May 1, 2009


Dylan Days names 2009 literature winners

Top writers, poets and playwrights to highlight annual world premiere of winning play

HIBBING, Minn. (May 1, 2009) -- Dylan Days, an annual arts and music event in Bob Dylan's hometown, announced the winners of its 2009 creative writing contest this week. The contest recognizes experienced and up-and-coming writers of poetry, short fiction and one act plays.

About 600 entries were received in the contest's five categories. Winners will read their work during the Dylan Days Literary Showcase on Thursday, May 21 at the Hibbing Community College Theatre. The celebration will include readings from the contest winners and the world premiere of the one act playwright contest's winning work. The play will star Iron Range actors and will be presented by HCC Theatre Director Michael Ricci in his last show at the college before he moves on to a new theater assignment in the Twin Cities. The event emcee is Aaron Brown, author of "Overburden: Modern Life on the Iron Range" and a longtime organizer of Dylan Days.

The winner of the Dylan Days one act playwright competition is Aleks Merilo of Palo Alto, Calif., for his play "Blur in the Rearview," a story of a drifter who comes back home to find the girl he still loves attached to a dangerous man.

The contest recognizes stories, poems and plays that strive for the same innovation and creative spirit as Bob Dylan. This year's winners cover subject matter across the human spectrum.

OPEN FICTION
1) "Finnegan at the Pioneer Graveyard" by Kate Baggott  of Dreieich, Hesse, Germany
2) "Catharsis" by Phil Fitzpatrick; Duluth, MN
3) "Christmas Tuba Festival" by Deborah Finkelstein; Santa Fe, NM

Honorable Mention:
"Sneaking Jaguar Cracks the Code" by R. Gatwood; Reston, VA 
"Dreams of Disappearing" by Renee Holland Davidson; Brea, CA
"Painting Walls" by Dan Morra; Middletown, PA 
"Rulers and Pens" by Lydia Suarez; Verona, NJ 
"Nadine’s House" by Brenda Peloquin; Virginia, MN

STUDENT FICTION

1) "Jakarta" by Shalene Gupta; Eden Prairie, MN  (Johns Hopkins University)
2) "Charcoal" by Cyril C. Wood; Rome, IN (DePauw University)
3 "Nosegay" by Brittany Newell; Belvedere, CA  (Redwood High School)

Honorable Mentions:
"A Child on Fire" by Amanda Goldchain; Woodbridge, VA (Woodbridge Senior High School)
"The Whole Deal" by Nick Harris; Edmonds, WA (Seattle University)
"A Pocketful of Jazz" by Stacey Shapiro; Woodbridge, VA  (Woodbridge Senior High School)

OPEN POETRY

1) "Positive" by John Vanek of St. Petersburg, FL
2) "Name Calling" Deborah Ventura of Ventura, CA 
3) "Ivy in Winter" by Ann Malaspina of Ridgewood, NJ

Honorable Mentions:
"Cigarette Girl" by Gary Winters; El Cajon, CA 
"Transcendental Transpiration" by Jenn Mercer; Raleigh, NC
"Someone Else" by Sean Joyce; Christchurch, New Zealand
"Prima Donna" by Alexander Roussel; Lafayette, LA 

STUDENT POETRY
1) "To the Old Farmhouse" by Brenna Daugherty; Santa Rosa, CA (Santa Rosa H.S.)
2) "Silence" by Mary Kate Stinn; Milwaukee, WI (Marquette University)
3) "I Want a Broken Arm Wrapped in a Blue Cast" by Krista Oehlke; Plano, TX  (Greenhill School)

Honorable Mentions:
"I am From" by Katrina Walker; Woodbridge, VA  (Woodbridge Senior High School)
"Mother Teresa’s Botox" by Claire Parson; Reynoldsburg, OH  (Otterbein College)
"Love Poem for Manchester, TN" by Stacey Balkun; Piscataway, NJ (Rutgers)

ONE ACT PLAYS
Semi-Finalists:
               - “American Blues” by Evan Guilford-Blake of Stone Mountain, Georgia
               - “Little Moscow” by Aleks Merilo of Palo Alto, California
               - “Terminal Condition” by David Robinson of Athens, Ohio  
               - “Scarecrow” by Kevin Lottes of Westerville, Ohio
The winning entry:  “Blur in the Rear View” by Aleks Merilo of Palo Alto, California

Contest winners receive cash prizes and publication in "Talkin' Blues," the program and literary journal for Dylan Days.

Admission to the Dylan Days Literary Showcase on May 21 is free with the purchase of a Dylan Days button. Dylan Days runs May 21-24. A creative writing workshop will be held the following morning at the Hibbing High School library. Reservations are required.

Dylan Days 2009 features classic annual events like the Bob Dylan singer/songwriter contest and the Bobby Zimmerman bus tour of Hibbing. Hundreds of writers, artists and musicians from all over the world participate in Dylan Days every year. Live music, displays and many other local cultural events are scheduled throughout the event, including a benefit concert for the Hibbing Arts Council by Scarlet Rivera and Gene LaFond and the Wild Unknown. For more information, see www.dylandays.com or call 1-866-305-3849.

Dylan Days is an annual event organized by the volunteer Dylan Days of Hibbing, MN committee as part of a community initiative to honor Dylan and expand the arts in Hibbing and the Iron Range. Dylan Days began informally in 1991 as a musical tribute on Dylan's May 24 birthday at Zimmy's in Hibbing. It is now a fast growing arts event that encourages visual, musical and literary artists from Minnesota and across the world.

CONTACT:     Aaron J. Brown, Dylan Days media coordinator and co-chair, 218-969-9663 or info@dylandays.com. Media availability for contest winners will be made upon request.

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