Creative Writing Festival
Join fellow students and faculty for a day of celebration and inspiration at the 40th Annual Creative Writing Festival. The 2024 event will again be hosted at UW-Whitewater, allowing high school students the opportunity to connect with peers and writing professionals in a college setting. Join the tradition and be one of over 500 students that attend annually.
During the festival, participants have the chance to attend workshops, keynote speeches, and competitions. These workshops cover a wide range of topics, including poetry, novels, creative nonfiction, and juvenile fiction. Students can learn new writing techniques, explore different genres, and gain insights from published authors. The festival also provides a space for networking and building connections with fellow writers and professionals in the industry.
Wednesday, December 4, 2024 | 8:00 - 3:00 pm
To register for this event and secure your spot, click the link below and complete the online registration form before the following date:
- Registrants with submissions - Monday, November 11, 2024
- Registrants without submissions - Wednesday, November 27, 2024
Our events tend to sell out quickly, so it's recommended to register as soon as possible. If the event is already sold out, you can choose to register for the waitlist at no charge. If a spot becomes available and you are next on the waitlist, you will receive an email notification. You will have three days (or less, as indicated in the email) to respond and accept the open spot.
We do NOT accept walk-up registrations at event check-in.
Registration Questions
Advisors are encouraged to register for all participants attending from their school, instead of having each participant register singularly. Please have the answers prior to registering:
Advisor email, name, address, phone, school, how did you hear about this event, accommodations/comments, number of students attending with submission, number of students attending only, number of teachers attending with submission, number of teachers attending only
Identification & Proof of Originality
Each applicant submitting work will verify proof of originality through online registration system. The online registration link will be provided to you in your registration confirmation.
For the Students
- Workshops are designed for students in grades 9-12.
- Students' work will be discussed in assigned workshops.
- Workshops are limited, and student writers will be assigned in advance to the workshop in which their work is critiqued.
- Non-submitting participants may attend any session.
- Each submission will be carefully read and considered.
- A professional writer will make written comments on the original manuscript.
- The schedule designating the workshop assigned and meeting link will be available via the link in your registration confirmation, one day before the event.
Note: Because of the great number of entries in some categories such as poetry, our faculty cannot always discuss every work submitted.
For the Teachers
UW-Whitewater staff members and visiting writers will coordinate special teachers' writing workshops to be held concurrently with the students' workshop. Offerings are subject to interest and facilitator availability. Teachers who wish to submit their own work for consideration in a Teachers Writing Workshop should submit their work by the submission deadline.
Your online registration and payment are always safe and secure. We accept MasterCard and Visa credit card payments in our online registration system. We will NOT accept credit card payments over the phone. We will accept checks made out to "UW-Whitewater" and mailed to UW-Whitewater Camps and Conferences, 800 West Main Street, Room 2005 Roseman Hall, Whitewater WI 53190.
Confirmation Emails
Once you register, a confirmation email will be sent to your email account with details on how to submit and upload creative work. Contact cesevents@uww.edu if you do not receive this confirmation email. Please make sure you have a working email address on file with us to be able to receive important announcements and updates about this event.
Your online registration and payment are always safe and secure. We accept MasterCard and Visa credit card payments in our online registration system. We will NOT accept credit card payments over the phone. We will accept checks made out to "UW-Whitewater" and mailed to UW-Whitewater Camps and Conferences, 800 West Main Street, Room 2005 Roseman Hall, Whitewater WI 53190.
Confirmation Emails
Once you register to attend an event (including waitlisted), a confirmation email will be sent to the email address you registered with. Contact cesevents@uww.edu if you do not receive this confirmation email. You must have a working email address on file with us to be able to receive important announcements and updates about this event.
Cancellations and payments: All registrant accounts must be paid in full 21 days prior to the start of the event. Registrants with outstanding balances after payment is due in full are subject to being removed from the event roster without a refund. Please contact Continuing Education Services at cesevents@uww.edu prior to this deadline if extenuating circumstances prevent you from completing a payment.
Refunds: All summer camp events require a minimum of a $100 non-refundable deposit.
In the event of a cancellation, Continuing Education Services should be notified no later than 21 days before the start of the event to receive a refund, less the deposit. Cancellation requests received less than 21 days from the start of camp will receive a refund minus a 50% late cancellation fee. Cancellations due to medical reasons will receive a full refund, less the deposit if the cancellation is requested and medical documentation is provided prior to the start of the event. Valid medical cancellations must include a signed letter from a licensed physician to qualify. NO REFUNDS will be given for withdrawal due to early departures, disciplinary reasons, or no-shows after the camp has started.
All cancellation requests must be submitted to cesevents@uww.edu provide the registrant’s name, camp title, and medical documentation, if applicable. Refunds will be returned to the name and address of the payer.
We reserve the right to cancel any event for any reason; in such case, all fees paid will be refunded, or contact cesevents@uww.edu for alternate arrangements.
Nickolas Butler
Nickolas Butler was born in Allentown, Pennsylvania, raised in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and educated at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Iowa Writer’s Workshop. His first novel was the internationally best-selling and prize-winning Shotgun Lovesongs, which has been optioned for film development and has been translated into ten languages. Beneath the Bonfire, a collection of short stories, followed a year later. In 2017, he published The Hearts of Men which was short-listed for two of France’s most prestigious literary prizes even before its American publishing. In 2019, his fourth book, Little Faith was published, and he is already at work on another novel, this one set in the mountains of the American West. Butler is the recipient of many literary prizes and commendations and has published articles, reviews, short stories, and poetry in publications such as: Ploughshares, Narrative, and The New York Times Book Review, to name a few. Prior to publishing Shotgun Lovesongs, Butler worked a long list of jobs including: coffee roaster, liquor store clerk, office manager, hot-dog vendor, author escort, meat-packer, bed-and-breakfast manager, telemarketer, and Burger King maintenance man. He is married and lives with his wife and two children on sixteen acres of land adjacent to a buffalo farm in rural Wisconsin.
RULES FOR SUBMISSION
- A participant may submit in only one category (poetry may have up to three titles per submission). See below.
- Participants will submit one file online using the Creative Writing Festival - Submission and Proof of Originality Form. A link will be available in the confirmation receipt and email once registration is completed.
- All manuscripts must include the author's name, and title of the piece, be double-spaced, and adhere to file name requirements, and to category page lengths.
- Submission must be saved as a pdf or mp3 file (not to exceed 25,000 KB) with category code, last name, and first name as the file name. Codes are found next to the categories below. Example: P.Doe.Jane would be the file name for Jane's poetry submission.
- Files exceeding 25,000 KB must be posted on a website and a link provided in a pdf for submission. YouTube can be used.
- We suggest posting the recording on a website (YouTube or other) and providing a PDF of song lyrics for submission.
- Drama/Screenplay entries must submit a video of the screenplay. It is suggested to post the recording on a website (Youtube or other) and provide the screenplay in a pdf for submission.
- Submissions must be received by deadline. Entries submitted after the deadline will not be considered for review.
- Participants can bring hard copies of their submissions for those auditing to read. Ten (10) copies are often sufficient.
- Submitting students must attend the session they are assigned to.
- All students will receive written feedback via email from the facilitators after their workshop sessions.
- At times, a facilitator is unable to attend their assigned session, due to unforeseen circumstances or technical difficulties. We will do everything possible to find a replacement and prevent needing to cancel a session.
- UW-Whitewater is required to report any submissions that indicate neglect, abuse, violence towards others, or self-harm.
Maximum: 10 pages
Works written and appropriate for children ranging from toddler to roughly age 10. No topic restrictions other than appropriateness. Work may also include illustrations.
Maximum: 10 pages; submit recording/videos
A work (fiction or non-fiction) written in a fashion that can be performed; i.e., primarily comprising dialogue and some stage/screen direction and exposition.
Maximum: 5 Pages
Non-fiction, non-poetical short works. Genres generally include, but are not limited to: Personal Narrative (tells a story), Descriptive (paints a picture in words).
Maximum: 5 Pages
Non-fiction, non-poetical short works. Persuasive (attempts to persuade reader to a specific point of view).
Maximum: 5 pages
Can be in virtually any format (fiction, non-fiction, short drama, essay, etc.) as long as its primary aim is to provide humor and/or humorous entertainment.
Maximum: 3 poems (one pdf file for all three)
A piece of writing that employs some combination of lyrical, metrical, rhythmic, illusory, or imaginative power, frequently employing vivid or suggestive language/imagery or literary devices like similes and metaphors.
Maximum: 3 pieces
A prose poem is a non-poetical piece that still embodies certain poetic qualities such as prominent rhythms, imagery, compactness, and intensity, though without necessarily rhyming or following a set metrical pattern. Flash fiction is an extremely brief (generally no more than a few hundred words) piece of prose fiction.
Maximum: 5 pages
SciFi (science fiction) is prose fiction based on imagined future technological and/or scientific advances, frequently employing significant social or environmental changes, space travel, time travel, and/or alien life forms. Fantasy, also prose fiction, employs magical or supernatural qualities of the characters, plot, setting, or theme. While fantasy can employ any time setting, it is frequently set in worlds resembling ancient or medieval Earth. Fan Fiction, a new but growing genre, is a work of fiction set in a pre-existing world created by another author. For example, popular fan fiction works use the characters from a TV/movie series like Star Trek or Harry Potter, but use those characters in new ways or takes them on new adventures that are imagined by the fan fiction author.
Maximum: 5 pages
Prose writing that presents imaginary people and events.
Submit recording/videos
Words set to music, often resembling a poem that can be sung. Submissions must include music. Post music to website and provide link in song lyric submission.
Maximum: 5 pages
Like fantasy fiction, tales of terror often incorporate supernatural beings, events, and settings, but differs in that its primary intent is to induce horror or terror. Tales of terror need not employ supernatural elements, though in a non-supernatural setting, the genre still creates an aura of eeriness or fright. Tales of mystery can employ many of the same elements as tales of terror, but its impact is intrigue rather than terror, or it offers an outré tale, or it can simply be a piece of crime fiction like a murder mystery.
Maximum: Refer above for each category
All creative writing by teachers
Cost Information
$50 Students/Teacher with submission
$40 Students/Teachers without submissions
Students who do not wish to submit a manuscript for evaluation in a workshop are still welcome to attend the Festival. These students are encouraged to participate in discussions of the work being considered in the various workshops. Students may not submit a manuscript for evaluation if they do not attend the Festival. Please submit one check from the school or adviser to cover all students attending.
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater’s Creative Writing Program and College of Letters & Sciences has funds to help eligible schools with transportation costs and student registration fees on a need-based basis. If you or your program is looking for assistance of this kind, please contact the directors of the Creative Writing Festival, Professor Barrett Swanson (swansobe@uww.edu) and Professor Nicholas Gulig (gulign@uww.edu), for more information.
Prize money has amounted to approximately $800 in previous Creative Writing Festivals. Awarding of prizes will depend on the number and quality of submissions per genre. We regret that it will not be possible to give refunds to those who are unable to attend. All cancellation requests must be submitted to cesevents@uww.edu.
We reserve the right to cancel any event due to low enrollment; in this case, all fees paid will be refunded.
For participants who will be receiving a sponsorship to attend this event, please follow these steps to redeem your sponsorship:
- Register for the event and use the promo code provided by your sponsor during checkout.
- The sponsorship amount will be deducted from your invoice. Any remaining balance will be the participant's responsibility.
- If you need to cancel your registration, please note that the sponsorship funds will be returned to the supporting organization.
Please note that any qualifying discounts given by the event will not be applied after you have paid in full. Be sure to use the promo code during checkout to receive your discount. You will be charged if you do not qualify for the requested discount at the start of the event.
If a refund is issued due to overpayment on your account, a processing fee will be assessed.
If you have received an award or scholarship without a promo code or want to use two promo codes, please call Continuing Education Services at 262-472-3165 or email cesevents@uww.edu before registering to avoid overpayment fees.
Want to Sponsor a Registrant?
If you would like to sponsor a registrant and cover all or partial fees, you can request a promo code to give to your chosen registrant. Get more information about sponsoring a registrant.
Additional Information
Check In
Check-in will take place in University Center.
- Lunch is not provided. Please feel free to bring your own or plan to purchase your lunch.
- Water Bottle (optional)
- 10 copies of Submission (optional)
By registering for an event, you agree to our Registration Terms and Conditions. UW-Whitewater will hold all registrants responsible for their conduct. Serious misconduct or disruption will lead to immediate dismissal from event. Registrants dismissed from the event will not receive a refund. Please review the Terms and Conditions for more details.
Be aware that we recommend that all portable electronic devices be left at home, but ultimately it is your decision. We know that parents and children value the ability to be able to call each other at a moment's notice. For that reason, we do not prohibit cell phones at camp, but ask that cell phone use does not interfere with the event and other participants. Parents are responsible for setting clear guidelines for cell use with their child. We will not be responsible for any lost or stolen items.
We receive many questions from registrants. We have prepared a page with answers to our frequently asked questions about registering and attending an event.
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater is committed to equal opportunity in its educational programs, activities and employment policies, for all persons, regardless of race, color, gender, creed, religion, age, ancestry, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, political affiliation, marital status, Vietnam-era veteran status, parental status and pregnancy.
If you have any disabling condition that requires special accommodations or attention, please advise us well in advance. We will make every effort to accommodate your special needs.
By registering for this event you understand that the University may take photographs and/or videos of event participants and activities. You will be required to agree at the time of registration that the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater shall be the owner of and may use such photographs and/or videos relating to the promotion of future events. You will relinquish all rights that you may claim in relation to the use of said photographs and/or videos. Any media shared with the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater on social media or use of its hashtags grants the University use of media for any purpose.
Insurance
Registrants are encouraged to have their own health insurance as accident insurance provided by the University is limited. Each registrant will be covered by a limited accident insurance policy. The insurance includes primary coverage up to $10,000. Insurance does not cover pre-existing injuries and is for accidents only. The cost of insurance is included in the registration fee.
8:00 am Check-In
9:00 am Welcome/Convocation
10:00 am Workshop Session One
11:00 am Workshop Session Two
12:00 pm Workshop Session Three
1:00 pm Workshop Session Four/Open Mic (only 1 session)
2:00 pm Awards Ceremony
~3:00 pm Event Concluded
| Award | Name | Category |
|---|---|---|
| Winner | Fiona Jin | Prose Poetry/Flash Fiction |
| Winner | Lynde Mogensen | Poetry |
| Award | Name | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Distinguished | Cole Sison | Things Long Forgotten |
| Award | Name | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Jennifer Trejo | Miami |
| Award | Name | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Superior | Julianne Rodgers | Two Steps Back, One Step Forward |
| Award | Name | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Superior | Haley Chandler | The House in the Woods |
| Superior | Lydia Lieger | Sugarbread |
| Award | Name | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Lynde Mogenson | we see not your electric sheep |
| Outstanding | Lynde Mogenson | daughters of pink carnations stained red |
| Outstanding | Lynde Mogenson | dead reckoning |
| Award | Name | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Fiona Jin | Cassiopeia |
| Outstanding | Fiona Jin | Empty heart disease |
| Outstanding | Fiona Jin | Tuesday |
| Award | Name | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Amelia Johnson | The Mailman |
| Superior | William Monday | The Businessman Croaks Too |
| Distinguished | Kenneth Broadway | The Children of Light |
| Award | Name | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Distinguished | India Boyd | Slug Learns A Lesson |
| Award | Name | Category | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Fiona Jin | Poetry | Sign for the model tanks at Cantigny Park warns of slippery surfaces | |
| Winner | Fiona Jin | Poetry | Beijing apartment as catalog of funeral gifts | |
| Winner | Vivian Zhu | Poetry | Saltwater Dog |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Distinguished | Mauro Arevalo | An Awkward Conversation |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Grace Sun | Ways in Which School is Similar to Space Travel |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Molly Bailey | The Story of Michelle E. | |
| Superior | Sarah Zhang | A Man Tou for Her and Me |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Distinguished | Autumn Larsen | How Not to Get Attacked (by Animals) |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Alicia Gancarz | Birth of Venus | |
| Outstanding | Lynde Mogenson | Lily | |
| Superior | Finn Gotcher | A Fallen Twig from the Tree of Womanhood | |
| Distinguished | Finn Gotcher | Piano Hands | |
| Distinguished | Luna Diaz | Bending |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Fiona Jin | Sign for the model tanks at Cantigny Park warns of slippery surfaces | |
| Outstanding | Fiona Jin | Beijing apartment as catalog of funeral gifts | |
| Outstanding | Vivian Zhu | Saltwater Dog | |
| Distinguished | McKenna Gnas | Necklace |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Aria Shum | The Tears That Stained My Hand | |
| Superior | Heather Drake | The Song of Wind and Water | |
| Distinguished | Ariana McAdams | Bird Cage |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Distinguished | Logan Martin | Poseidon |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outstanding | Taya Crowell | Letters to Lenore | |
| Superior | Lydia Liegler | There is A Door at The End of the Hallway | |
| Distinguished | Sherya Gupta | Kanya |
Results will be posted after the event.
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Place | Wyn Thomas | Stevenson High School | Beautiful Daughter |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third Place | Carolyn Fuchs | New Richmond High School | The Tale of the Kitchen Window |
| Second Place | Olivia Burns | New Richmond High School | Untitled |
| First Place | Annie Thomas | Stevenson High School | Untitled |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third Place | Vivian Zhu | Stevenson High School | Somewhere in Southern Florida |
| Second Place | Phoebe Yeun | McFarland High School | Absence of Light |
| First Place | Tia Vasudeva | Stevenson High School | Untitled |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third Place | Maria Flom | New Richmond High School | Amethyst Throne |
| Second Place | Matthew Strelet | Palatine High School | Just Like the Game |
| First Place | Faith Hall | Washington Park High School | Kytra and the Colt |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third Place | Gaurish Lakhanpal | Stevenson High School | A Final Farewell, Waste, Lessons Learnt |
| Second Place | Caitlyn Guth | Stevenson High School | Balloons |
| First Place | Finn Gotcher | McFarland High School | She |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third Place | Olivia Annunziata | New Richmond High School | Untitled |
| Second Place | Emma Stanek | Hilsboro High School | Skin | To Reduce the Likelihood of Being Regulated by Society as a Woman |
| First Place | Ava Morgensen | Stevenson High School | Occhilolism |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third Place | Leah Pena | Waukesha West High School | Ezra's Debut |
| Second Place | Anika Krishnaswamy | Stevenson High School | Something White |
| First Place | Morgan O'Brien | Franklin High School | Mylie |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Place | Jesse Kelly | Franklin High School | Universal |
| Award | Name | School | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| Third Place | Leo Myers | Palatine High School | Butcher on 6th Street |
| Second Place | Kayla Christopherson | Washington Park High School | Witch Thimbles & Harebells |
| First Place | Coralyn Johnson | Palatine High School | The Sunday Man |
Meet the Staff
Nicholas Gulig
Co-Director
Barrett Swanson
Co-Director
