Department Awards and Contests
Oakland University Creative Writing Contests
- Each entry must be submitted as a single file (.docx or .pdf preferred).
- Your name should appear only on the cover page, and nowhere else in the document.
- Do not include identifying information anywhere beyond the cover page.
- Each submission must include a cover page with:
- Writer’s name
- Email address
- Phone number
- Title(s) of submission(s)
- Identification as an OU student, employee, or alum
- If you enter multiple categories, each category requires its own cover page.
- Students (Undergrad & Grad)
- Employees / Alumni
Cash prizes will be awarded to student winners. OU employees and alumni are not eligible for monetary awards.
- Submit up to 3 poems in a single file
- Total length may not exceed 100 lines
- 12-point font, single-spaced (unless there is a formal reason not to be)
- Submit up to 3 flash fiction stories
- Each story must be 250–1000 words
- 12-point font, double-spaced
- Submit one essay
- Maximum length: 8 double-spaced pages
- 12-point font
- Short film screenplays only
- Strict 12-page maximum
- Must follow standard screenplay formatting
- Judged on originality, artistic innovation, and narrative cohesion
- Cover page requirements (in addition to the general rules above):
- A brief summary of the screenplay
- Indication of whether the work is original or adapted from a pre-existing source
- If submitting a partial screenplay, a description of how the scene(s) fit into the complete narrative
If you have any questions, please contact CW director Jeff Chapman at [email protected].
Deadline: February 1
The Memoir & Essay Contest is for personal essays about events that have happened to you, or evocative writing about things that fascinate you: cultural commentary, current and historical events, scientific concepts, etc.... Memoir and essay are different from journalism and academic writing; they take an intentionally creative approach to telling stories.
Submit one essay of up to 8 double-spaced pages.
1st Place: $200
2nd Place: $100
3rd Place: $50
Questions? Contact Susan McCarty at [email protected].
2026 Memoir and Essay Winners
Undergraduate / Graduate
1st Place: Madeline Johnson — “The Rain We Used to Dance In”
2nd Place: Claire Martin — “A Whisper in the Wind”
3rd Place (tie): Austin Klotz — “Shannon”
3rd Place (tie): Elizabeth Elsey — “Fifty Teeth”
Honorable Mentions:
Georgia Howe — “Kindling the Hush”
Alyssa Engler — “Lessons in Inhaling: Confessions of a Default Confidant”
Grace Woytta — “The Crime of Being Small”
Alum / Staff
1st Place: Michael O’Reilly — “When They Said I Could Become Anything, I Thought They Said ‘Everything’”
Deadline: February 1
Submit up to three pieces of flash fiction. Each flash fiction story must be 250-1000 words in length.
Undergraduate Contest Recognition
- 1st place: $200
- 2nd place is $100
- 3rd place is $50
All winners will be invited to read at an end-of-year ceremony; details TBA.
2026 Flash Fiction Contest Winners
2nd Place: Elizabeth Elsey — “Her Sour Misfortunes”
3rd Place: Jake Hagemeister — “Summer”
2nd Place: Shaun Moore — “Phosphor”
3rd Place: Ric Marion — “Kathy”
Deadline: February 1
Submit up to 3 poems of any style, typed, single-spaced, 12 pt font. Total length of all poems should not exceed 100 lines.
Undergraduate Recognition
- 1st place is $200
- 2nd place is $100
- 3rd place is $50.
All winners will be invited to read at an end-of-year ceremony; details TBA.
2026 Poetry Contest Winners.
Undergraduate Category
1st place: Alyssa Engler, “Things That Induce (my) Female Rage” and “I Had Coffee With Myself Yesterday"
2nd place: Natalie Muglia, “October Glaze” and “Frog Folk” and Austin Klotz “Love,” “Heart in My Hands,” and “Liar”
3rd place: Eddie Havard, “Teeth” and “Purple (Πορφύρα)”
Honorable Mention: Elizabeth Elsey, “Birdhouses Grow Lonely,” “Chartreuse Green Birthstone,” and “Mount Avon Cemetery"
Honorable Mention: Julia Kaplan, “Death in Springtime”
Honorable Mention: Vinessa Vincent Rajah, “Fear”
Graduate/Alumnus Category
1st place: Nick Zablocki “I Have Plenty of Theories” and “A Couch”
2nd place: Jenifer DeBellis “On the Bright Side”
3rd place: Alex Stigleman, “Mud Room”
DEADLINE: FEBRUARY 1
Entries may focus on any film genre or category. Winning entries will be judged on originality, artistic innovation, and narrative cohesion. The screenplay contest is for short film screenplays. There is a strict 12-page limit to screenplays.
On the cover page with your information, include a brief summary of the screenplay and indicate whether it is original or adapted from a pre-existing source. If the entry represents a partial screenplay, please briefly describe how the submitted scene(s) fit the complete narrative.
All winners will be invited to read at an end-of-year ceremony; details TBA.
2026 OU Screenplay Contest Winners
Undergraduate
1st Place: Sophia Prins — “Montana Grass”
2nd Place: Penny Vladovinos Oros — “The Ability to Eat Alone”
Honorable Mention:
Julia Sentgerath — “Seeds of Greed”
Department of English, Creative Writing, and Film
586 Pioneer Drive
Rochester, MI 48309-4482
(location map)
(248) 370-3700
fax: (248) 370-4429
