Govie Writing Award winners announced
Inaugural event awards prizes for fiction, poetry
The S.C .Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities is pleased to announce the winners of the first annual Govie Writing Awards, a new, statewide contest for South Carolina students in grades 6-12.
Sponsored by the Governor’s School’s Creative Writing Department, the awards—the George Singleton Prize in Fiction and the Jan Bailey Prize in Poetry—are named for the department’s founding faculty members who are also the contest judges. All winners receive gift certificates to their local independent bookstore.
In the High School Division, Autumn Simpson, a student at White Knoll High School in Lexington, won the George Singleton Prize in Fiction for her short story, “The Author.” The winner of the Jan Bailey Prize in Poetry is Luisa Peñaflor, a student at the Fine Arts Center in Greenville, who won for her poem titled, “Chandler Lake.” Tyler Kellogg, a student at Daniel High School in Central, received an honorable mention for his poem, “Desafinar.” In the Middle School Division, Olivia Bussell, a student from Pleasant Hill Middle School in Lexington, won the George Singleton Prize in Fiction for her story, “Limitless,” and Katherine Toellner, a student at Christ Church Episcopal School in Greenville, received an honorable mention for “A Million Stitches.” Roger Brown, a student from League Academy in Greenville, won the Jan Bailey Prize in Poetry for his poem, “Yellow Moon.” An honorable mention went to Grace Gibson, a student from the Coastal Montessori Charter School in Pawleys Island for her poem, “Ode to My Coonhound.” “Our judges were pleased not only with the quantity of entries this year, but with the high quality as well,” said Scott Gould, creative writing chair. “There are so many good, young writers across our state, and we’re just happy to give them a new platform to showcase their talents.” For more information about these winners and to read their work, visit www.scgsah.org/writingawards.