Books on the Bosque Writing Contest Winners
POSTED: Sunday, November 9, 2025
We extend our deep thanks to our contest judges from Tarleton State University College of Liberal and Fine Arts: Dr. Moumin Quazi, Hank Jones, and Walt Moore, and to our award sponsors for these generous prizes. We also offer our thanks to Dr. Quazi for taking the time to attend the awards ceremony to give the gift of his insights to our contestants.
And to workshop speakers Natalie Bright and Nancy Robinson Masters, thank you for inspiring a new group of writers at the Books on the Bosque conference!
Roland & Joyce Jones - $1,000 Best of the West Award
Steve & Leslie McConnico - $1,000 High School Awards
First Security State Bank - $1,000 Category Prizes
Savannah Lea of State Farm Insurance - $500 Category Prizes
OPEN DIVISION
JONES BEST OF THE WEST AWARD
“Endangered” by Kathryn Jones
$1,000.00 Prize
SHORT STORY
1st Place
“Endangered” by Kathryn Jones
$300.00 Prize
2nd Place
“Long Green” by Miles Wilson
$200.00 Prize
3rd Place
“Selichot : ssenevigroF” by Laura Bowman
$100.00 Prize
Honorable Mention
“Pecan Tales” by Amber Kirkpatrick
Honorable Mention
“What Endures” by Shawna Deboer
ESSAY
1st Place
“The Pet Mosquito” by Theo Boyd
$300.00 Prize
2nd Place
“The Homeplace” by Karen Smith
$200.00 Prize
3rd Place
“Widder Women of Autry, Texas” by Lisa Hart-Alldredge
$100.00 Prize
Honorable Mention
“On The House” by Lynne Schmidt
Honorable Mention
“Stars, Streams, And Small Things” by Pearl Dong
POETRY
1st Place
“If I Wrote The Obituary Honestly” by Lynne Schmidt
$300.00 Prize
2nd Place
“Inheritance” by Kathryn Jones
$200.00 Prize
3rd Place
“Alternate Universe Where Your Death Is More Gentle” by Lynne Schmidt
$100.00 Prize
Honorable Mention
“Legacy” by Kathryn Jones
Honorable Mention
“Dimensions” by Anne McCrady
HIGH SCHOOL DIVISION
POETRY
1st Place
“The Diary of a Teenage Girl” by Charley New
$275.00 Prize
2nd Place
“Oak Tree” by Jaclyn Nickel
$150.00 Prize
3rd Place
“The Dark” by Isaiah Aars
$75.00 Prize
PROSE
1st Place
“The Brave Little Astronaut” by Halo Bell
$275.00 Prize
2nd Place
“As One” by Adeline Clark
$150.00 Prize
3rd Place
“That Day Over Pearl” by Reed Martin
$75.00 Prize
Honorable Mention
“Jungle Guns” by Gabriel Prusha
Honorable Mention
“One Fuzzy Morning” by Cheyenne Thiele
--
And, congratulations to our other finalists:
OPEN POETRY
Tammy Iralu – “Down to the Bones”
Mike Skaggs - “Ropes”
Kathryn Jones – “My Father’s Hands”
Anne McCrady – “Momentum”
Terry York - “Distance Is Your Travel Companion”
OPEN SHORT STORY
Laura Bowman – “M18:10”
Dalinda Ackerman – “Russtee's First Ride”
Steven Eller – “Sunrise Service”
Bryan Bowman – “Curses of the Conquered”
Sophia Neumann - “The Library”
<— Go Back