White Announces Winners of Emerging Writers Competition
SPRINGFIELD — Secretary of State and State Librarian Jesse White today congratulated the winners of the first annual Illinois Emerging Writers Competition, an award White has created to promote writing and creativity and to provide a unique opportunity and outlet for recognizing new talent.
This year's category was poetry, and the three winners are:
- Rosanna Lloyd of Chicago for her piece Summertime Trilogy
- Elliot R. Mandel of Glen Ellyn for his poem in the middle of Nosomewhere or on the road with the bradley university chorale, spring tour 2002
- Joseph Woods of Park Forest for his work Black Goes With Everything
Illinois poet laureate Kevin Stein served as a judge for the contest and presented the awards during a ceremony at the Illinois State Library in Springfield.
"I am pleased to congratulate these three extremely talented individuals, who were among 124 entries we received during this inaugural event," White said. "My goal in creating this competition was to provide a new outlet for Illinois literary talent, and I believe the large number of entries submitted helped us achieve that goal. Our state has such a long and rich history of producing outstanding writers, and I hope all of those persons who entered will continue writing and inspiring us with their works."
The three winners each received a $300 cash prize and a plaque recognizing their achievement. Winning poems will be submitted for possible publication in Ninth Letter Magazine, Another Chicago Magazine and Rhino Magazine.
The Emerging Writers Competition is a joint venture of the Illinois Center for the Book, for which White serves as Honorary Chairman, and the Illinois State Library.
The Illinois Center for the Book, an affiliate of the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress, is a non-profit organization promoting books, book arts, libraries and reading in Illinois. Established in 1985, the organization's mission is to celebrate the printed word and to create an environment that promotes reading, the book arts and an appreciation of the state's rich literary heritage.
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