And the Winners are…
A short story is a love affair; a novel is a marriage. A short story is a photograph; a novel is a film.
~ Lorrie Moore
Stephen King writes: A short story is a different thing all together – a short story is like a kiss in the dark from a stranger.
Our winners reflect both these concepts.
John Crain of Cerrillos, has had professional careers in the fine arts, astronomy, and computer science. Between those unraveling strings of time in which he is forced to make money, he writes short stories, poems, and novels having to do with multiple universes. His short story, Forgiveness, appears in Las Vegas Lit’s collection, Tapestry: Tales, Essays, Poetry. His Elmer Schooley Short Story, I Saw You in a Dream Last Night, captured in less than 1,000 words the essence of the Schooley image and took the story in a different direction, reminding readers what dreams can be made of.
Pam Lewis, of Los Ranchos, states on her author page that she was born in Burbank but moved frequently because of her father’s career path in the aviation industry. The family settled in New York City long enough for Pam to attend high school. A shy, observant girl, “a little too tall too soon,” she excelled at school when she finally set her sights on Stanford University and squeaked in on so-so grades. She is a mom to two adult children.
As is true of many creatives, she has worked at a little of this and a little of that. “On the cusp,” she writes, “of her 59th year, her first book was taken by Simon and Schuster, then a second and now, with the publication of A Young Wife, a third.
Her story for the Elmer Schooley Short Story Contest, Sometimes it’s Out of Your Hands, met the requirements of the call with writing excellence, and a tight mystery with a mere 1,150 words.
Mary Rose Henssler spent most of her life in Nevada in the small town of Battle Mountain, Henderson, neon-lit Las Vegas, and other places and other states. She and her husband, Bob, two dogs, and a cat have found their roots at a rambling home surrounded by prairie just outside Las Vegas in New Mexico. She majored in playwriting at Vermont College of Norwich University and studied script writing and voice-over at UNLV. Two of her plays have been performed. Publication credits include poetry in now-defunct literary magazines and a chapbook of political limericks. She writes and enjoys drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, and being outdoors. Her story, The Hat, tells a tale of promises kept. She has several pieces in Tapestry.
Announcement of the winners and presentation of awards took place at the closing reception of the June Art Show and Sale, an event curated by Las Vegas Arts Council president, Richard Lindeborg. Proceeds from art sales went to support other nonprofit agencies in Las Vegas: Friends of the Montezuma Hot Springs, Hermits Peak Watershed Alliance, Las Vegas Literary Salon, Las Vegas Arts Council, MainStreet de Las Vegas, Animal Welfare Coalition of Northeastern NM, NMHU Foundation Lindeborg Fund and Collection Fund.
Artists represented include: Elmer Schooley, Dia Atman, Ellen Koment, Pamela Bounds-Seeman, Mary Beth Pizzoli, Eugene King, Eloise Lindeborg, Gail Malley, June Bowers, Ray Drew, Lina Valdez, Ethel Kriechbaum, Lucy Finch, Lee Weber, R.C. Gorman, John Gavahan, D. Chase Keightley, Clayton Lewis, Ralph Bowyer, M. Craig, Carol Dahl, Scott Vail, Ray John de Aragon, Rosa Maria Calles
The winners each received $300. Mary Rose Henssler chose to donate her prize back to the Literary Salon. The three winning stories will be published in a spring/summer anthology scheduled for release in time for the holidays in 2023.
Las Vegas Literary Salon is a nonprofit organization under the fiscal sponsorship of Las Vegas Arts Council. For more information about how you can become involved, email lvliterarysalon@gmail.com. We are seeking active creatives.
