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February 11, 2002 FIRST ANNUAL SAWTOOTH POETRY PRIZE AWARDED Ahsahta Press at Boise State University has selected the winners for its first annual Sawtooth Poetry Prize competition. From nearly 600 manuscripts submitted from as far away as Japan, Germany and Australia, six entries were chosen for awards and honorable mentions. The top three winners receive publication by Ahsahta Press and the first place winner also receives $1,500. Aaron McCollough of Ann Arbor, Mich., garnered first place for his manuscript “Momentary Deeds.” The two runners-up were Lisa Fishman of Chicago for “I,L,” and Heather Sellers of Holland, Mich., for “Drinking Girls and Their Dresses.” Honorable mentions went to “Echolalia” by Deborah Bernhardt, “Leaf of My Puzzled Desire” by Richard Gabriel and “Amado” by Leonore Wilson. In 2001, an anonymous donation was made through the BSU Foundation that made it possible for Ahsahta to establish the award for a book-length collection of poetry judged by a poet of national repute. “That thoughtful gift benefited us much more than simply supplying prize monies,” said Janet Holmes, Boise State English professor and Ahsahta Press director. “It enabled us to call attention to Ahsahta Press, Boise State’s Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program, and all the authors on our backlist.” Preliminary judging was done mostly by graduate students and professors at Boise State, with each manuscript being read by at least three people. Semi-finalists were then sent to nationally known poet Brenda Hillman, a professor at St. Mary’s College in Moraga, Calif., for final selection. Hillman is author of “Cascadia” from Wesleyan University Presss as well as five other books of poetry. A call for submissions for the Sawtooth Poetry Prize competition was released in Poets & Writers Magazine, The Chronicle of the Associated Writing Programs and on the Poetry Daily Web site. Ahsahta Press, a nonprofit literary publisher, was founded at Boise State University in 1974 to preserve the best works by early poets of the American West, including many underpublished women poets. Soon after its inception the press began publishing contemporary poetry by Western poets along with its reprint titles. Ahsahta editors discovered and initially published a number of widely popular poets from the American West — among them David Baker, Katharine Coles, Wyn Cooper, Gretel Ehrlich, Cynthia Hogue, Leo Romero and Carolyne Wright. With the inception of Boise State’s MFA program, Ahsahta expanded it scope, presenting the work of poets from across the nation. The name Ahsahta is a Mandan word for “Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep,” and was first recorded by members of the Lewis and Clark expedition. Contact: Media contact:
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