Essay in THE BEST AMERICAN ESSAYS 2018;
(cited in BAE 2015, 2016, 2020); PUSHCART poetry finalist

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Summer 2012

Portland: Photography by Keith MoulWELCOME TO OUR 2012 SUMMER AWARDS ISSUE, highlighting our 2012 Contest Award Winners as well as featuring a poem by STEPHEN DUNN, to honor our first annual Stephen Dunn Poetry Prize, as well as work by other fabulous well-known poets!

In fiction, the final judge JENNIFER HAIGH, selected a haunting story of a rural con man by AMY L. CLARK as winner of our $1,000 fiction prize. Runner-up is CAMERON MACKENZIE’S deeply ironic story of the death of a drug dealer. Finalists are SILVIA MORENO-GARCIA’S surreal tale of a ghostly lover, MORGAN SMITH’s story of redemption by the Mexican border, and JANET HILLIARD-OSBORN’s lyrical historical fiction.

Our first annual nonfiction prize of $500, donated by Michael Steinberg, and judged by JERALD WALKER, goes to DAWN HAINES, author of a deep, moving essay about her mother and death. Finalist GAYNELL GAVIN offers moving insights into racial prejudice, and finalist DEBORAH TAFFA delves lyrically into her Native American heritage.

The poems in this issue exhibit an exciting range of subject matter, tone, and form. Our winner of the STEPHEN DUNN Prize in Poetry for $500 is MIKE NELSON’S “Via Dolorosa,” which is delicate and complex in both emotion and imagery; whereas energetic and surprising language drives “I Blame the Ronettes” by runner-up EMILY VAN DUYNE. Among the finalists, KRISTEN HAVEN’S poems look sharply at the gritty side of city living, READ TRAMMEL strikes a contemplative note, while DON COLBURN offers an accomplished villanelle. Solstice poetry editors Kathleen Aguero and Danielle Georges were the judges.

In addition to our contest winner and finalists, we are privileged to publish a poem bySTEPHEN DUNN, alongside tongue-in-cheek work by GARY DUEHR and poems by AFAA MICHAEL WEAVER that explore issues of identity raised by living in another culture, and ending with a poem by MARILENE PHIPPS-KETTLEWELL that explores boundaries of perception.

So plunge into this special Summer Issue and explore the depth and richness of our writers! Please leave comments on their pieces.

NOTE: We are also introducing our new BLOG by EUGENIO VOLPE, our new assistant fiction editor. Check it out! Also, welcome to HELEN ELAINE LEE, as a new consulting fiction editor. As a 2012 Best of the Net Award Winner in nonfiction, we are growing and changing. So join our diverse community and join our Facebook friends.

Warmly, Lee Hope

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Editors' Notes

  • Summer 2012 Editor’s Note
    by Lee Hope

Fiction

  • Finalist
    In the Shade of the Black Walnut Tree
    by Janet Hillard-Osborn
  • Finalist
    Messengers of God
    by Morgan Smith
  • Finalist
    Translucent Skin
    by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
  • Runner-up
    Ruffly Like Christmastime
    by Cameron MacKenzie
  • Winner
    Rheumatic Fever
    by Amy L Clark

Nonfiction

  • Finalist
    On Bison Skulls and Trains
    by Deborah Taffa
  • Finalist
    A Failure of Narrative Distance
    by Gaynell Gavin
  • Winner
    Aleatorik
    by Dawn Haines

Photography

  • Portland
    by Keith Moul

Poetry

  • Noodles in Gong Guan With Godfather
    by Afaa M. Weaver
  • Finalist
    Centinela
    by Kristen Havens
  • Finalist
    Fishermen on the Pier
    by Read Trammel
  • Finalist
    Technicalities and the Heart
    by Don Colburn
  • Runner-up
    I Blame the Ronettes
    by Emily Van Duyne
  • Winner
    Via Dolorosa
    by Mike Nelson
  • Poems from the “Spring” section of the forthcoming collection Offertory
    by Marilène Phipps-Kettlewell
  • Zombia Apologia
    by Gary Duehr
  • Millennia Apologia
    by Gary Duehr
  • Tea Plantations and Women in Black
    by Afaa M. Weaver
  • The Undercover Man
    by Stephen Dunn


Contributors

avatar for Afaa M. WeaverAfaa M. Weaver
Avatar photoAmy L Clark
avatar for Cameron MacKenzieCameron MacKenzie
avatar for Dawn HainesDawn Haines
avatar for Deborah TaffaDeborah Taffa
Avatar photoDon Colburn
Avatar photoEmily Van Duyne
avatar for Gary DuehrGary Duehr
avatar for Gaynell GavinGaynell Gavin
avatar for Janet Hillard-OsbornJanet Hillard-Osborn
avatar for Keith MoulKeith Moul
avatar for Kristen HavensKristen Havens
avatar for Marilène Phipps-KettlewellMarilène Phipps-Kettlewell
avatar for Mike NelsonMike Nelson
avatar for Morgan SmithMorgan Smith
avatar for Read TrammelRead Trammel
avatar for Silvia Moreno-GarciaSilvia Moreno-Garcia
Avatar photoStephen Dunn

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