LAMORINDA WEEKLY | Wong takes two top awards in annual Poul Anderson writing contest

Emma Wong, a ninth-grade student at Miramonte High School, won two of the four awards in the 2022 Poul Anderson writing contest. Wong won for her poem, "American or Not," as well as her short story, "A New Homeland." The other two awards were won by Hannah Shagan, 10th grade, Miramonte, for her science fiction or fantasy story, "Floating City," and Eloise Anagnost, 11th grade, Miramonte, for her short story, "Chased by Darkness."

Honorable Mentions were given to Chiara Sponzilli for her poem, "Fake," Indie Lee for the poem, "Smile, you're on camera," and Jonathan Su for his science fiction/fantasy story, "City of Blues."

The Friends of the Orinda Library Creative Writing Contest was renamed in 2002 in the memory of Poul Anderson, a popular science-fiction writer of over 80 books. Anderson is honored as an Orinda resident who was a true friend to the community. The contest is open to high school students who live or attend high school in Orinda.

The contest is judged by a panel of judges who are involved professionally in reading, writing, or publishing. This year's contest was judged by Sally Hogarty, executive editor, The Orinda News; Sora O'Doherty, reporter, Lamorinda Weekly; Anne Lowell, librarian, Glorietta Elementary School, and Susan Williams, Miramonte High School librarian.

The entries are submitted to the judges without any identification of the author. The judges make their awards based on the best pieces of writing. They are not required to make an award in each category. This year, there was no award in the category of essay or memoir. The judges this year were impressed with the students' willingness and ability to tackle some big universal issues, such as immigration, prejudice, and the environment.

Each winner will receive a cash prize of $500 from the Friends of the Orinda Library. The winning works will be included on the Friends of the Orinda Library's website, https://friendsoftheorindalibrary.org