


Katheryn Prather
1st Prize Fiction-Storm Warning
Katheryn Prather is a senior at Milton Academy in Milton, Massachusetts, where she lives with her parents and little sister. Her hobbies include writing of all kinds, including songs, poetry, short fiction, and novels, along with baking, reading, and watching Marvel movies. A few of her favorite writers are Maggie Stiefvater, Madeline Miller, and Jacqueline Woodson

Svaha Williams
2nd Prize Flash Fiction-When The Fun Is Over I Miss Them
Svāhā Williams is an 8-year-old dynamo. Her screen credits include documentaries, independent films, TV, news broadcasts, and a music video. She plays the cello, and is heavily inspired by Kanye West, Solange, and Kelsey Lu. Sometimes she collaborates on cool stuff with her parents. She is excited about exploring an art career merging music, performance, film, and fashion. Svāhā credits her Grandma Lavern, Aunt Priscilla, and Auntie Chantal for gifting her the ability to write songs and journal.

Aponi Kafele
2nd Prize Fiction- Good Hair
Aponi Kafele is a 13-year-old queer writer, singer, artist, and music enthusiast. She is an avid believer in Black girls’ intrinsic magic, beauty, and dignity. From her home in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, NYC, she writes short stories, poems, and essays on the topics of both queer and Black experiences, fantasy, beauty, and whatever else she pleases. She dreams of living a life surrounded by art and getting her mother the butler she wants.

Kylie Kamau
1st Prize Flash Fiction-The Dreams of a Dancer
Kylie Kamau attends an online charter school and is in the sixth grade. She loves singing, dancing, writing, eating sushi, drinking smoothies, and looking up trivia facts. Her teachers recently said that her reading level is that of an eighth- or ninth-grader.

Ameena Rafeek
3rd Prize Flash Fiction-What Happened to the Larsons?
Ameena Rafeek is a sixth-grader from Long Island, New York. She enjoys reading, writing, and all things related to Harry Potter, Marvel, and Hamilton. In her spare time, she also enjoys baking and looking for the best bubble tea shops in New York. When she grows up, she would like to be a professional writer.