Inspired Writer’s Christmas Challenge Winners Announced!

The best of the best of our third writing contest

Image source: Massonstock on Freepik — Caption: Canva

We’re happy to announce that our third writing challenge was a success and that we have chosen our winners!

Thanks to all those who participated and went the extra mile to make their stories shine like diamonds! You gave me and our dear chief editor Kelly Eden a wonderful time as we immersed ourselves in your creative and thought-provoking stories. That alone makes all of you winners in our hearts.

Naturally, having dozens of outstanding entries to choose from, it was tough to make up our minds for our twelve finalists. Selecting the winners was even more challenging. To see what I mean, imagine being asked which of your children you love most. Okay, maybe it wasn’t that hard or dramatic, but you get the idea.

Before we unveil the names of our winners, we would like to thank The Writing Cooperative for making this possible. It was great to see so many of you in The Writing Cooperative’s Facebook group supporting each other with entries.

Enough chit-chat! Here’s what you came here for: These are Inspired Writer’s 2020 Christmas Writing Challenge winners, editors’ pics, and honorable mentions!

First place

When Leaving Saves a Life, by Ashley Cleland, M.Ed.:

A beautifully-written story with clever use of imagery woven throughout.

When Leaving Saves a Life

Second place

I’ve ruined a 1,001 Christmases, by Bob Dumont:

A brutally-honest account about the pain and frustration of being blamed for circumstances that are beyond our control.

I’ve ruined 1,001 Christmases

First place

A Teacher’s Nightmare, by Cindy Shore Smith:

We loved the commentary on the devastating effects ill-intended lies and sensational, viral news can have on the life of an innocent person.

A Teacher’s Nightmare

Second place

The Contents of Josephine’s Enormous Gray Bag, by Kimberly Read:

A moving story of the importance of empathy and getting to know the person behind the behavior.

The Contents of Josephine’s Enormous Gray Bag

Kelly Eden’s selection:

Divorce in the View-Master (Experienced), by Rebecca Cullen.

“I really loved the originality of this piece. I had a View-Master as a child too. Using View-Master images to tell the story of divorce through a child’s eyes was genius. The beautifully painted scenes let me into your world and stuck with me!” — Kelly Eden

Divorce in the View-Master

Ash Jurberg’s selection:

2 Trips to the Afterlife and All I Got Was a Lousy Ruined T-Shirt (Experienced), by Ryan DeJonghe.

“There were so many great entries but I wanted to acknowledge Ryan who took up the challenge of writing 712 words with this piece. And I always love a story with humor.” — Ash Jurberg

2 Trips to the Afterlife and All I Got Was a Lousy Ruined T-Shirt

Joe Donan’s selection:

Hocking Phoney Baked Goods (Novice), by Mandy Osterhaus Ream.

“Weighing up both sides of a moral dilemma, Mandy artfully explores guilt and reluctant complicity at the workplace; all while her detailed food descriptions make you terribly hungry: You can almost smell those tasty pies as you read her story. Outstanding.” — Joe Donan

Hocking Phoney Baked Goods

• Why Starting at the Top is the Best Way to Learn (Novice), by Kevin Ervin Kelley, AIA.

Why Starting at the Top Is the Best Way to Learn

• Drug Deal with God (Experienced), by Tam Francis.

Drug Deal with God

• Maybe This is What Happens When You Die (Novice), by Katrina Paulson.

Maybe This is What Happens When You Die

• Does Pumpkin Pie on Thanksgiving Make Me Blackish? (Novice), by Michele James Roberts.

Does Pumpkin Pie on Thanksgiving Make Me “Black•ish?”

• Airport: A Place Where Time Flies (Experienced), by Mehboob Khan.

Airport: A Place Where Time Flies

We would like to express our gratitude to our sponsors: Christie Tate, WOW! Workshops & Classes, and our dear Kelly Eden.

• Check out Christie Tate’s Group to get your own copy of this New York Times bestseller.
• Our three consultation prizes are kindly donated by WOW! Workshops & Classes: Check out how you can get your own submission consultation with Chelsey Clammer.
• For mentoring inquiries and story assessments, contact Kelly at inspiredwriter.kelly@gmail.com

Once again, thank you all for participating and reading. For us, this was a great opportunity to discover so many fantastic new voices that often go unnoticed or are overshadowed by more popular writers.

At Inspired Writer, we believe in the inner potential of our readers, and their capacity to develop their writing skills one step at a time.

We strongly encourage you to read each and every one of the entries in this article — you won’t be disappointed. Also, follow our publication and stay tuned for our next writing challenge!

Thanks,

Kelly, Ash, and Joe
Inspired Writer editors