This annual writing contest awards one first prize of $300, one second place prize of $150, and a third place prize of $50 per winning entry in each of the six categories; fiction, nonfiction, juvenile, poetry, student writer and screenwriting. Student writers are awarded $50 for first place in three grade divisions, $20 for second place, and $10 for third place. The Liam Callen Memorial Award of $500 goes to the best overall contest entry in all divisions.

Find out more by reading the Kay Snow Contest Guidelines. A printer-friendly registration form link is available at the end of the guidelines.

Go to the printer-friendly Kay Snow Awards entry form.

Winners of the Kay Snow contest will be invited to an awards banquet at the annual Willamette Writers Conference held August 1-3rd, 2008. The Awards banquet is August 2nd. The conference offers a variety of workshops, opportunities to meet agents, editors and film producers, and many resources for writers.

Willamette Writers is the largest writers' organization in Oregon and one of the largest writers' organizations in the United States. It is a non-profit, tax-exempt Oregon corporation led by volunteers. Elected officials and directors administer an active program of monthly meetings, special seminars, workshops and annual writing conference. Continuing with established programs and starting new ones is only made possible by strong volunteer support. Members continually explore other ways to interact in the literary community and to exchange information about writing resources.

Willamette Writers' goal is to provide and encourage a creative environment and support system for current and aspiring writers. Since its beginning in 1965, Willamette Writers has provided meeting places for the exchange of ideas and information and has initiated programs designed to help writers increase skills related to the craft of writing. Both published and aspiring writers are invited to join. Dues are $36 a year.

For more information about our meetings in Portland, Eugene, Medford, and Newport (Oregon Coast) including meeting times, speakers and locations, check out our meetings page.

C Whitcomb Conference Scholarships

The 2008 writing conference will again feature 10 Teacher/Student scholarships. These scholarships allow a teacher and student to attend the conference for one day. Download the PDF by clicking on the link for more details.

For the latest news about Oregon writing events, including the Kay Snow Writing Contest, workshops, readings, writing resources, and book releases, sign up for Willamette Writer's e-newsletter.

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Adult Fiction

1st place - "The Missing Anastasia" (a novel excerpt) by Amy Miller
Ashland, OR

2nd Place - "One Hand Clapping" by Linda S. Clare
Eugene, OR

3rd Place - "Captive" (a novel excerpt) by Sharon Gillespie
Austin, TX

Honorable Mentions

"Death With Dignity" (a novel excerpt) by Bill Cameron
Portland, OR

"Maria's Table" by Julia Ingram
Portland, OR

Adult Non-Fiction

1st Place - "Whatever Will Be, Will Be" by Mary Ann Collanton
Clayton, CA

2nd Place - "Autumn Leaves-A holistic approach to healing childhood cancer" By Lakshmi Jagannathan
Beaverton, OR

3rd Place - "Speak Your Piece: An Open Mike User's Guide" by Amy Miller
Ashland, OR

Honorable Mentions

"Playing God" by William Beaty
Springfield, OR

"The Summer of Love" by Renee Prince
Keizer, OR

"Reunion" by Marla Estes
Ashland, OR

Adult Poetry

1st Place - "Night Sounds at the Summer Cabin" by Patricia Mees Armstrong
Eugene, OR

2nd Place - "In The Hour After Death" by Amy Miller
Ashland, OR

3rd Place - "In Florida" by Amy Alterman
Portland, OR

Honorable Mentions

"How to Know a Prairie Poem" by Ellaraine Lockie
Sunnyvale, CA

"Green Beans" by Patricia E. Lanier
Eugene, OR

"Never Known" by Renée Prince
Keizer, OR

Juvenile Fiction by Adults

1st Place - "Stealing from the Hands of the Buddha" by Lorraine Thomas
Beaverton, OR

2nd Place - "Home Sweet Home is a Cactus" by P.M. Kendrick
Hemet, CA 92544

3rd Place - "Aurora-The Mother Octopus" by Carolyn Sarver
Olympia, WA

Honorable Mentions

"Fred Harvey, the Father of Fast Food" by Sheila Wood Foard
Van Buren, Missouri

"Soul Mates" by Robert Boertien
Gresham, OR

"The Big Max Mix-Up" by Marilyn Owen
Portland, OR

Screenplay

1st Place - "Montana 200" by Heather Sharfeddin
Sherwood, OR

2nd Place - "Letters of a Portuguese Nun" by Sherry Lamoreaux
Portland, OR

3rd Place - "Last Hand" by Sandi Jerome
Eugene, OR

Honorable Mentions

"Soul of the Mountain" by Beth Quartarolo
Vancouver, WA

"Rock Resurrection" by Sue Ceswick
Portland, OR

Students, Grades 1-5

1st Place - "Labyrinth of Friendship" by Crystal Kim
Torrance, CA

2nd Place - "Orphan Story" by Rachel Chui
Palos Verdes Est, CA

3rd Place - "School is Fun" by Annie Styles
Oakland, CA

Honorable Mentions

"How the Skunk Got His Smell..." by Tyley Fitzgerald
Tigard, OR

"Best Friends Forever?" by Jenny Nam
Portland, OR

"The Tournament" by Cole Van Shloick
Santa Clara, CA

Students, Grades 6-8

1st Place - "Medal of Contempt" by Peter Tolly
Neenah, WI

2nd Place - "Intensity" by Zannie
Prairieville, LA

3rd Place - "Crooked Lines" by Katie Foster
Lakewood, CO

Honorable Mentions

"The Slave Orb" by Sarah Weaver
Keizer, OR

"Forgotten" by Emily Baker
Portland, OR

"Night's Curse" by Melanie Rogers
Santa Barbara, CA

Students, Grades 9-12

1st Place - "I'll be honest" by B. Green
McLean, VA

2nd Place - "Photons" by Nicole Guenther
Vancouver, WA

3rd Place - "Keep up, Keep up" by Nicole Giembolvo
Lindenhurst, NY

Honorable Mentions

"You and Your Green Skateboard" by Sarah Mellinger
Lancaster, PA

"Stick Boy" by Justin Beltz
Bluffton, SC

Photos from our awards banquet at the Portland Airport Sheraton Hotel are available here.

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2005 Kay Snow Winners

Adult Fiction:
1st Place - Katherine S. Aberle - Battle Ground, WA - for The Ring of Silver
2nd Place - Judith Cobb Dailey - Seattle, WA - for No Traveler Returns
3rd Place - Maryka Biaggio - Portland, OR - for What Were The Chances?
HM Shirley Barker - Beaverton, OR - for Death on Reger Road
HM - Linda S. Clare-Eugene, OR - for Joseph Pond

Juvenile:
1st Place - Elizabeth Rusch - Portland, OR - for The Big Brothers' Guide to Life With A New Baby
2nd Place - Carolyn Sarver - Olympia, WA - for Springer: Orphan Orca of Puget Sound
3rd Place - Kerri Kokias-Seattle, WA - for Every Dog Is Different
HM - Jeanette Houx Smith - Clackamas, OR - for The Mouse and the Moon
HM - Joy King - Myrtle Point, OR - for The Gift Exchange

Non-Fiction:
1st Place - Shura Young - Portland, OR - for Turning Point On A Key
2nd Place - C. Lill Ahrens - Corvallis, OR - for I Was The Walrus
3rd Place - Samantha Ducloux Waltz - Lake Oswego - for Kenneth
HM - Leigh Anne Bryant - Eugene, OR - for Where's - I Leave My Funny Bone?
HM - David Scott Silva - Riverside, CA - for Colour Me Joan

Poetry:
1st Place - Ronda Broatch - Kingston, WA - for I Dream A House With Many Floors
2nd Place - Patricia Kelley Brunjes-Clinton, WA - for Sally's Song
3rd Place - Lena Branco-Gresham, OR - for Starlight Parade
HM - D.H. Bleything - Portland, OR - for The Gradual Fall
HM - Margaret Hoehn - Sacramento, CA - for Filling With Sky

Screenwriting:
1st Place - Brandon Daniel - Vancouver, WA - for Maelstrom
2nd Place - Melissa Jones - Portland, OR - for Dining Out
3rd Place - Carolyn Sarver - Olympia, WA - for Jump Over the Moon
HM - Elizabeth Linehan - Belgrade, MT - for Probe
HM - Diane Steiner - Springfield, OR - for The Moon Lover

Grades 1-5:
1st Place - Drew Lane - Marietta, GA - for The Comedian and the Bully
2nd Place - Pauline Ayer, Belmont, MA - for Alison's Farm
3rd Place - Alison Buermeyer - Montgomery, NY - for Mighty Fire
HM - Alison Buermeyer - Montgomery, NY - for Grown Up
HM - Peri Zarrella - Red Hook, NY - for The World Around Me

Grades 6-8:
1st Place - Lindsey Maxon - Arlington, TX - for Freaks, Inc.
2nd Place - Matt Stensland Bos - Luverne, MN - for The Fall
3rd Place - Aleah Romer - Beaverton, OR - for Josef's Sorrow
HM - LaEric Brewster - Long Beach, CA - for In Some Time
HM - William Toothman - Great Falls, VA - for 13

Grades 9-12:
1st Place - Katherine Tang Ngo - Sunnyvale, CA - for Open House
2nd Place - Rachel Lehman - Leola, PA - for Guilt Trip
3rd Place - Paige Cerulli - Mashpee, MA - for Gallop On
HM - Caitie Ziemak - Pelham, AL - for Into the Dust
HM - Chandelle Hensley - Canton, TX - for Charlie

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2004 Kay Snow Winners

Adult Fiction:
1st Place - Judi Blaze - Vashon, WA - for Talking With My Water God
2nd Place - Kathy L. Nappier - Clearwater, FL - for Full Wolf Moon
3rd Place - Lones Seiber - Knoxville, TN - for Penumbra
HM - Katrina Ratzlaff - Portland, OR - for The Wife
HM - Heather Sharfeddin - Sherwood, OR - for Mineral Spirits

Juvenile:
1st Place - Carol Coven Grannick - Wilmette, IL - for This And That
2nd Place - John Sundahl - Beaverton, OR - for Splashing Through The Metric System
3rd Place - Beth Stein - Eugene, OR - for When You're Eighty
HM - Sue McDonald - High Ridge, MO - for Junglecracker - A Nutty Ballet
HM - Meredith Schatz - Lake Oswego, OR - for Cricket And Little Bug's Search For Gold

Non-Fiction:
1st Place - Jill Hedgecock - Walnut Creek, CA - for Round
2nd Place - Sally Jo Bowman - Springfield, OR - for I Will Fight No More Forever
3rd Place - Becky Coffield - Bend, OR - for Hippotherapy
HM - Donald H. Dilmore, Jr. - Montgomery, TX - for Making a Difference
HM - Sally Jo Bowman - Springfield, OR - for Taddy's Quilt

Poetry:
1st Place - Sally Jo Bowman-Springfield, OR - for Spooky Cowboy
2nd Place - Erick Mertz - Portland, OR - for Three Knots
3rd Place - Donovan Reves - Corvallis, OR - for To Do
HM - Schubert Moore - Pacific City, OR - for The Strength of Old Men
HM - Karolyn Boudrealt - Exeter, NH - for Yesterday's Beckon`

Screenwriting:
1st Place - Jack Estes - Lake Oswego, OR - for A Soldiers' Son
2nd Place - Janeen Olsen - Ashland, OR - for Came The Dawn
3rd Place - Beth Danesco - Foxboro, MA - for Mercy Street
HM - Matt Merenda - Portland, OR - for The 3-Month Rules
HM - Lizanne Southgate - Corvallis, OR - for Jimmy's War

Grades 1-5:
1st Place - Meredith E. Gold - Elkhorn, Nebraska - for Bunny, Go Home
2nd Place - Marcus Brendan Glynn - Lavon, TX - for The Place To Love
3rd Place - Anna Knight - Redlands, CA - for - How Rainbows Came To Be
HM - Victor Warner - Stone Mountain, GA - for I Love Cheering With UPA
HM - Chase Smith-Portland, OR - for Time

Grades 6-8:
1st Place - Natalie Torres - Plainfield, N.J. - for Win Or Lose
2nd Place - Ashley Smith - South Riding, VA - for A Whisper
3rd Place - Luke Shefski - Red Hill, PA - for Peter
HM - Laura McConaha - Pasco, WA - for The Necklace
HM - Nathan Bowers - Portland, OR - for Hate

Grades 9-12:
1st Place - Jamie Spinato - Sayreville, NJ - for For Richer Or Poorer
2nd Place - Heather Hayes - Port Orchard, WA - for: Autumn Splendor
3rd Place - Keiana Walton - Cleveland, OH - for: And I Write
HM - Rachel Darling - Clinton, CT - for: Welcome to the Zoo
HM - Jennifer Jenkins - West Allis, WI - for: 1304

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Kay Snow 2003 Contest Winners

Non-Fiction:
1st Place - My Mother's Legs - Nazia Aslam, W. Columbia, SC
2nd Place - I Like Classical Music, But I Like Rap Too - Kia Christie Coleman, Chicago, IL.
3rd Place - Freda's Tree - Ken Fraundorf, Corvallis, OR
HM - My Last Duchess - Doris Colmes, Portland
HM - Grandmothers - Mary Palmer Nowland, Medford, OR

Adult Fiction:
1st Place - The Golden Rule - Margaret Holmes, Buckley WA
2nd Place - Past Lives - Bryan Cox, Banks, OR
3rd Place - Descent - John Transier, Portland, OR
HM - Getting There - Jo Barney, Portland, OR
HM - Mustang Mori - Mike Gettel-Gilmartin, Portland, OR

Juvenile:
Liam Callen Award - Lester Fizz: Bubble Gum Artist - Ruth Spiro, Deerfield, IL
1st Place - I Have A Secret - Kali, Miller, Portland, OR
2nd Place - Is My Luna Cat Up There? - Nicki Eybel, Portland, OR
3rd Place - The Chess Men - Rosanne Parry, Portland, OR
HM - Gravel, Rhinestones and the King - Angie Marsh, Portland, OR

Screenwriting:
1st Place - Legend of the Raven - Teresa Bishop, Brush Prairie, WA
2nd Place - River Rats - Dorine Rivers, Richland, WA
3rd Place - The Sacrifice of Isaac - Stacy Coffey, Portland, OR
HM - Uneasy Listening - Peter Vanderwall, Salem, OR
HM - Backup - Sandi Jerome, Vancouver, WA

Poetry:
1st Place - Dark Blue Night - Nick Antosca, Rosemont, Maryland
2nd Place - Eating An Ice Cream Cone - Sherry Mikkelson, Corvallis, OR
3rd Place - George Luks: The Miner - Sheri Harper, Renton, WA
HM - Leaving the Gift Store - Meredith Stewart, Eugene, OR
HM - Insomnia - Sari Weston, Tigard, OR

Student
Grades 1-5:
1st Place - The Things I Love - Erica Sollazzo, Brooklyn, NY
2nd Place - Black - Nyeja Warner, Stone Mt., GA
3rd Place - Uninvited Guest - Erik Spears, Eagan, MN
HM - The Case of the Stolen Books, West Linn, OR
HM - Peace - Lucas Schaumberg, Portland, OR

Grades 6-8:
1st Place - Politically Correct - Sabrina Skau, Portland, OR
2nd Place - Crystal of Deceit - Maitland Jones, Tallahassee, FL
3rd Place - Getting Zane - Ana Chavez, Portland, OR
HM - The Awesome Adventures of Zella - Hannah Vasquez, Beaverton, OR
HM - Be Careful What You Wish For - Julie Hartwell, Portland, OR

Grades 9-12:
1st Place - Red Earth and A Clear Blue Sky - Emily Engle, Corvallis, OR
2nd Place - This Is Your Brain On Drugs - Alyssa Clemenzi, Beverly, MA
3rd Place - All It Takes Is One Time - Thomesa Baldwin, Los Angeles, CA
HM - The Eye of the Beholder - Joanna Guldin, Lebanon, PA
HM - Someone Else - Katherine Swope, Ripley, OH

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Kay Snow 2002 Contest Winners

Non-Fiction:
1st Place - Because I Met Selo Black Crow - Dorothy Blackcrow Mack
2nd Place - My Mother's House - Mary Peer
3rd Place - Sliding Doors - Helen Chen
HM - Letter To An Afghan Mother - Fred Melton
HM - When You Hurt The Women - Elizabeth Raintree

Adult Fiction:
1st Place - Blood Diamond - Marcia Gerhardt
2nd Place - Richard Cooper and the Ugly Red Shirt - Kathryn Umbarger
3rd Place - Tales From The Blue Water Diner - Pati Robinson
HM - Winter Deal - Cindy Ellen Hill
HM - Almost Perfect - Lucia Smith

Juvenile:
1st Place - The Only Way Out - Laura Whitcomb
2nd Place - The Ruby-Throated Hummingbird - Melissa Markham
3rd Place - Just the Way I See It - Denette Fretz
HM - The Jump Rope - Gloriana Shaffer
HM - The Kindness Chain - Chantelle Goodman

Screenwriting:
1st Place - Chaos - Beren deMotier
2nd Place - River of Many Returns - Marguerita Becker 7
3rd Place - Small Servings - Megan Taylor
HM - The Scrooge of Christmas Present - Stephen Trow
HM - Bone Taps - Laura Whitcomb

Poetry:
1st Place - Harsh Country - Rayette Eitel
2nd Place - Walking Blind - Mary Peers
3rd Place - Two Ladies of Chedigny - Deena Lindstedt
HM - I'm Not the Man in This Poem - Carla Perry
HM - Waffles at the Beach House - Katie Koerper
HM - Poem to Value Village - Constance Alexander

Student:
Grades 1-5:
1st Place - Toshi and the Carrot - Keller Gordon
2nd Place - Amazing - Corinna Baker
3rd Place - Sara's Dream - Erica Cornell
HM - The Stage Mouse - Austin Averett

Grades 6-8:
1st Place - The Seer - Cassidy Slaughter-Mason
2nd Place - The Traveler - Jessa Rose Rianelli
3rd Place - The Traveler - Meg Hayertz
HM - The Game of Life - Travis Royce

Grades 9-12:
1st Place - The Woman With The Indigo Face - Steven Flavin
2nd Place - Elephant Ending - Cherise Huang
3rd Place - #13 - Kelly Cox
HM - Grin - Steven Flavin
HM - Us - Alexandra Dickson