Category: Literary Arts

NOTE: Some entries may contain adult themes. Minors, please ask for parental permission before reading.

Calvary Christian School – Elisha McKee – “Without You?”, “Can’t be without you”, “Where do I go with my emptiness?”

Fremont High School – Kaitlyn Bergman – “I Am From”, “Inside Me”, “The Count Down”

Fruitport High School – Adam Beerawi – “The Black Door at the End of the White Hallway”

Grand Haven High School – Kaitlan Balsam – “How It Feels to be Seen”, “What is Life Without the Sun?”, “Days Pass Like Foggy Dreams I Can’t Quite Remember”

Grant High School – Rachel Roossinck – “Influential People Change the World Around Them”

Hart High School – Audrianna Enns – “Flight”, “Magic”, “Time”

Hesperia High School – Trinity Flanery – ” naiveté”, “the death of self”, “generosity”

Mason County Eastern High School – Sydney Gage – “I Remember”

Montague High School – August Hawley – “jouska”, “i leave everything unfinished (but i guess that’s better than nothing)”, “in which i write the same poem again”

Muskegon High School – Kylee Northrop – “The Ruins “, “Her reflection “, “”

North Muskegon High School – Kelty Blastic – “Vernon”

Ravenna High School – Gabrielle Van Wesep – “1-800-273-8255” (Content Warning: Suicide)

Reeths-Puffer High School – Emma Dibble – “Golden “, “A Modern Take On Art”, “A Letter From My Heart To My Brain”

Spring Lake High School – Haley Brosnan – “Sin”, “Death”, “Rebirth”

Whitehall High School – Lacey Herbert – “Creation of Adam”, “changing room mirrors”, “amazing grace”

NOTE: Some entries may contain adult themes. Minors, please ask for parental permission before reading.

Artios of Grand Haven – Frankie Kendziera – “Hendrick Road” and “Love is a Verb” (Poetry)

Fremont High School – Isabella Ross – “Junk Drawer” and “I Present to You the Tooth Performer” (Poetry)

Fruitport High School – Cassia Berry – “At Least She Flew” (Fiction)

Grand Haven High School – Fiona Dean – “Hearts of Broken Beasts” (Fiction)

Grant High School – Liberty Malone – “Autumn Leaves” (Fiction)

Hart High School – Wynn Sanders – “Silence Falls on New Alexandria” (Fiction)

Hesperia High School – McKenna LaCount – “Icarus”, “Grief”, and “The Class of 2021” (Poetry)

Holton High School – Georgia Casteel – “Burt and His Bitter Berries” (Fiction)

Homeschool – Clyde Kelly – “A Day” (Non-Fiction)

Mason County Eastern High School – Elisa Barry – “Summer’s End” and “My Life is My Own” (Poetry)

Mona Shores High School – Sidney Gould – “Can You See Me?” (Fiction)

Montague High School – August Hawley – “anatomy”, “Self Baptism”, and “The Art of Healing” (Poetry)

Muskegon High School – JaKhia Mitchell – “Poetry Analysis” (Non-Fiction)

North Muskegon High School – Audrey Wilson – “House of Firsts” (Non-Fiction)

Ravenna High School – Ryanne Varso – “The Adventures of Florida Man and Spleens The Great Pancake Thievery” (Fiction)

Reeths-Puffer High School – Andrew Hayes – “Goats on Boats”, “An approximation of the location of my home.”, and “The Mallard” (Poetry)

Spring Lake High School – Kailey Kuhlman – “Letter to the Dandelion”, “Lavender Love”, and “The Earth Beneath Us” (Poetry)

White Cloud – Janessa Shepard – “Rain” (Poetry)

Whitehall High School – Joseph Heckman – “Thoughts over a Cigarette” (Non-Fiction)

NOTE: Some entries may contain adult themes. Minors, please ask for parental permission before reading.

Artios of Grand Haven – Clyde Kelly – “Past Tents”

Fremont High School – Kaelee Tanis – “A Christmas Truce”

Fruitport High School – Madison Boone – “The Dark Storm”, “The Reaper”, and “Thoughtful Silence”

Grand Haven High School – Luke LaMere – “Come On, Coach”

Grant High School – Ashley Longcore – “Bright Night”

Hart High School – Star Jewell – “Natures findings” and “Can a dog be a hero?”

Hesperia High School – McKenna LaCount – “Parenthood”

Holton High School – Abby Wisniewski – “No. 4 is Guilty”

Kent City High School – Alyeska Linsley – “Broken, but not shattered” (NOTE: This entry directly addresses the topic of abortion. To read this entry, please contact Joel Selby at jselby@muskegonisd.org.)

Mason County Central High School – Abigail Leese – “Where to Go”

Mason County Eastern High School – Jessica Smith – “Brother Dearest”

Mona Shores High School – Malakai Carr – “The Rest Is Complicated”

Montague High School – Lynn Hawley – “Origin”, “Children Like Melting Pots”, and “The Universe In You”

Muskegon Heights Public School Academy – Alexis Lambert – “The move”

Muskegon High School – Madelynn Garver – “Till death when we part”

Newaygo High School – Megan Grant – “Seed”, “A Sprout!”, and “A Stalk”

North Muskegon High School – Paul Schanhals – “Cellar Keeper”

Oakridge High School – Kevin Morgan – “Quick, Cheap, Safe: Pick Two”

Pentwater High School – Jaxon Anderson – “The Sun’s Battalion”, “The Spiderweb Glistening in the Morning Sun”, and Are you Listening?”

Ravenna High School – Caitlyn Spoelman – “After”

Reeths-Puffer High School – Allyson Prause – “Self”, “Where I’m From”, and “Oranges”

Shelby High School – Raegan Tovar – “brain”, “silent thanks”, and “disconnect”

Spring Lake High School – Elise Zander – “Undecided” (link removed at Author’s Request)

Walkerville High School – Margaret Sweet – “If you were dumber I would date you” and “I miss”

White Cloud High School – Madelline Hutson – “The Grendle In Me”

Whitehall High School – Braley Johnson – Collection: “feMale” (“Filtered”, “Freckles”, and “Flowers, Mountains, and the Sun”)

Here are the 2019 Literary Arts Nominees.

NOTE: Some entries may contain adult themes. Minors, please ask for parental permission before reading.

Artios of Grand Haven – Clyde Kelly – “Itching for the Outdoors”

Fremont High School – Jordyn Raymo – “When I’m Older”, “My Skin”, and “Recipe for Modern Education”

Grand Haven High School – Erin Riley – “Balanced”, “Bags”, and “Beside”

Grant High School – Benjamin Dubbink – “Through Your Eyes, We See”

Hart High School – Brooke Schulz – “Fighting for Light”

Hesperia High School – Maeli Cardiff – “Deep Waters”

Holton High School – Abby Wisniewski – “Attack”, “Enough”, and “Pride”

Kent City High School – Alyeska Linsley – “Broken Bottles & Bruises”

Newaygo High School – Makayla Kurtzhals – “Courage of a Lion”

Mason County Central High School – Jillian Mickevich – “Roots”, “Waiting”, and “I Didn’t Plan To Write a Poem About You”

Mason County Eastern High School – Kathryn Nelson – “Lucille”

Mona Shores High School – Connor Fritz – “You are Enough”

Montague High School – Elizabeth Hill – “A Warning”, “Humidity”, and “Unrequited”

Muskegon Catholic Central High School – Noah Jacobs – “Waiting”, “Tag”, and “Once”

North Muskegon High School – Chandler Edwards – “Techno-Virus”, “Team 93”, and “Kumbaya”

Pentwater High School – Madeline Reitsma – “Colors”

Ravenna High School – Laine Rogers – “Station 13”

Reeths-Puffer High School – Sarah Huiber – “Boxed Inside Myself”, “To Faith”, and “The Monster You Make Of Us”

Shelby High School – Marah Olmstead – “The Freedom Wall; A Parody of Robert Frost’s ‘Mending Wall'”

Spring Lake High School – Madelyn Landry – “Phante”

Walkerville High School – Lilly Parker – “Shadows on the Wall”

White Cloud High School – Cheyenne Thompson – “Mending Diet”, “The Day”, and “Colorfeel”

Whitehall High School – Leeanna Burns – “A Sonnet for All Seasons”, “If”, and “What More Needs to Be Said?”

Here are the 2017 Literary Arts Nominees.

NOTE: Some entries may contain adult themes. Minors, please ask for parental permission before reading.

• Artios of Grand Haven – Julianna Lindemulder – “Rubbing Alcohol,” “Autumn,” and “Haunted House”
• Calvary Christian School – Sydney Ritsema – “The Way You Should Be”
• Fremont High School – Kaylee Keena – “Beautiful Destruction”
• Fruitport High School – Brooke Niestroy – “11:21,” “embodiment of the place between dusk and daybreak,” and “astronomical theory”
• Grand Haven High School – Aliyah Austin – “Culture is Not a Costume”
• Grant High School – Yule Eve Osband – “Dear Alice”
• Hart High School – Krista Frasier – “A Grade for Mental Health”
• Hesperia High School – Lacey Frees – “Obsession”
• Holton High School – Savanna Weglarz – “Mushroom King Volume 1: A Baker Will Rise”
• Mason County Central High School – Francesca Skridulis – “If You Can, You Must”
• Mason County Eastern High School – Chelsea Gage – “Stranger at Sundown”
• Mona Shores High School – Gabrielle Cree – “Under the Bed”
• Montague High School – Hannah Dahl – “A Year without Sunshine,” “Riptide Connections” and “Life is a Game”
• Newaygo High School – Tatieonna McNeese-Gonzalez – “Beautiful Things”
• North Muskegon High School – Hayden Dobb – “April’s Showers” and “There Was a Time When You Grew Up My Arm Like an Ivory Plant”
• Ravenna High School – Meghan Randolph – “Rust, Riot, and Revenge”
• Reeths-Puffer High School – Taylor Dibble – “Handfuls,” “Nevermore,” and “Just a Touch”
• Shelby High School – Natalie Fox – “Watermelon Seeds”
• Spring Lake High School – Madison Terpstra – “Life in the Library,” “Separation Anxiety,” and “A Letter For My Mother”
• Western MI Christian High School – Karolyn DeKam – “henry’s still king but we’re older this time” and “roots”
• Whitehall High School – Daisy Genson – “Learning to Walk Myself Down the Aisle”

Here are the 2016 Literary Arts Nominees.

NOTE: Some entries may contain adult themes. Minors, please ask for parental permission before reading.

• Calvary Christian School – Alex Anhalt – “Bespoke”
• Coopersville High School – Julie Meerman – “Best Buds” and “Fear”
• Fremont High School – Melody Perrin – “No Place I’d Rather Be”
• Fruitport High School – William Krohn – “Wild”
• Grand Haven High School – Josiah Masvero – “These Secrets”
• Grant High School – McKenna Miller – “さようなら (Sayounara)”
• Hart High School – Maia Jonassen – “From My Heartwood”
• Hesperia High School – Claire Rumsey – “The Waiting Game”
• Holton High School – Savanna Weglarz – “His Sinister Reflection”
• Mason County Eastern High School – Megan McCormick – “Plastic Prison”
• Mona Shores High School – Jennifer Peterson – “The Gift of Chance”
• Montague High School – Hannah Dahl – “Life in the Eyes of an Asthmatic”, “Mother”, and “Pencils”
• Muskegon High School – Angelo Hernandez-Sias – “goodjob”
• Newaygo High School – Kayla Duff – “A Small Child”
• North Muskegon High School – Hayden Dobb – “A Love Letter from a Bumblebee the the Bicycle Tire”, “The Painting”, and “Head, Cars, Bending”
• Oakridge High School – Breanna Johnson – “Fear and Love are Not Exactly Separate”, “A Lover’s Gift”, and “Five Letters”
• Orchard View High School – Joseph Morales – “This Is Where The Lie Starts”
  • This entry directly addresses the sexual assault of a minor.
  • Note: Due to the graphic nature of this entry, it is not being posted here with the consent of the author. To receive a copy of this entry, contact Joel Selby, Executive Producer.
• Ravenna High School – Sydney Theile – “The Sea of Aubree”
• Reeths-Puffer High School – Matthew Johnston – “Eighteen Years on a Bike”
• Shelby High School – Micah Bender – “Constellations”, “Stained Glass”, and “Monologue of the Heart”
• Spring Lake High School – Emma Heinz – “Broken Key”
• White Cloud High School – Christiana Jones – “Explode”
• Whitehall High School – Abigail-Lauren Meredith – “Ten Minutes Too Late”