LAND creative writing contest sweeps LCC

By Emmett Roman
Staff Reporter

The Liberal Arts Network for Development (LAND) holds a creative writing contest for students enrolled any public two-year college across Michigan. Students who were enrolled at any point in 2025 are invited to submit up to two creative works in three different categories: fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.

Students first submit to the LCC-level competition. Submitted works are evaluated by a panel of judges that consist of LCC faculty and independent judges. The first- and second-place winners from each category advance to the state-level contest, where their works are judged alongside those from across the state of Michigan.

There are a couple specific rules for the contest:

• The entry itself must not identify a student’s school and students are only identified by their student number.
• The entry must be submitted online on the LCC website.
• Fiction and nonfiction pieces must be 2,000 words or less.
• No previously published work is allowed to be submitted.
• Work must be original and authors must be willing to publish the work under their name.
• Any further format requirements are listed on LCC’s website.

Each category has first-, second- and third-place prizes. First place receives $100, second place receives $75 and third place receives $25. If a student wins the state-level competition, they earn a monetary prize, a certificate of merit, an invitation to the 2026 LAND conference and publication in the online or print LAND Creative Writing Journal.

The submission deadline is Monday, November 24. Interested students can reach out to Annie Schnarr, an English professor at LCC, or Adrienne Jenkins, the operational coordinator for arts and sciences, with questions.