2024 Writing Contest Winners Named
Below are the winners of GCC’s annual creative writing contest, held across both campuses. Many thanks to all the participants who submitted their beautiful work and to the GCC Foundation for generously funding the prizes. We’re also grateful for the faculty and staff judges who volunteered their time to read and vote on all the entries: Steve Spets, Andrew Burt, Mariah Partanen, DeeAnn Eller, Kri Michel, Leah Hagen, Kari Klemme, Melissa Helppi, Adam Little, Matt Gage, Ashley Lynott, Angela Kortemeier, Katlyn Vander Spoel, and Shannon Anderson!
The first and second-place entries have been entered in the state-wide contest with the Liberal Arts Network for Development. Questions about past or future contests can be sent to the contest coordinator, Cynthia Brandon-Slocum.
Fiction
First Place: "A Trip to the Zoo" by Ben Lilleskov
Second Place: "Send Me an Angel" by Jan Masucci
Third Place: "Curse of the House of Elivebith" by Miah Billie
Creative Nonfiction
First Place: "A Slothful Day" by Alexandra Butler-Ehle
Second Place: "A Mystifying Float" by Ben Salkauskas
Third Place: "Comeback Time" by Jake Johnson
Poetry
First Place: "The River" by Jake Johnson
Second Place: "My Garden" by Dillon Madden
Third Place: "Hidden Oasis" by Zach Edwards
Read the winning pieces, the writers’ bios, and the comments from our judges below.
Click on the title to read the winning piece.
FICTION
“A Trip to the Zoo” by Ben Lilleskov
Ben Lilleskov grew up in Houghton, Michigan and is working on an Applied Ecology and Environmental
Science degree from Michigan Technological University. He loves listening to science
fiction books and exploring the Keweenaw.
Judges’ Comments
- I love the twist on zoo role. It’s completely out of the box to take marine life as the guests and put the humans on display. And then the student describes stereotypical captive behavior with the repetitive picking up of the stick. Absolutely perfect, spot on for the scientific details. I love that the student detailed the emotion and discomfort the humans feel on display. You see the same thing with primates and other mammals on display at zoos. Another chef’s kiss from me. --Mariah Partanen
- The story had incredible imagination and lead-in. The stye made me continue to question the time, place, and characters. --Steve Spets
“Send Me an Angel” by Jan Masucci
Jan Masucci is from Tallinn, Estonia and plans to study civil engineering at Michigan State University. He enjoys practicing karate and wishes he had the spare time to learn to play the electric guitar.
Judges’ Comments
- Well written and the writer provided a great level of detail throughout the story. The student tied the Divine premonition and the adoption of the small girl perfectly. The storyline was smooth and flowed well. –Mariah Partanen
- Such a sweet story with a lot of character depth. I enjoyed the historic, timeless setting. –Steve Spets
"Curse of the House of Elivebith" by Miah Billie
Miah Billie is an early college student at Gogebic Community College. She plans to go into screenwriting and one day write a novel. Miah enjoys reading, watching TV, writing, along with taking nature photography, in her free time.
Judges’ Comments
- I loved the haunting, the horror, THE ENDING. So good. The student provides such thorough detail that you can picture the whole story in your head as you read. It is the perfect short story – you get the background, the detail, the excitement, and the perfect ending to wrap up the whole story. I think this was the best entry I have read over my 3 years of judging. –Mariah Partanen
CREATIVE NONFICTION
"A Slothful Day" by Alexandra Butler-Ehle
Alexandra Butler-Ehle lives in Houghton County. She enjoys various forms of media as well as spending time daydreaming.
Judges’ Comments
- I could picture the day so vividly and felt like I was the sloth. –Kris Michel
- The author makes it easy to imagine the sloth, as it takes its daily walk through life. --DeeAnn Eller
"A Mystifying Float" by Ben Salkauskas
Ben Salkauskas is a first-year student at Gogebic Community College. He hails from Calgary, Canada and plays basketball for the GCC Samsons.
Judges’ Comments
- This story had a catchy intro and was an interesting read. I like the author's attempt at decoding the dream and relating it to their childhood. Nice use of imagery throughout the story. -DeeAnn Eller
"Comeback Time" by Jake Johnson
Jake Johnson is from Fenton, Michigan in the lower peninsula and currently lives in Hancock. He plans on finishing up some more classes at GCC and transferring to Michigan Tech to pursue Mechanical Engineering. In his free time, he enjoys hanging out with friends, hunting, fishing, and downhill skiing.
Judges’ Comments
- Cute story with plenty of emotion from the protagonist. Nice organization of ideas and use of dialogue. -DeeAnn Eller
- The situation was described well with emotion. –Kris Michel
POETRY
"The River" by Jake Johnson
Jake Johnson is from Fenton, Michigan in the lower peninsula and currently lives in Hancock. He plans on finishing up some more classes at GCC and transferring to Michigan Tech to pursue Mechanical Engineering. In his free time, he enjoys hanging out with friends, hunting, fishing, and downhill skiing.
Judges’ Comments
- I could feel all the emotion of this poem. I love the water, but not necessarily fishing, so this was an interesting take. -Kari Klemme
- Visual, creative. -Melissa Helppi
"My Garden" by Dillon Madden - Also won second place in poetry in the state-wide LAND contest.
Dillon Haven Madden moved to the UP in 2022 but was born on Fort Hood in Texas both sides of his family have military background. He enjoys writing poetry with a fond love for the darker side of life that oftentimes gets overlooked. His poetry urges to wake its readers to the negative sides of life, history, and mental health to his readers.
Judges’ Comments
- The author strives to provide a balanced image of the struggle with our own personal "weeds," and the lighter literal meaning of pulling weeds from the garden. For our protagonist, time has passed, and the beauty of the little weeds has grown into a problem. I particularly liked that the act of pulling the weeds was not the final piece, but understanding that weeds are always growing within us and that tending them is the important part. –Adam Little
- What I enjoyed most about this was the metaphor of a weed in the garden. We allow these things to stay in our lives and become accustomed to it but once removed, real flourishing can happen. –Leah Hagen
- The poet succinctly presents their subject, a garden that contains many wonders, including weeds that they are hesitant to remove. Like Robert Frost or other nature and religious poets, they show why they made choices within their natural environment through metaphor and storytelling. While heir garden flourishes once they pick the weeds, they admit that weeds must be part of the process as everything has a place in a grand scheme. Andrew Burt
"Hidden Oasis" by Zach Edwards
Zachary Edwards lives in Pelkie and is currently studying general science with plans to obtain a degree in sustainable agriculture once his Associates is completed. In his free time when not at work he likes to relax, cook home meals, workout, read, write short stories, and poetry.
Judges’ Comments
- The descriptions ring out and beg to be dissected and discussed. Perhaps a bit over emphatic at times, they add a lot of charm to the theme of mystifying the wonder of the garden. The aural affect drips off the page and pushes the reader to hear their own garden oasis.—Adam Little
- Great language choices and vivid imagery. It really pleased my senses and spoke to the optimism that spring and regeneration can bring. –Leah Hagen
