Long Story Short: UTA Students Excel in Short Édition Writing Contest

Two University of Texas at Arlington students placed in the inter-collegiate Long Story Short writing contest and were published by Short Édition.

Marwah Abuhandara, a junior pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Technical Writing, won the Community prize for poetry with her poem, “The Simply Styled Woman.” Joshua Shepherd, a senior pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in English with a minor in Creative Writing, was named a finalist for the short fiction juried prize with his story, “Tomorrow.”

“We are proud to partner with Short Édition to provide Mavericks with opportunities to explore their creative side and publish their work around the world,” said UTA Libraries Dean Rebecca Bichel. “Our students, faculty, and staff have the potential to shape the literary landscape as we know it, and we can’t wait to read what they write next.”

Short Édition is a French publisher of short fiction and poetry that makes their works available online as well as via their Short Édition dispensers, free of charge. UTA Libraries has one of only about 300 global Short Édition dispensers on its second floor, and users can print stories of one-, three-, and five-minutes’ length from writers around the world.

Shepherd says he has submitted to journals and magazines before, but never a contest, and was inspired to submit to Short Édition by his creative writing professor, Laura Kopchick. He says being named a jury finalist was a fun experience.

“To find out my work would be published internationally in the incredibly unique way Short Édition puts stories out there was incredible,” Shepherd said. “It is such an honor to have my story going out there all over the world.”

For Abuhandara, this was the first time she shared her writing publicly—and winning the Community prize for poetry had a huge impact.

“I am very shy when it comes to sharing my poetry or writing in general,” Abuhandara said. “Because I was able to flourish out of my comfort zone, winning this competition was incredibly rewarding. It was truly a pivotal moment in my life.”

Abuhandara says she entered the contest to share her lived experiences and invite readers into her culture.

“As a Muslim, hijab-wearing, Palestinian-American, and an aspiring author, I have noticed a prominent lack of inclusivity within literature,” she said. “With every unrelatable character and narrative I was forced to relate to, I grew more determined to spark the match that would ignite a flame of inclusivity upon diverse cultures, religions, and perspectives in literature.”

To do this, though, Abuhandara says she had to overcome her fears of not being “good enough.”

“I was tired of falling into this rabbit hole of unheard stories, so I encouraged myself to write a poem about a person who embodies courage and is not afraid to be who she is—I ended up writing a poem about my mother,” Abuhandara said. “By using her as my muse, my mother unintentionally inspired me to enter the contest and share with the world the beauty of my own world, one this society is unaccustomed to. By pushing myself out of my own comfort zone, I ended up pushing inspired readers to crawl out of theirs as well.”

When she found out that she had won the Community prize for poetry, which is awarded by community vote, Abuhandara was stunned.

“I never thought I would get to the place where I would share my writing, let alone have people admire, vote, and advocate for it,” she said. “All the sweet comments and shares filled my heart with so much appreciation and joy.”

Abuhandara was also able to share the news with her mother—and it was a moment that neither will forget.

“The smile on my mother’s face when I told her that I had won the first-place community prize in poetry is an image that will forever be engraved in my mind,” she said.

Mavericks interested in submitting to the Libraries current Short Édition writing contest can do so until April 18, 2021! Learn more on our website.