Doris Betts Fiction Prize

2004 Competition Winners

The North Carolina Writers’ Network would like to congratulate the winner and runners up of the Doris Betts Fiction Prize.

First Prize - Brenda Witchger, for "Rushing Water, Damage Done"

Brenda Witchger grew up in Alabama and currently resides in Cary, North Carolina. She was a working journalist, a high school teacher and a full-time mother before beginning to write fiction. Her short stories have been featured in Ellery Queen Mystery magazine and other publications under her pseudonym Brynn Bonner. She was the recipient of the Robert L. Fish award, a special Edgar given by Mystery Writers of America for Best First Short Story. She received the 2003 University of Tennessee Press Prize in the Appalachian Fiction Competition, sponsored by the Center for Appalachian Studies and was a 2003 top-ten finalist for the Nelson Algren award given by the Chicago Tribune.

Second Prize - Richard A. Ballou, for "Dinner"

After a successful career in information technology (most recently as Regional Vice President of Computer Task Group), Richard A. Ballou retired at the age of 47 to pursue writing full time. He and his wife, Dee, live in Cary, NC where they have raised three boys, Mitchell, Anthony, and Brad. He received degrees in both English and Computer Science from NC State University. Richard’s creative focus is literary fiction, particularly short stories of a magical realist bent. The story "Dinner" and the Doris Betts Competition represent his first submission to a literary contest.

Third Prize - Susan Snowden, for "Stung"

Susan Snowden has published poems, stories, and interviews in several anthologies and in a number of literary journals, including New Orleans Review, Now and Then, Writers’ Exchange, Vermont Ink, and Waterways. She has received awards for her poetry from Writer’s Digest, Appalachian Writers Association, The Writers’ Workshop, and others; she received a grant from the Asheville Arts Alliance and the NC Arts Council to complete a novel, Southern Fried Lies (currently being considered for publication). Snowden is a freelance book editor based in Hendersonville, NC. She also teaches creative writing part-time at Blue Ridge Community College in Flat Rock.

Honorable Mention - Denise Privette Sherman, for "Family Reunion"

Denise Privette Sherman is a freelance writer living in Raleigh. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University with a degree in politics and course work in journalism and creative writing. She has also studied creative writing through Duke University's continuing education program and Merdeth College's summer workshops. Ms. Sherman has written for the News and Observer, the Triangle Business Journal, Imagine Magazine and other local and regional publications.