2024 winner: Jefferson Travis Croushore, for his eerily creepy story “A Call to the Beyond,” chosen by judge and (program graduate!) Hannah Schultz
Congrats, Jefferson!
2024-2025: Next year’s contest to be announced in fall. As always, the winning entry will receive publication alongside great national authors in Prism Review, our national lit journal, and a $100 bookstore (TBD) gift card.
Be patient! Send your best material! Deadline will be 11:59pm on March 1, 2025.
Rules
- One submission per author (multiple submissions are disqualified).
- Open to undergrads enrolled at the University of La Verne during spring 2024.
- Submissions can be:
- a single story (6-15 double-spaced pages);
- a single creative literary essay (6-15 double-spaced pages);
- interrelated short-short stories (6-15 double-spaced pages); or
- 1-5 poems.
- Each submission judged as a whole.
- Final judge not affiliated with the University of La Verne.
- Winner announced at Prism Review launch, May 2025.
Questions? Email Sean Bernard, Creative Writing program director.
Ready to submit?
Email your submission (as RTF, PDF, DOC, or DOCX file) with subject line “ULV LITERARY CONTEST,” HERE.
Past winners
| 2024 | Jefferson Travis Croushore, “A Call to the Beyond,” chosen by judge (& program graduate) Hannah Schultz |
| 2023 | Cara Musashi, “Paradise,” chosen by judge (& program graduate) Aimee Campos |
| 2022 | Mia Alvarez, “Caregiver,” chosen by judge (& program graduate) Kendra Pintor |
| 2021 | Emma Garcia, three poems, chosen by judge (& program graduate) Margo Cash |
| 2020 | Jesús Ramírez, three poems, chosen by judge (& program graduate & 2016 winner) Guadalupe Robles |
| 2019 | Christine Martins, three poems, chosen by judge (& program graduate) Tabitha Lawrence |
| 2018 | Cheyenne Avila, “The House on Elburg Street” (essay), chosen by judge Kevin Riel |
| 2017 | John Abbasi, “Darling Young Boy” (story), chosen by judge Corinna Vallianatos |
| 2016 | Guadalupe Robles, “Letter From Your Parents, The Moon and Sun” and “Second Letter” (poems), chosen by judge Michelle Detorie |
| 2015 | co-winners: Mary Roy, “The First Time He Saw Her” and “Apt. 667” (poems) and Larissa Malia Nobles, “Earth’s Worm” (story), chosen by judge Jessica Piazza |
| 2012 | Rebecca Ayala, “Branded” (story), chosen by judge Brent Armendinger |