CNY Branch's Janine DeBaise Wins National Vinnie Ream Competition; Other Branch Members Place

Janine DeBaise, professor, poet, writer, and member of the Central New York Branch of the NLAPW, won the national Vinnie Ream competition, competing across three genres. DeBaise's essay "The Space Between" is a "breath-taking" work of art in which family ties to each other and our environment are poetically and powerfully woven together." DeBaise won first place in the NLAPW's Vinnie Ream biennial competition and then won first place over all. DeBaise's essay has since been published in The Hopper, a literary magazine focused on environmental issues from Green Writers Press. The Hopper editors also nominated DeBaise's work for a Pushcart Prize.

Susan Murphy placed third over all in the Art category of the Vinnie Ream competition.

Other CNY Branch members were also honored in this national competition. Judith McGinn won first place in the fiction category with her short story "A Sea Change." Mary L. Gardner earned second place honors in the poetry category for her chapbook of poetry "Of Hand and Pen: Selected Poems." DeBaise, McGinn, and Gardner were all finalists through their first or second place standings in their respective writing categories. Rachael Ikins' work "Deluxe for Katie 2--Love Endures" earned semi-finalist status in this prestigious national competition.

Congratulations to all of our Pen Women writers placing and earning awards.