Rockville Student Wins Gaithersburg Book Festival Short Story Contest

Madeline Gresh, a senior at Rockville’s Academy of the Holy Cross, took first prize in the 2015 Gaithersburg Book Festival short story contest for high school students with her story “Waiting,” according to a news release.

Second prize went to Yorktown High School sophomore Elizabeth Woolford, for her story, “Inside,” while third prize went to the fan favorite, “Teddy Bear,” written by Jenna Schwartzman, a sophomore from Oakton High School.

The top three winners received $100, $50 and $25 gift certificates, respectively. The fan favorite was determined based on voting on the Gaithersburg Book Festival website and received a $25 gift certificate. Prizes were provided by the Johns Hopkins University Montgomery County Campus.

The winners were announced May 16 at the sixth annual Gaithersburg Book Festival.

New York Times, USA Today and international best-selling author of the novels The Baker’s Daughter, The Time It Snowed In Puerto Rico, and her most recent The Mapmaker’s Children, Sarah McCoy, served as the final judge.

“I spent a week poring over these stories with great delight. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the work of such young, creative minds.” McCoy said, “All of these finalists are to be commended on boldly penning their hearts on the page. It’s a daring act that requires faith, hope, and moxy in addition to talent! The 2015 winners were chosen based on their artfulness of prose, clarity of narrative structure, poignant subject matter, and overall storytelling effect.”

Contest finalists also included:

• Samantha Anderson – Anderson Academy, Newport News, Va.

• William Choi – Sidwell Friends School, grade 11, Washington, D.C.

• Riley Corboy – Gaithersburg High School, grade 12, Gaithersburg, Md.

• Aline Dolinh – Oakton High School, grade 11, Oakton, Va.

• Samuel Enriquez – homeschooled, grade 10, Annapolis, Md.

• Mary Kasputis – Oakton High School, grade 10, Oakton, Va.

• Maggie Leon – Gaithersburg High School, grade 12, Gaithersburg, Md.

• Allison Marie McGlone – Yorktown High School, grade 10, Arlington, Va.

• Alexander McLaughlin – Grace Brethren Christian School, grade 9, Upper Marlboro, Md.

• Kevin Robinson – Oakton High School, grade 10, Oakton, Va.

• Annika La Vina – Walter Johnson High School, grade 11, Kensington, Md.

The contest drew entries from public, private, and homeschooled students from 12 jurisdictions throughout D.C., Maryland and Virginia.

The finalists’ stories are available online here.