The 2017 Seton Spring Quarter Easter Short Story Contest

The 2017 Seton Spring Quarter Easter Short Story Contest

Congratulations to our Finalists!

After three rounds of review, our editors have narrowed down the pool of contestants to the top entries!

Below you’ll find our two winners, Leah Myers and Immanuel Portus. Please take a second and congratulate them below in the comments!

Both Leah and Immanuel showed an strong command of the story writing craft, and conveyed their concepts with great motion and dialog.

In ‘I Trust In You’, Leah was particularly attentive to including cultural detail, and research/familiarity with Hebrew culture. She showed excellent use of characterization, detail, and back-and-forth between the characters.

Immanuel’s story ‘My Victory’ riffed several concepts in a clever way, and literally ran with them. His pacing was intriguing and electrifying.

Only the Finest

As our contestants know, it’s hard work competing in Seton’s contests. Only the finest entries work their way to the top, and every contest entry must pass a three-fold examination on

  • adherence to the contest guidelines
  • attention to the provided prompts
  • quality and excellence of the writing craft

So stay tuned and subscribe to our weekly digest!

Thanks to all of our Round 3 contestants!

They stepped up their game, worked hard on their stories, and provided some excellent candidates.

We look forward to the strong possibility of sharing Round 3’s remaining entries as honorable mentions.

2017 Easter Short Story Finalists

Leah Myers

Grade 12 | First Place Winner | ‘I Trust In You’

Leah Myers is the youngest of three children, and has been homeschooled my whole life. English and writing—her most dreaded subjects—are now two of her favorites. She is a ballet dancer, and plays four different instruments (including voice). She hopes to start playing ukulele and the tin whistle. Aside from those activities, she loves doing all kinds of artwork and writing. She’s found that combining writing and art into graphic novels is excitingly fun. She hopes to teach ballet one day, along with being a part to full-time fiction author (and possibly doing the illustrations). She also loves mountain-biking, and will never be found sitting still for long periods of time.

Immanuel Portus

Grade 11 | First Place Winner | ‘My Victory’

He is 17, hilarious, and the oldest among his 3 siblings. He has attended the best high school and elementary school (aka homeschool) for 8 years. He loves acting, playing the guitar, Saint Philip Neri, and creative writing. He is a competitive runner, soccer player, and a “tree climber.” He spends most of his free time figuring out how to: do a backflip, bring back dinosaurs from the past, cook up a flying car, and build a real lightsaber. He lives near Taal Volcano (The World’s Smallest Active Volcano) in the Philippines. He hopes to be a filmmaker and an inventor one day soon.

Round 3 | Grade 12

Charles Foyle

Charles Foyle

They Became As Dead Men

Leah Myers

Leah Myers

I Trust in You

Round 3 | Grade 11

Immanuel Portus

Immanuel Portus

My Victory

Mary Clare Young

Mary Clare Young

Veritas Vos Liberabit

Round 3 | Grade 10

Olivia Shapic

Olivia Shapic

The Easter Triduum

Maria Pratt

Maria Pratt

Spear in Hand

Round 3 | Grade 9

Elodie Pierlot

Elodie Pierlot

Tomb Of A God

Giselle Faber

Giselle Faber

Guard of the Tomb

Round 2 | Grade 12

Natalie Pratt

Natalie Pratt

The Centurion

Charles Foyle

Charles Foyle

They Became As Dead Men

Leah Myers

Leah Myers

 Song of the Bird | I Trust in You

Round 2 | Grade 11

Immanuel Portus

Immanuel Portus

My Victory

Joey Barron

Joey Barron

Easter Miracle

Mary Clare Young

Mary Clare Young

Veritas Vos Liberabit

Round 2 | Grade 10

Chantal LaFortune

Chantal LaFortune

The Traveler

Olivia Shapic

Olivia Shapic

The Easter Triduum

Maria Pratt

Maria Pratt

Spear in Hand

Round 2 | Grade 9

Elodie Pierlot

Elodie Pierlot

Tomb Of A God

Amelia Coleman

Amelia Coleman

Soldier of the Truth

Lily Hoffarth

Lily Hoffarth

A Roman Soldier Finds His Savior

Giselle Faber

Giselle Faber

Guard of the Tomb

Round 1 | Grade 12

Natalie Pratt

Natalie Pratt

The Centurion

Emmalie Kernan

Emmalie Kernan

THE PURPOSE — The Story of Simon of Cyrene

Charles Foyle

Charles Foyle

They Became As Dead Men

Leah Myers

Leah Myers

 Song of the Bird | I Trust in You

Josephine Raphaelle Ng

Josephine Raphaelle Ng

“One Look” / “Faith Hanging on a Stranger’s Words

Round 1 | Grade 11

Chris Gauthier

Chris Gauthier

A Tale of A Jew

Immanuel Portus

Immanuel Portus

My Victory

Joey Barron

Joey Barron

Easter Miracle

Mary Clare Young

Mary Clare Young

Veritas Vos Liberabit

Round 1 | Grade 10

Gabrielle Brounstein

Gabrielle Brounstein

I Shall Be Healed

Anna Regnier

Anna Regnier

 The Sparkling Eyes

Veronica Brown

Veronica Brown

A Long Night for a Soul

Chantal LaFortune

Chantal LaFortune

The Traveler

Paloma Landen

Paloma Landen

“Constructed Revelation Of A Roman Soldier”

Maria Pratt

Maria Pratt

Spear in Hand

Genevieve LaFosse

Genevieve LaFosse

The Guardian of the Tomb

Emily McKinnon

Emily McKinnon

One Mission / I Guarded The Body Which Rose

Olivia Shapic

Olivia Shapic

The Easter Triduum

Round 1 | Grade 9

Lily Hoffarth

Lily Hoffarth

A Roman Soldier Finds His Savior

Giselle Faber

Giselle Faber

Guard of the Tomb

Amelia Coleman

Amelia Coleman

Soldier of the Truth

Christopher Smyth

Christopher Smyth

Veritas. A Soldiers Conversion

Jillian Van Daele

Jillian Van Daele

To Follow or Not to Follow

Elodie Pierlot

Elodie Pierlot

Tomb Of A God

Contest Details

How to Enter

Register for free to enter the contest. All registrants will be part of a special emailing list to keep you updated and informed about the contest.

Prizes:

All submissions will be judged by grade level, with the potential for first and second place finalists for each grade – if submissions are of sufficient quality.

  • 1st place in each grade: $100
  • 2nd place in each grade: $50

If the judges decide that there are insufficient entries of note in a grade level, no finalist may be named. Do your best!

Contest Rules

Open to Seton high school students, grades 9-12.

These are your writing prompts for your Easter themed short story. Pick one, and submit one story.

  • Imagine you are a member of a zealot group who want to rescue Our Lord from being crucified. Perhaps Simon the Cyrene was a member who got close, but for some strange reason didn’t complete the mission.
  • Imagine you are one of the Roman soldiers guarding the tomb of Christ, and the pressure you are under to keep the Jews away. Perhaps your girlfriend is a Christ-follower, and you’re almost ready to convert. How do you handle the strange event of the Resurrection?
  • Imagine you are one of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, and you’ve only heard about Christ’s miracles. Now that He’s dead, you’re deciding to stay as a Jew. That’s when a stranger joins you and takes you deeper over dinner.

If enough short stories of note are submitted, first and secondary finalists from each grade will be showcased online on the Bayley Bulletin. First place finalists will be featured in the upcoming Spring issue of the Bayley Bulletin. At the judges’ discretion, honorable mentions may be published here online.

Only submissions of the highest quality and care will make it into the contest.

Maximum Length: 5000 words.

Any questions? Ask away!

Guide to Writing a Short Story

Seton counselors have crafted a multi-part guide right here to help you write a short story. Take special note of the introduction, and read carefully through the 3 parts before sending in  your story.

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