Nick Adams Contest home page

2008 Contest - Stuart Dybek serves as Final Judge

2007 Contest - Winning writer, final judge, text of winning story & list of finalists

Winning stories and authors from past years

Text of winning stories

Final judges from past years

For more information...

Each year, ACM sponsors the Nick Adams Short Story Contest. The contest, named for the young hero of many Hemingway stories, was established in 1973 with funds from an anonymous donor to encourage young writers.

Any student at an ACM college is eligible to compete for the cash prize which is awarded to the winner. Students submit stories to their English department, and each department selects the four best to send to ACM. A small committee of faculty drawn from ACM colleges selects the finalists, and the winner is chosen by the contest's final judge.

Final judges in past years have included Jane Smiley, Saul Bellow, Joyce Carol Oates, John Updike, Anne Tyler, Maya Angelou, Barbara Kingsolver, Jane Hamilton and Charles Baxter.

Nick Adams Contest links

2008 Contest

• Myra Thompson (Knox College) has been named winner of the 2008 Nick Adams Short Story Contest for her story "Recollection"
• Honorable mention awarded to Iris G. Garcia (Coe College) for her story "Ten Occasions on Which Idalina Cried"
• List of the six finalists in 2008
• Acclaimed Chicago writer Stuart Dybek served as the Final Judge for the 2008 Contest

2007 Contest

• Callie Bates (Lawrence University) has been named winner of the 2007 Nick Adams Short Story Contest for her story "The Swans at Roxleigh"
• List of the six finalists in 2007
• Novelist and short story writer Antonya Nelson served as the final judge for the 2007 Contest

Winning stories and authors from past years

Text of the winning stories, and some honorable mention stories, since 1997

Final judges from past years

For more information about the Nick Adams Short Story Contest

The deadline for submission of stories for the Nick Adams Contest to the ACM office, through the colleges’ English departments, is usually in March each year. Students should check the deadlines on their own campuses.

For more information, contact the chair of your English department (on ACM campuses) or Betsy Hutula at ACM (312/263-5000).