The 45th Nimrod Literary Awards
Founded by Ruth G. Hardman
The Katherine Anne Porter Prize for Fiction & The Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry
First Prize: $2,000 and publication
Second Prize: $1,000 and publication
The winners will also be flown to Tulsa from a domestic airport location for the Awards Ceremony and Writing Conference in October or, if global health situations do not allow for an in-person conference, winners will take part in a virtual Awards Ceremony and reading. All finalists in fiction and poetry will be published and paid at our standard publication rate. Semi-finalists in poetry will also be published and paid at our standard publication rate.
Contest Rules
Contest begins: January 1, 2023
Postmark Deadline: April 1, 2023
Poetry: 3-10 pages of poetry (one long poem or several short poems)
Fiction: 7,500 words maximum (one short story or a self-contained excerpt from a novel)
No previously published works or works accepted for publication elsewhere. Author’s name must not appear on the manuscript. Include a cover sheet containing titles, author’s name, full address, phone number, and email.
The Nimrod Literary Awards are open internationally.
Online Submissions: Work may be submitted online using our online submission manager system.
Postal Submissions: “Contest Entry” should be clearly indicated on both the outer envelope and the cover sheet. Manuscripts should be stapled, if possible; if not, please bind with a heavy clip. Manuscripts will not be returned. Include SASE for results only. If no SASE is sent, no contest results will be sent; however, the results will be posted on Nimrod’s website.
Mail to:
Nimrod International Journal
Literary Contest–Fiction or Poetry (indicate the appropriate category)
The University of Tulsa
800 S. Tucker Dr.
Tulsa, OK 74104
Entry Fee: Each entry must each be accompanied by a $20 fee. Make checks payable to Nimrod. $20 includes both entry fee & a one-year subscription (two issues). Writers may submit multiple entries, but each entry must include its own $20 fee.
2022 Nimrod Literary Awards Results
The editors of Nimrod International Journal are delighted to announce the winners, honorable mentions, finalists, and semi-finalists of the 44th Nimrod Literary Awards.
The Katherine Anne Porter Prize for Fiction
First Prize: Treena Thibodeau, NY, “My Mother Says Our House Is Haunted”
Second Prize: Ellen Rhudy, OH, “You Women in the Mountains”
Honorable Mention
James Janko, NM, “The Wire-Walker”
Finalist
Marguerite Alley, NC, “Water Diviners”
Semi-Finalists
Amber Blaeser-Wardzala, AZ, “Deer Women”
Amber Fenik, Canada, “Dollhouse”
Summer Hammond, NC, “The Dangers of Dishwater”
Daniel Reiss, TN, “What’s of the Soul Is Not Forgotten”
Megan Staffel, NY, “Last Days of the Matriarch”
The Pablo Neruda Prize for Poetry
First Prize: Lory Bedikian, CA, “Ode to Their Leaving” and other poems
Second Prize: Angela Kirby, NC, “Pareidolia 175: Requiem | Rest”
Honorable Mentions
Janée J. Baugher, WA, “Andrew Wyeth’s Footnotes to Self-Portrait, 1938” and other poems
Teresa Scollon, MI, “Asthma Attack” and other poems
Kyoko Uchida. NY, ““Hiroshima, 7:21 AM” and other poems
Finalists
Laura Apol, MI, “Afterlife” and other poems
Joanna Currey, VA, “Coming Out Vigil” and other poems
Emily Kingery, IA, “Snapdragons” and other poems
A.D. Lauren-Abunassar, NY, “Supplies for a Quick Migration” and other poems
Julia McDaniel, MI, “A Charted Territory”
Greg Nicholl, MA, “Sage” and other poems
Catherine Stearns, MA, “Desiderium” and other poems
Semi-Finalists
M. Soledad Caballero, PA, “The Mirage”
Anne Casey, Australia, “Season of Samhain”
Lauren Coggins, SC, “Reminders”
Donte Collins, MN, “Ombrophobia”
Jonathan Fink, FL, “Leonardo’s Mistake”
Jana-Lee Germaine, MA, “Distance”
Mara Lee Grayson, CA, “May We All Emerge One Day as Butterflies in Poems.”
Andrew Hemmert, CO, “Like the Points of Compass Needle” and other poems
Anna Claire Hodge, FL, “Sephora During the Cancer Scare”
Justin Hunt, NC, “At the Missouri Pacific Depot, where, in 1931, You Holed up for Three Days and Drank”
Leah Claire Kaminski, IL, “Red” and other poems
Susan Landgraf, WA, “Bindweed”
Rosa Lane, CA, “Dear Master (No. 7)”
Wen Lim, UK, “2006, the Year Mom Learnt to Bake Jim Lahey’s No-Knead Bread”
Jessica Pierce, OR, “I want to speak all of the springtime”
Ivy Raff, MI, “You Learned to Wait”
Susan Rich, WA, “The Blind Ones”
Anna Scotti, CA, “Kanawha Street”
Darius Simpson, CA, “Lessons Learned on a Slow Drive East”
Kelly Grace Thomas, CA, “Female Lobsters Grow More Fertile with Age”
Hannah Whiteman, FL, “The Law of Conservation of Energy Says Not a Bit of You Is Gone”
Amelia L. Williams, VA, “Beautiful Death” and other poems
Melody Wilson, OR, “Tightrope”
Nimrod extends deep appreciation to all who submitted. Selecting the poetry and fiction finalists was a task that dominated the lives of Nimrod’s editors all spring. They approached their mission with dedication and discretion, reading and rereading the final group, comparing notes, and speaking for favorites. The finalists’ manuscripts were sent to the judges for 2022. Toni Jensen served as fiction judge, and Kaveh Bassiri served as poetry judge. They chose the winners and honorable mentions from the finalist groups.
The 45th Nimrod Literary Awards competition begins January 1, 2023; the deadline is April 1st, 2023. We welcome your submissions, knowing that each year brings new discoveries, often from those who have submitted to the competition before.
All entrants not previously contacted by Nimrod about their work may consider their work released at this time.