We have picked our enchanting winners today!
The winner is:
1. TIERNEY CHAPMAN – “WINTERS OF THE SAGE”
Tierney Chapman is an emerging Appalachian poet, and a winner of the 2023 West Virginia Writers Competition. A former paralegal for the Legal Aid of WV, Tierney holds degrees in both Paralegal Studies and English/Professional Writing. She currently takes classes with the Gotham Writers Workshop of NYC, and is an author of a growing social media page, Poetry For Us. As a young widow and mother of two, she spends her time raising her children and writing spiritual poetry in her home state of West Virginia.
Our runner ups are:
1. BRYNN TESKE – “HER NAME IN VAIN”
Brynn Teske is a transgender poet and novelist based in Minnesota. He earned his BA in English Creative Writing and is passionate about mental health, spicy villain arcs, and stealing horses in Red Dead Redemption II. Brynn is a lifelong writer. He completed his first novelette in the third grade and was unable to stop.

2. JONATHAN CHIKBUIKE UKAH – “MY GRATITUDE”
Jonathan Chibuike Ukah lives in the United Kingdom with his family. His poems have been featured and will soon be featured in The Pierian, The Cortland Review, Space and Time Magazine, Wingless Dreamer, Strange Horizons and elsewhere. He is a winner of the Voices of Lincoln Poetry Contest 2022 and a finalist of the African Diaspora Award in Poetry 2023. He has been twice nominated for the Pushcart Prize 2024 Edition.

Also, our top finalists!
1. DIANE FUNSTON
Diane Funston writes poetry of nature and human nature. She co-founded a women's poetry salon in San Diego, created a weekly poetry gathering in the high desert town of Tehachapi, CA and most recently has been the Yuba-Sutter Arts and Culture Poet-in-Residence for the past two years. It is in this role she created Poetry Square, a monthly online venue that features poets from all over the world reading their work and discussing creative process. Diane has been published in Synkronicity, California Quarterly, Whirlwind, San Diego Poetry Annual, Summation, and quite a few other literary journals. Her first chapbook, “Over the Falls” was published this July 2022 from Foothills Publishing. She holds a B.A. degree in Literature and Writing from CSU San Marcos. Diane is also a visual artist in mosaic, wool felting, and collage. Her pieces have been in galleries in the Sacramento Valley. noparadise@me.com

2. TIERNEY CHAPMAN
Tierney Chapman is an emerging Appalachian poet, and a winner of the 2023 West Virginia Writers Competition. A former paralegal for the Legal Aid of WV, Tierney holds degrees in both Paralegal Studies and English/Professional Writing. She currently takes classes with the Gotham Writers Workshop of NYC, and is an author of a growing social media page, Poetry For Us. As a young widow and mother of two, she spends her time raising her children and writing spiritual poetry in her home state of West Virginia.

3. CRYSTAL E. BARKER
Crystal E. Barker grew up on a farm in the hills of Kentucky. She earned a Bachelor’s in Nursing from Berea College in Berea, Kentucky and went on to earn her Master’s in Nursing at California State University, Los Angeles. She serves Veterans as a Registered Nurse in the VA Medical Center. Her poetry is award winning and is published in county, state, national and international works. She compiled and published the Carter County Poetry Society Anthology 2022, with use of book designer Right Eye Graphics of Ashland, Kentucky. She published her collection of poems entitled: “Homelessness Through the Eyes of a Nurse In the City” in English, Farsi, Hindi, Spanish and Tagalog with the publisher Poets’ Choice.

4. ROMANOS KOTOROS
Romanos Kotoros was born in Athens, Greece, where he is currently located. He has a degree in Classical Philology from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and works as a teacher helping children achieve their dreams of academic education. His short stories and poems have been awarded and acknowledged in several competitions in Greece. His first publication in English was in the "It's Crystal Clear" Anthology, by the Wingless Dreamer Publisher.