Nick Adams Short Story Contest
Each year in the spring, 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 that 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 Stuart Dybek.
2012 Nick Adams Contest
Call for Entries
Student entries are now being solicited for the 40th annual Nick Adams Short Story Contest, which offers a prize of $1,000 for the best story by an ACM student. The results of the competition will be announced in early April, 2012, and the $1,000 prize awarded to the winner.
Each entrant may submit as many as two stories to their campus English department. The story need not have been written especially for the competition, but it cannot have been previously published off-campus. Each department will select the four best stories to send to the ACM office; a small committee of faculty drawn from colleges throughout the consortium will then select the finalists. The winner will be chosen by a professional writer who serves as the final judge.
Stories must arrive at the ACM office, from the English department, no later than February 17, 2012. For more information or to learn your on-campus submission deadline, please contact the chair of your college English department.
2011 Nick Adams Contest
Adam Sirgany from Knox College awarded First Prize for "Andrew at Eid"
Adam Sirgany, a senior at Knox College, has been named the winner of the 39th annual ACM Nick Adams Short Story Contest. Sirgany's story "Andrew at Eid" was selected from the 41 stories submitted for the contest by students from ACM colleges. The contest carries with it a First Prize of $1,000, made possible through a generous gift from an anonymous donor.
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Read more at the
2011 Nick Adams Contest webpage
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Adam Sirgany and his winning story, "Andrew at Eid"
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Honorable Mentions awarded to Sam Martone and Julia Ohman
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Comments from
Binnie Kirshenbaum
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| Links to the stories |
Binnie Kirshenbaum, novelist and professor and chair of the Writing Program at the Columbia University Graduate School of the Arts, served as the 2011 contest’s final judge. In commenting on "Andrew at Eid," Kirshenbaum wrote:
The Koranic story of Ishaq and Ibrahim is both the occasion and the subtext for this richly textured tale of filial love and the subsequent loss of innocence. The juxtaposition of generations and cultures within this Egyptian-American family is portrayed with honesty and love. They emerge as multi-dimensional and complicated people. The inevitable but unexpected clash — disturbing and poignant — nonetheless results in wise acceptance of the seasons of life. It is also a very funny story.
Honorable Mention recognition to Sam Martone and Julia Ohman
Kirshenbaum selected two Honorable Mention stories – “Luggage Lost” by Sam Martone and “The Zoo” by Julia Ohman, both also from Knox College.
Read more on the 2011 Contest webpage!
Binnie Kirshenbaum
Binnie Kirshenbaum served as the 2011 final judge
Binnie Kirshenbaum, author of six novels and two short story collections, served as the professional judge for the 2011 Nick Adams Short Story Contest.
A professor of fiction writing at the Columbia University Graduate School of the Arts, Kirshenbaum was selected as one of the Best Young American Novelists by Granta Magazine and has won two Critics' Choice Awards. Read more
More information about the Contest