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The Olive Woolley Burt Awards

For Creative Writing

Winners announced at the Quills Conference Awards Ceremony
August 10, 2024

Winners! Be sure to download your award logos for use on your websites and social media.
Visit the contest award logo download page here.

New Voices: Creative Nonfiction

  • First Place: Timothy E. Doyle “The Edge of Forever” (Utah Valley Legends)

  • Second Place: Timothy E. Doyle “Miss Kauer: A Love Story” (Utah Valley Legends)


New Voices: First Chapter Adult

  • First Place: Jessica Gustafson “Lady Unknown” (Just Write)

  • Second Place: Breanna Trost “Empire Trials” (Typewriters)

  • Third Place: Sheena Blankenagel “The She-Stallion Queen” (Write On Saint George)

  • Honorable Mention: A. M. Shiner “The Nobility of Rats” (Chapter 1 Davis County)


New Voices: First Chapter YA, Middle Grade, & Children’s

  • First Place: Amanda Rogers “Three Times a Charm” (Utah Valley Legends)

  • Second Place: Melodie Lund “Lyrics and a Lake Boy” (nonmember)

  • Third Place: James Crofts and William Crofts “Ancient Apocalypse City” (Utah Valley Legends)

  • Honorable Mention: Josh Wilcox “The Midnight Train” (Good AF Writers)

  • Honorable Mention: Mary Furse “The Rider’s Mask, Chapter 1: (Utah Valley Legends)

  • The Rider”


New Voices: General & Literary Fiction

  • First Place: Sheena Blankenagel “The Bark Park” (Write On Saint George)

  • Second Place: Gina G. “Larry and Ralph Escape” (Write On St George/Infinite Monkeys)

  • Third Place: Yvette Anderson “Betting on the Boutique” (Blue Quill, Romance)

  • Honorable Mention: Melanie Owen “Leaves” (General Chapter)


New Voices: Genre Fiction

  • First Place: Kalie Walker “The Redbells of Winwich” (Salt City Genre Writers/Utah Freelance Editors)


New Voices: Poetry

  • First Place: Timothy E. Doyle “Mysterious Universe” (Utah Valley Legends)

  • Second Place: Sarah E. Glenn “Grandma” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Third Place: T. Rodriguez “The Heart Forecasts the Weather” (Blue Quill/Romance)

  • Honorable Mention: Timothy E. Doyle “Jewels” (Utah Valley Legends)

Established Writers Categories

Flash Fiction: Just Write

  • First Place: Inna V. Lyon “Raise High Your Oars, Gondoliers!” (Blue Quill/Infinite Monkeys)

  • Second Place: Melissa Schack “Ghost Writer” (Romance)


Flash Fiction: Author’s Choice Theme

  • First Place: Julie Walton “Domingo’s December” (Write On)

  • Second Place: Johnny Worthen “Ralph” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Third Place: Abby Brinkerhoff “Crazy” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Honorable Mention: Edith Midgley “Special Delivery” (Unaffiliated)

Poetry: Freeform & Slam

  • First Place: Timothy E. Doyle “The Stars are White” (Utah Valley Legends)

  • Second Place: Susan J. Wurtzburg “Still Life” (Red Butte Bards)

  • Third Place: Sara Weikel “I Am Fire” (Salty Scribblers)

  • Honorable Mention: Timothy E. Doyle “Autumn” (Utah Valley Legends)


Poetry: Haiku

  • First Place: Marie Tollstrup “Arches” (Write On)

  • Second Place: Jef R. Huntsman “Cowpie” (Red Butte Bards/Infinite Monkeys)

  • Third Place: Jef R. Huntsman “The Owl” (Red Butte Bards/Infinite Monkeys)

  • Honorable Mention: Marie Tollstrup “Golden Gibbous Moon” (Write On)

  • Honorable Mention: C. H. Lindsay “Haiku 1” (Red Butte Bards/Oquirrh/ Infinite Monkeys)


Poetry: Light Verse

  • First Place: D.J. Wray “A Wish Come True” (Nebo Novelists)

  • Second Place: Jef R. Huntsman “The Conversation” (Red Butte Bards)

  • Third Place: Denis Feehan “Acronymistic” (Write On St George)

  • Honorable Mention: Denis Feehan “Ode to Joe” (Write On St George)

  • Honorable Mention: Jef R. Huntsman “One More Thing” (Red Butte Bards/Infinite Monkeys)


Poetry: Narrative Poem

  • First Place: Anna F. Marasco “Lost Stories of the 82nd Airborne” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Second Place: Marie Tollstrup “Kickapoo River Dance” (Write On)

  • Third Place: Marie Tollstrup “Hitler’s Bathtub” (Write On)

  • Honorable Mention: Valerie Zimmerman “On This Day” (Salt City Scribes)


Poetry: Song Lyrics

  • First Place: Joseph Gordon “Burying You” (Write On St. George)

Nonfiction

  • First Place: Timothy E. Doyle “Little Things” (Utah Valley Legends)

  • Second Place: Josie Hume “Parris Island—Oorah!” (Just Write)

  • Third Place: Lorraine Jeffery “Flannel Shirt” (Red Rock Poetry)

  • Honorable Mention: Inna V. Lyon “We Are All Passengers on the Titanic” (Blue Quill/Infinite Monkeys)

  • Honorable Mention: Inna V. Lyon “Mink” (Blue Quill/Infinite Monkeys)


Spiritual Essay

  • First Place: Tom Wahl “Jake” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Second Place: M. K. McKenna “Love From a Distance” (Blue Quill/Romance)

  • Third Place: George Pence “Lost in a Hospital” (Salt City Scribes)

  • Honorable Mention: Sara Weikel “Guilt Is Dumb” (Salty Scribblers)


First Chapter Adult

  • First Place: Youd “Downlines” (Salt City Scribes/Salt City Genre Writers)

  • Second Place: Megan Condie “The Song of the Endless Dark” (Blue Quill/Just Write)

  • Third Place: Melissa Schack “Without Words” (Romance)

  • Honorable Mention: Jessica Van Wagoner “The Hungry Ones” (Infinite Monkeys)


First Chapter YA, Middle Grade, & Children’s

  • First Place: Johnny Worthen “Things Bequeathed” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Second Place: Rae Wilkinson “A Heist in Oz” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Third Place: Jill Ammon Vanderwood “Purdy Franklin Girl Cat” (Brigham City Writers)

  • Honorable Mention: Rachel DeFriez “Beyond Violet” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Honorable Mention: C. W. Allen “Mellie Morton Is Not Your Babysitter” (West Desert Wordsmiths)


General & Literary Fiction

  • First Place: L. S. Kunz “The Department Store” (Salt City Scribes)

  • Second Place: Linda F. Smith “The Ham Sandwich” (Just Write)

  • Third Place: Inna V. Lyon “The Perfect Summer” (Blue Quill/Infinite Monkeys)

  • Honorable Mention: Terra Luft “Walkabout” (Blue Quill)

  • Honorable Mention: Rachel DeFriez “A Simple Cup of Coffee” (Infinite Monkeys)

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General Creative Nonfiction

  • First Place: Laurel Yeates “Grandma and the Virginia Tech Murderer” (Millcreek)

  • Second Place: Julie Walton “Mathias’ Prayer” (Write On)

  • Third Place: Megan Condie “Forty-Two Going on Twenty” (Blue Quill/Just Write)

  • Honorable Mention: Jef R Huntsman “Summer Chevy” (Infinite Monkeys/Red Butte Bards)


Horror

  • First Place: L. S. Kunz “Garbage Day” (Salt City Scribes)

  • Second Place: C. R. Langille “The Stars Have Teeth” (Unaffiliated)

  • Third Place: Eric John Anderson “Some Things Hidden” (Salt City Genre Writers/Infinite Monkeys)

  • Honorable Mention: C. M. Greathouse “Better” (Blue Quill)

  • Honorable Mention: Jessica Van Wagoner “The Resurrection Man” (Infinite Monkeys)


Mystery & Thriller

  • First Place: Josie Hulme “The Gamer” (Just Write)

  • Second Place: Inna V. Lyon “Shishok, Russian Domovoi” (Blue Quill/Infinite Monkeys)

  • Third Place: Linne Elizabeth “New Year, New Problems” (Salt City Genre Writers)

  • Honorable Mention: Melissa Schack “The Invitation” (Romance)

  • Honorable Mention: Tim Heare “Some Call It Love” (Salt City Genre Writers/ Infinite Monkeys)

  • Honorable Mention: Gina G. “The Case of the Doll” (Write On St George/Infinite Monkeys)


Romance

  • First Place: Megan Condie “Under Dover Skies” (Blue Quill/Just Write)

  • Second Place: September Roberts “Helping Doris” (Blue Quill)

  • Third Place: Debra Birdwell Winkler “A Villa on Lake Como” (Romance)

  • Honorable Mention: Michelle Henrie “The Sherlock Secret” (The TypeWriters)


Science Fiction & Fantasy

  • First Place: C. W. Allen “Where There’s a Will, There’s a Wisp” (West Desert Wordsmiths)

  • Second Place: Johnny Worthen “The Old Problem” (Infinite Monkeys)

  • Third Place: Bryan Young “A Curse of Blessings” (Salt City Genre Writers)

  • Honorable Mention: Katherine Monasterio “The Soul Merchant” (SCGW)


Short Prose Scripts

  • First Place: Bryan Young “The Lost Boys” (Salt City Genre Writers)

  • Second Place: Inna V. Lyon “Rita Red-Riding Doesn’t Eat Red Meat” (Blue Quill/Infinite Monkeys)


Screenplay

  • First Place: Jakob Tice “The Inseparables” (Nebo Novelists)

  • Second Place: Lena Seren “Hell Squad” (Screenwriters Guild of Utah)

  • Third Place: Spencer Holt & “Dinner Time” (Salt City Genre Writers/ Eric John Anderson Infinite Monkeys)

  • Honorable Mention: Bryan Young “The Patents Men” (Salt City Genre Writers)

Past Year's Winners:

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

Entry Fees

  • $15 for League of Utah Writers Members

  • $25 for League of Utah Writers NonMembers

  • $80 per Screenplay

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Prizes

 

OWBA Prose and Poetry Categories

  • First Place: $50

  • Second Place: $30

  • Third Place: $20

 

Screenplay 

  • First Place: $150

  • Second Place: $125

  • Third Place: $100

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Rules and Guidelines

 

•       Submission period begins  March 11th and closes May 10th.

 

•       All entries must be the original work of the contestant.

 

•       The contest is open for non-published work only. Previously published works do not qualify for this contest. Self-published work is allowable provided you have sold fewer than 100 copies.

 

•       Works previously awarded a League of Utah Writers cash prize do not qualify for this contest.

 

•       AI Generated or Assisted Texts are not eligible.


Restrictions and Judging

Submitted entries are judged as initially submitted. Please reach out if your submission needs editing once it has been submitted.

 

Submissions claiming to be a member of the League of Utah will be verified for member eligibility. If membership will have lapsed or will be lapsed by September 2024, the submitter will be prompted to renew their membership. If a week goes by without their membership being renewed, the submission will be denied without their entry fee being refunded. 

 

The submission process, judging, and feedback will all be done via Submission Manager.

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NOTE: ALL JUDGING IS DONE BY A THIRD PARTY UNAFFILIATED WITH THE LEAGUE OF UTAH WRITERS EXCEPT IN THE NEW VOICES CATEGORY, WHICH IS JUDGED BY PAST WINNERS.

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In no way does the League of Utah Writers share your personal information with any third party. Any information of such a nature is only for use in contacting the submitter, should you need assistance.

 

Award winners will be announced at the Quills Awards during the Quills Conference. Please make sure your submission provides a valid MAILING ADDRESS, along with your email address. You do not need to be present at the awards ceremony to win. If you are not present and you place in a category, we will mail you your award, but can only do so with a valid mailing address. 

 

SCORING

 

All categories are judged on a scale of 1 - 10, 10 being the best score. Judges will also be required to leave feedback on your work. Please note that the specific rubrics judges will follow depend on the category of the submission. Judge feedback will be shared at the end of the contest.

 

Note: contacting a judge, editor, or agent regarding the contest (before, during, and after) will result in the contestant being disqualified from current and future participation in any hosted contests by The League.

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IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN BLIND JUDGING, your name or any other identifying information should NOT appear anywhere on your entry: not in the header, not in the body of the entry, not in the file name, no URL references, etc. Names are tracked through the admin account info, to which the judges have no access. 

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CATEGORY GUIDELINES:

 

Each submission to the 2024 Olive Woolley Burt Awards may be entered into one category only. 

 

Each author is permitted TWO submissions per category.

 

These guidelines are meant to assist you in deciding which category is most appropriate for each of your submissions. 

 

Some submissions might be appropriate for more than one category, nevertheless, a unique entry may only be submitted to one category. For example, a funny 1,000-word story about a botanist and a flight commander stranded on Mars might be suitable for flash fiction, science fiction, or romance, but may only be submitted to one of these. It is ultimately up to you to decide the category in which you feel your submission will fare best. 

 

If you have two unique pieces that fit a single category, you can enter both pieces in that category. 

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CATEGORY DESCRIPTIONS

 

Poetry

  • Narrative Poem - Poetry that tells a story. It is usually dramatic, with objectives, diverse characters, and meter. Form can be open or closed.

  • Freeform/Slam

  • Light Verse (Humor) - Verse with playful themes written primarily to please, amuse, and entertain.

  • Song Lyrics

  • Haiku

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Prose - 5,000 Word Count Limit

  • General Creative Nonfiction - Factually accurate prose about real people and events, written in a compelling, vivid, dramatic manner. 

  • Science Fiction & Fantasy

  • Horror

  • Romance 

  • Mystery & Thriller 

  • General & Literary Fiction

  • First Chapter (Adult) - The first chapter of a novel that is intended for an adult readership, but of any genre or style. 

  • First Chapter YA/Middle Grade/Childrens - The first chapter of a novel that is intended for the young adult, middle grade market, or children’s market but of any genre or style. Please be sure to include one of these three labels in your text’s header.

 

Prose - 2,000 Word Count Limit

  • Nonfiction

  • Spiritual Essay

 

Flash Fiction - 1,000 Word Count Limit

  • ​Author’s Choice of Theme

  • Just Write!

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Short Prose Scripts 

  • Short Comic Script or Screenplay up to 25 pages

 

Screenplay

  • Feature Length Screenplay up to 120 pages. 

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New Writer (New Voices) - 5,000 Word Count Limit

 

To be considered a New Writer, you must not have any paid publishing credits via a traditional publisher or earned money with a self-published text. If you won an award in the New Voices category in a previous year's contest, you are ineligible to enter the New Voices category again. Please enter your work in one of the general categories instead.

 

  1. Creative Nonfiction

  2. General Nonfiction 

  3. Poetry 

  4. General & Literary Fiction

  5. Genre Fiction

  6. First Chapter (Adult)

  7. First Chapter YA/Middle Grade/Children’s

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FORMATTING GUIDELINES: Fiction and Poetry

 

FICTION 

  • Use a 1″ margin on all sides

  • Begin numbering with the first page of the text of the story, usually the introduction, prologue, or chapter one.

  • Use a header on each page including the title of your entry, and the page number. e.g.  Once Upon a Time in Utah/12

  • Start each new chapter on its own page, one-third of the way down the page.

  • Begin the body of the chapter four to six lines below the chapter title.

  • Each new paragraph should be intended .5 inches from the left margin. 

  • Double-space the entire text.

  • Fonts should be Times New Roman, Arial, or Courier, in 12-point. 

 

POETRY

  • Use a 1″ margin on all sides

  • Use a header on each page with the title of your entry, e.g. Thoughts of a Young Lyricist

  • The title of your poem should appear centered, six lines underneath your header.

  • Begin the poem one line beneath the title.

 

SCREENWRITING

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FINAL NOTES

 

Contacting a judge, editor, or agent regarding the contest (before, during, and after) will result in the contestant being disqualified from future participation in any hosted contests by The League. 

 

Violation of the rules will result in a non-judged piece and forfeiture of entry fees. 

 

Categories may be combined if there are insufficient entries. 

 

SUBMISSION FEES:

 

$15 for League of Utah Writers Members

$25 for League of Utah Writers NonMembers

$80 for the Screenplay

 

PRIZES

 

OWBA Prose and Poetry Categories

 

First Place: $50

Second Place: $30

Third Place: $20

 

Screenplay 

 

First Place: $150

Second Place: $125

Third Place: $100

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Contact

For questions regarding the Olive Woolley Burt Contest, please email us!

 

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About The Olive Woolley Burt Awards

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The Woolley Awards are named in honor of Olive Woolley Burt.

 

Olive Woolley Burt (1894-1981) was the founding president of the League of Utah Writers, serving in that role from 1935 to 1939. In 1927, she quit her job as a teacher to take a job as the children's editor at the Salt Lake Tribune and later went to work for the Deseret News in 1945 where she remained until her retirement in 1967. Burt wrote over 50 books for children and adults, though the most notable might be American Murder Ballads and their Stories in 1958. It won a special Edgar Award in 1959. She spent all of her years working tirelessly for the League, promoting writing as a profession and a hobby for all of the writers of Utah for almost 50 years. 

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She was particularly fond of writing children's books that illuminated stories of possibility to children with an aggressively progressive bent. One book, First Woman Editor: Sarah J. Hale tells the story of the first woman in the United States to be the editor of a magazine. Another, Black Women of Valor, brought positive stories of Black history to white audiences who wouldn't otherwise hear them in times where racist attitudes ran rampant.

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Read more about her here:

https://www.mappingliteraryutah.org/utah-writers/olive-woolley-burt

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See a video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1adMmab1M8 

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