Winner
"Ape Opus" by Kate Lister Campbell
From judge Helen Phillips:
"Ape Opus" appears to be a story about an American tourist in Barcelona, but it morphs into something much stranger and more visceral. Its twin interrogations of transcendence and empathy—and the connection between the two—will linger with me. Plus, the narrator Allison’s companion Dawn is one of the most compelling frenemy characters I’ve encountered. This story is so vividly told, both internally and externally, that you might feel your own empathy expanding as you read. And the title—intriguing to begin with—takes on new meaning as the story progresses.
Kate Lister Campbell was raised in Kansas City and lives in New York. Her fiction has appeared in Granta Online, Indiana Review, Witness, and North American Review, among others. Her essay "Body Work," published in Southern Humanities Review, was recognized as a Notable in Best American Essays 2023. She received her MFA from Warren Wilson College and is at work on a story collection and a novel.
Second Place
"Scheherazade in the Tropics" by Ivan Suazo
From judge Helen Phillips:
Ivan Suazo is a Dominican American fiction writer from New York City. He received his BFA in Dramatic Writing from SUNY Purchase and is now working toward an MFA in Creative Writing at the Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars, where he serves as the Lead Assistant Editor for the Hopkins Review. His fiction has been supported by the Kenyon Writers Workshop and has appeared in The Pinch and elsewhere.
Finalists
“Breach of Promise” by Catherine Kim
“Betrayal at Johnny’s Outdoor Rehabilitation Retreat for Workforce Specialists” by Ethan Reed
“Dogsbody” by Marguerite Alley
“Falling Scales” by Genevieve Lewis
“How to Live in Your Body” by Allison Snyder
“Lake People” by Spencer Wise
“Sweetbay” by Kristen-Paige Madonia
“The Charcoal Wife” by Rachel Desiree Felix
