My eyes drifted open to see that the early morning’s light had already seeped through my flimsy, beige curtains. Sleep still smothering my senses like a thick cloud of fog, I reluctantly heaved my body out of bed. Suddenly, I stopped dead in my tracks, any remnants of sleep evaporating in an instant. I breathedContinue reading “The Precipitation that Earned My Appreciation by Genevieve Frander | Honorable Mention 2024 Rural Teen Writing Contest”
Category Archives: Rural Teen Writing Contest
Of Goats and Kids by Sallie Choi | Runner-Up Rural Teen Writing Contest
I’ve never liked petting zoos. Growing up, I would always find myself sneezing through clouds of alpaca fur and sheep wool to illuminate the way, like Moses parting the Red Sea. IT was always the goats that scared me the most; something about their beady-eyed glares and ever-greasy fur was deeply unsettling in a wayContinue reading “Of Goats and Kids by Sallie Choi | Runner-Up Rural Teen Writing Contest”
The Ribcage by Britta Nilsson | Winner of 2024 Rural Teen Writing Contest
We’re lying in the road letting the end of the sun soak into us and you say, “Is my ribcage showing?”I roll over and see the stretched flesh, the gentle pulse, the boneslike a door ajar and oh I’m starving. I answer yes andyou sit up to pull a jacket over them.“Sorry. I don’t knowContinue reading “The Ribcage by Britta Nilsson | Winner of 2024 Rural Teen Writing Contest”
Rural Teen Writing Contest Portal is Open: Middle Schoolers Welcome!
When I began The Rural Teen Writing Contest, I wasn’t sure how it would go, so I began by opening the contest to only high school students in grades 9-12. Well, this year, that’s changing! The Literacy In Place Rural Teen Writing Contest is officially open to rural writers in grades 6 – 12! ThisContinue reading “Rural Teen Writing Contest Portal is Open: Middle Schoolers Welcome!”
Author Talk | Laurel Aronian
– Rural Teen Writing Contest Runner-Up – In this episode, high school junior, Laurel Aronian reads her award-winning poem, “So Long, Schoolhouse” and chats with me about her inspiration for the poem, her writing process, and gives some great advice to fellow young writers and teachers of writing alike. Check out her poem: https://literacyinplace.com/2024/02/15/so-long-schoolhouse-by-laurel-aronian-runner-up-2023-rural-teen-writing-contest/ LearnContinue reading “Author Talk | Laurel Aronian”
Brownish by Riya Chandra | Honorable Mention 2023 Rural Teen Writing Contest
Part I: The Beginning I wasn’t born in India; I’ve only been there once in my life. I was born in Hartford, Connecticut, and then moved to Orlando, Florida when I was about 5. In other words, I went from a population of preppy whites to southern whites. I didn’t start realizing I was different,Continue reading “Brownish by Riya Chandra | Honorable Mention 2023 Rural Teen Writing Contest”
The Sweetest Memories by Deborah George | Winner 2023 Rural Teen Writing Contest
In a small town in southern India, a girl lay in bed, fast asleep. The world outside her bedroom window was dark and quiet. That is, until her family’s rooster crowed. That was it. The girl had to wake up. But first, she savored the last few moments in bed, thinking about the day ahead.Continue reading “The Sweetest Memories by Deborah George | Winner 2023 Rural Teen Writing Contest”
So Long, Schoolhouse by Laurel Aronian | Runner-Up 2023 Rural Teen Writing Contest
Look at the empty shacks, The children once inhabited. Their broken pencils snapped Across skinny slab-like wooden desks. The children once inhabited, The decaying wooden bunkers. Across skinny slab-like wooden desks They wrote love notes to each other. The decaying wooden bunkers, In a dark October forest. They wrote love notes to each other OurContinue reading “So Long, Schoolhouse by Laurel Aronian | Runner-Up 2023 Rural Teen Writing Contest”
Happy Second Anniversary, Literacy In Place!
Confession: I’m terrible at remembering anniversaries. I know that the stereotype would have you believe that because I’m a woman I get all bent out of shape when my husband forgets ours, but that’s just not the case. Every year Ravi and I both remember a week or so after the anniversary has passed, andContinue reading “Happy Second Anniversary, Literacy In Place!”
Reflections on Rural Author Visits | An Interview with Laura Parker
As part of Allison Strange’s win of the Rural Teen Writing Contest, her creative writing class, led by her teacher, Laura Parker, received an author visit from multiple award-winning author Jeff Zentner (The Serpent King, In the Wild Light). I was fortunate enough to get to sit in on that virtual visit and hear hisContinue reading “Reflections on Rural Author Visits | An Interview with Laura Parker”
Allison Strange | Author Talk
In this episode, I sit down to talk with the winner of the Literacy In Place Rural Teen Writing Contest, Allison Strange, about her winning story, “Fate for a Cat.” We talk about how her rural background has inspired her as a writer, her writing process, and she gives some sage advice to would-be submittersContinue reading “Allison Strange | Author Talk”
Fate for a Cat by Allison Strange | Ep. 2 Teaching Ideas
In this episode, I talk about how I would use Allison Strange’s Rural Teen Writing Contest story, “Fate for a Cat” in my classroom. In connection, I discuss writing worshop and give a big shout-out to Deb Kelt and the Heart of Texas Writing Project that changed my whole life as a writer, teacher ofContinue reading “Fate for a Cat by Allison Strange | Ep. 2 Teaching Ideas”
Fate for a Cat by Allison Strange | Ep. 1 Summary & Analysis
In this episode, I talk about Allison Strange’s winning story, Fate for a Cat. I read a bit from the beginning, give a summary, and then give a brief analysis of how place and rurality function in the story and how/why I connected it to it. Learn more about why I started the Rural TeenContinue reading “Fate for a Cat by Allison Strange | Ep. 1 Summary & Analysis”
Rural Teen Writing Contest Series | Episode 0
I’m so excited to be kicking off the series where I talk about this year’s winner of the Literacy In Place Rural Teen Writing Contest! Before I get to talking about Allison Strange’s story “Fate for a Cat” I wanted to do a special episode where I talk about why this thing even exists –Continue reading “Rural Teen Writing Contest Series | Episode 0”
“Fate for a Cat” by Allison Strange
2022 Winner | Rural Teen Writing Contest Of course, no one can promise that your leaves will stay green and the frost doesn’t devastate your harvest. Of course, this is only speculation; fate has a grip on us that even the heartiest sun cannot unshackle. Eden learned this fast when her strawberries met their endContinue reading ““Fate for a Cat” by Allison Strange”
“Heart Strings” by Kevin Evilsizer
Runner-Up | Rural Teen Writing Contest Looking out the window I see the faint light of the sun cresting the horizon. The lush green fields are ever so slightly kissed by the colorful mix of the morning sunrise. My father is already up and about feeding the animals out in the distance. I get upContinue reading ““Heart Strings” by Kevin Evilsizer”
“Roof Top Farmer” by Luke Urban
2022 Honorable Mention | Rural Teen Writing Contest Rain pellted against a glass window. “Another storm?” I mumbled. This meant another day wasted instead of working on rotating our crops and animals. How that works is, one season, we have the crops planted in an area and lets say chickens in another. The next season,Continue reading ““Roof Top Farmer” by Luke Urban”
Dr. Parton's Literacy In Place 