Three Emerging Writer Awards are presented each year.
The Cecelia Joyce Johnson Award, Scotti Merrill Award, and Marianne Russo Award recognize and support writers who possess exceptional talent and demonstrate potential for lasting literary careers.
Each award is tailored to a particular literary form. The Merrill Award recognizes a poet, while fiction writers may apply for either the Johnson Award (for a short story) or the Russo Award (for a novel-in-progress).
Winners receive full tuition support for our January Seminar and Writers’ Workshop Program, round-trip airfare, lodging, a $500 honorarium, and the opportunity to appear on stage during the Seminar.
Please review the criteria, complete the application form, and upload the required documents via Submittable. Due to an increased volume of applications and our thorough review process, we have implemented a $12 application fee to cover review costs.
This year’s winners are Chase Burke for a short story, Andrea Rinard for a novel-in-progress, and Chloe Firetto-Toomey for poetry. Learn more about their achievements here.
Important Dates:
Applications will be open Spring 2020. Winners will be notified in the fall.
Eligibility:
Writers of any age who live in the United States and have not yet published a book with a major publisher are eligible to apply. If you are the author of a book that is self-published, published with an independent press, or had a print run of 500 or fewer copies, you may or may not be eligible. If you think your eligibility could be called into question, please provide relevant details about prior publications as part of your cover letter. We reserve the right to make all final decisions regarding eligibility.
Previous Winners
Cecelia Joyce Johnson Award
2020
Chase Burke
2019
Joe Dornich
2018
Dantiel Moniz
2017
Munib Khan
2016
Vincent Scarpa
2015
Chaney Kwak
2014
Liz Gordon
2013
Sharon Harrigan
2012
Sabra Wineteer
2011
George Kamide
2010
Andrew Alexander
2009
Martha Otis
2008
Mehdi Okasi
Nami Mun
Scotti Merrill Award
2020
Chloe Firetto-Toomey
2019
Michelle Peñaloza
2018
Michael Lee
2017
Melinda Goodman
2016
Rob Stephens
2015
Jay Deshpande
2014
Christine Shan Shan Hou
2013
Scott Brennan
2012
Diana Khoi Nguyen
2011
Brynn Saito
2010
Will Dowd
2009
April Puciata
2008
Nancy Pearson
Jacqueline Jones LaMon
Marianne Russo Award
2020
Andrea Rinard
2019
Ross Feeler
2018
Sara Allen
2017
Elizabeth Engelman
2016
Jordan Jacks
2015
Joshua Bodwell
2014
Theodore Wheeler
2013
Brooks Whitney Phillips
2012
Christy Strick
2011
Kim Adrian
2010
George Green
2009
Patricia Engel
2008
Kristen-Paige Madonia
Katherine Schaefer