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Awards

The final date for award consideration is January 31, 2024.

The first Litfest was held in Spring 2003, the first year of the Writers' House. Litfest is one of many projects that Writers' House has initiated over the years to recognize and support the undergraduate literary community at University of Maryland.

— Jiménez-Porter Literary Prize —

The Jiménez-Porter Literary Prize is an annual writing contest open to all University of Maryland undergraduates. Judges read the manuscripts after names of authors have been removed, to preserve anonymity. Notable judges in years past have included Kyle Dargan, Robert Girardi, Fady Joudah, Terese Svoboda, Rod Jellema, Ocean Vuong, Kathy MacMillan, Shara McCallum and Antonya Nelson.

— Cabrini Art Award —

The Cabrini Art Award is an art contest presented by Stylus for the first time in 2011. The Award winners are selected from a pool of submissions that the editors collectively vote on as finalists for the award. A judge then determines the three winners based on a point system meant to objectively score each piece of artistic merit. Previous judges have included Emily Conover.

— Stylus Cover Art Award —

The Stylus Cover Art Award is judged by the Art Editor, Editors-in-Chief and Layout Editor. The cover contest gives an artist the opportunity to have their artwork featured as the cover design for the journal. The choice for winner of the Stylus Cover Art Award is guided by the theme, tone, and mood of the issue's art and writing for that year.

All art submitted to Stylus for publication is considered for both the Stylus Cover Art Award and the Cabrini Art Award. No additional action is required on behalf of the art submitters to be entered into the contests.

2023 Winners

— Prose Awards —

First Round Judge: Olivia Wilkins | Final Judge: Roseanne A. Brown

First Place: Willow Whitaker, “DON'T YOU WANT ME”
Second Place: Mia Ferraro, “Confession of a Barren Hypocrite”
Third Place: Hannah Bray, “About Face”

— Poetry Awards —

First Round Judge: Charles Zhuang | Final Judge: Shara Lessleyn

First Place: Isabella Cusack, “Mayflies"
Second Place: Sawdah Munir, "words for remembering"
Third Place: Sarah Meador, "Sandcrabs”

— 2023 Cabrini Art Award —

Judges: Ji Young Park and Ruitao Chen

First Place: Lynn Nguyen, "REFLECTION”
Second Place: Vainavi Gambhir, "Night and Day"
Third Place: Serena Newton, "Dust"

2022 Winners

— Prose Awards —

First Round Judge: Alice Yanhong Lu | Final Judge: Meredith Hale

First Place: Robert Wolle, "Heaven and Earth Will Pass Away"
Second Place: Isabella Hofman, "Car Issues"
Third Place: Lesley Porterfield, "Godiva"

— Poetry Awards —

First Round Judge: Megan Conley | Final Judge: Tafisha Edwards

First Place: Celia Cook, "I killed a deer tonight"
Second Place: Marjorie Antonio, "proof of existence"
Third Place: Maya Long, "fading in/prequel to anew"

2021 Winners

— Prose Awards —

First Round Judge: Alexandria Carolan | Final Judge: Nicolette Polek

First Place: Jack Hicks, "Encounter from The Renaissance of Downingsburg"
Second Place: Carmen Molina Acosta, "The House by Mosquito Lake"
Third Place: Katie Worden, "Daphne"

— Poetry Awards —

First Round Judge: Lenaya Stewart | Final Judge: Marlena Chertock

First Place: Carmen Molina Acosta, "on the shore of Lake Guatavita, america appears" and "the end of the world tasted like a vodka cran"
Second Place: Neil-Peace Tebid, "Motherland"
Third Place: Maristela Romero, "Horizon"

— Stylus Cover Art Award —

Philip Dodge, "Quaker Weather"