawdy, “697 Miles,” Rainey McCullers School of the Arts


High School Creative Nonfiction: Melissa Pritchard Schley and Dr. Philip Schley Prize

First Place: Andrew Song, "Long Way Home," Heritage High School
Second Place: Macy Cardwell, "I Talk to My Mother's Best Friend," Homeschool
Third Place: Emily Woody, “The Reality of Negativity," Heritage High School


High School Expository Essay: Susan Schley Gristina Prize for Expository Essay

First Place: Andrew Song, “Treasures of Sierra Madre: A Critique of Laissez-Faire,” Heritage High School
Second Place: Bobby Livingston, “How Should Thomas Jefferson be Commemorated in the 21st Century?”Columbus High School
Third Place: Khayla Truitt, “AAVE vs ‘Internet Slang’: Muzzling Black Voices,” Rainey McCullers School of the Arts


High School Screenwriting:

First Place: Brynn Dean, "Becoming the Department Head," Heritage High School
Second Place: Beth Webb, "The Rose," Heritage High School
Third Place: Ivie Kirby, "Bats!" Rainey McCullers School of the Arts


High School Playwriting:

First Place: Andrew Song “Blackjack,” Heritage High School
Second Place: Sarah Phillis, “Squirrels...” Rainey McCullers School of the Arts

CSU Poetry: Sara Ayres Jordan Prize for Poetry

First Place: Sidney Ducleroir, “Secrete/Secret”
Second Place: Jessica DeMarco-Jacobson, “From Lavinia to Creusa”
Third Place: Adrienne Baxter-McNeil, “Chocolate”


CSU Fiction: Sara Ayres Jordan Prize for Fiction

First Place: Gavin Moss, "Northern Lights"
Second Place: Jeffrey J Maynard, "Peripheral"
Third Place: Kiara Herron, "Shallow"


CSU Creative Nonfiction: Sara Ayres Jordan Prize for Creative Nonfiction

First Place: Vivian Duncan, “Oxford Pre-Pandemic”
Second Place: Hayley Maine, “I Don't Cry at Funerals”
Third Place: Anayia Cook, “The (re) Creation of Joe”


CSU Expository Essay: Naartjie Multimedia Prize in Expository Essay

First Place: Anayia Cook, “Gandalf the White in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings”
Second Place: Cynthia Short, “Exposed: Media and Opinion”
Third Place: Kayla Pipkins, “Her Philosophy”


CSU Screenwriting:

First Place: Dallas Curry, “Projects”
Second Place: Donni "Les" Anderson, “Little Victories”
Third Place: Jeffery J Maynard, “Sunken Ship”


CSU Playwriting: Dr. Barbara Hunt Prize in Playwriting

First Place: Theodore Pound, “Elmer and Paul
Second Place: Katherine Lovern, “Phoenix”
Third Place: Dallas Curry, “Tone Deaf”

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