South Carolina Academy of Authors announces Fellowship recipients

The South Carolina Academy of Authors (SCAA) has announced the winners of this year’s fellowship competitions in fiction and poetry.

Rachel Richardson of Spartanburg is the winner of the fourth annual SCAA Fiction Fellowship. Richardson’s short story, “Schism” was chosen by this year’s judge, novelist Ann Hood, from among 30 submissions. Hood described “Schism” as “100 percent fresh and original, a unique new voice in the world of fiction. Quirky and honest, with a keen eye toward detail and the inner machinations of the human heart and mind, ‘Schism’ completely won me over from the very beginning.” Hood described the submission pool as “mostly wonderful, and at a high level of writing skill. Many times, I got lost in the story and the writing, which made it difficult to choose just one winner.”

Barbara G. S. Hagerty of Charleston is the winner of the sixth annual Carrie McCray Nickens Fellowship in Poetry. Her entries were chosen by judge Traci Brimhall, who described Hargerty’s submission as evincing “an incredible command of language. I was also struck by the poems’ concision–how a word pairing could pull up a startling association or how the poet’s mind could leap from one line to the next. Even more than strong images, emotion, and music in the poems, there was a deep intelligence here that had me returning again and again to the poems.” Of all the submissions, she said, “There are some truly amazing poets in South Carolina. I was really blown away by the talent in the submissions. The seven finalists were especially hard to choose amongst. There were some strong voices in there, a wide range in subject matter and aesthetics, and a compelling use of language.” (Note: Hagerty received the South Carolina Arts Commission’s 2011 Poetry Fellowship.)

Richardson and Hagerty will each receive a $1,000 prize at a special brunch held in conjunction with the Academy’s 2015 induction ceremony in Charleston on April 11-12, at which Dorothea Benton Frank, Bret Lott, Marjory Wentworth and 19th-century playwright William Ioor will be inducted into the state’s literary hall of fame.

The submission period for next year’s fellowships will open next autumn. For more information about the South Carolina Academy of Authors or to make reservations for the induction, please visit scacademyofauthors.org.

Via: S.C. Academy of Authors