20th Annual R. Darryl Fisher Creative Writing Contest

East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma presents 

Oklahoma’s Most Prestigious High School Writing Competition 

Fiction: 1st Place $250; 2nd place: $150; 3rd Place $100
Poetry: 1st Place $250; 2nd place: $150; 3rd Place $100
20 Honorable Mention Awards of $25 each

Guidelines:

* All Oklahoma high school students (9th - 12th grade) are eligible.

* Poetry (up to 100 lines) or Short Fiction (up to 6,000 words) is acceptable.

* Limit 5 poems and 1 short fiction piece per student.

* All entries must be the original work of the student.

* All entries must be neatly typed; please double-space fiction entries.

* Entries will not be returned, so keep your originals.

* No identifying marks should be on the manuscript itself, except for the title.

* Provide cover page with contact information: 1) Student’s name; 2) High School and Teacher’s name 3) Classification (senior, junior, etc.) 4) Phone number, Email and student’s mailing address. (Work submitted without a mailing address for each student will not be judged)

* Work may be submitted through conventional mail or email.

DEADLINE: Conventional mail must be postmarked on or before Friday, February 9, 2024. Email entries must be sent via email by 11:59 p.m. on February 9, 2024. There will be no exceptions. Winners will be notified and awards will be presented to students during the annual Scissortail Festival at ECU, April 8, 2023. The names of winning writers will be posted online at: www.ecuscissortail.blogspot.com.

Poetry Submissions: send work electronically as attached files to jgrasso@ecok.edu or mail to Dr. Joshua Grasso, East Central University, Dept. of English & Languages, 1100 E. 14th St., Ada, OK 74820

Fiction Submissions: send work electronically as attached files to mwalling@ecok.edu or mail to Dr. Mark Walling, East Central University, Dept. of English and Languages, 1100 E. 14th St., Ada, OK 74820

Contest Information: Dr. Joshua Grasso (580-235-3197); Dr. Mark Walling (580-559-5440).  Scissortail Creative Writing Festival Information: Dr. Ken Hada (580-559-5557) 

Tribute to Dr. Hugh Tribbey

With sadness, we acknowledge the passing of colleague and cofounder of the Scissortail Festival, Dr. Hugh Tribbey, October 5, 2023.

It was Dr. Tribbey’s original idea for ECU to host a writing festival; he wrote the first grant for the inaugural event, and secured our first feature author – Mark Cox.

Quoting from the obituary: “Dr. Tribbey was a brilliant individual with an exceptionally creative and gifted mind.” He earned his Bachelors of Arts degree from Philips University in Enid, Oklahoma. He earned a Master of Arts in Teaching from Oklahoma City University, a Master of Arts from Midwestern University in Wichita Falls, Texas, and a PhD from Oklahoma State University. He taught twenty years in the Department of English & Languages at East Central University. He was an accomplished poet, publishing nine books and hundreds of individual poems.