Randy Mackin - Porchlight: A Journal of Southern Literature

Porchlight: A Journal of Southern Literature

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Randy Mackin

KEN TEUTSCH, William Gay Memorial Prize Runner-Up

KEN TEUTSCH, William Gay Memorial Prize Runner-Up

Ken Teutsch is a writer, performer, and filmmaker living in central Arkansas. His stories have appeared in anthologies including Old Weird South, Strangely Funny, and Rowan Prose Publishing’s After Dark, as well as such diverse publications as Mystery Magazine, Andromedan Spaceways Magazine, and Porchlight: A Journal of Southern Literature.

Creative Non-Fiction by Deborah Adams

Creative Non-Fiction by Deborah Adams

Deborah Z Adams received an Agatha Award nomination for Best First Novel for the debut book in her Jesus Creek mystery series (Ballantine Books, Silver Dagger Books). Her short story “Cast Your Fate to the Wind” won the Macavity Award and earned a second Agatha nomination. Her poetry, creative non-fiction,

DANIEL REISS, William Gay Memorial Prize Winner

DANIEL REISS, William Gay Memorial Prize Winner

Originally from East Tennessee, Daniel Reiss’s work has appeared in Bellevue Literary Review and Willow Springs Magazine, among other publications. Additionally, he’s been named a runner-up for AWP’s Intro to Journals Project and has received support from Sewanee Writers' Conference and the Community of Writers. He

BLAKE KINNETT, William Gay Memorial Prize Runner-Up

BLAKE KINNETT, William Gay Memorial Prize Runner-Up

Blake Kinnett is a transgender writer from Southern Kentucky, currently working toward a degree in Lincoln, Nebraska, whose work has previously appeared in Still: The Journal, The Sonora Review, and The Good Life Review. Micah’s Drowning Runner-Up, William Gay Memorial Prize in Short Story, 2025 My mother sent me

Poetry by Gary Carter

Poetry by Gary Carter

Gary Carter’s latest novels are Not Dark Yet and Snake Bit. Based in North Carolina, his poetry and short fiction have appeared in Nashville Review, Sky Island Journal, Deep South Magazine, Real South/West, Steel Toe Review, Santa Barbara Literary Journal, Dead Mule, Delta Poetry Review, and Main Street

Poetry by Peter Schmitt

Poetry by Peter Schmitt

Peter Schmitt is the author of six collections of poems, including Goodbye, Apostrophe (Regal House). He has also edited and written the introduction for his late father's Pan Am Ferry Tales: A World War II Aviation Memoir (McFarland). He lives and teaches in his hometown of Miami, Florida.

Poetry by Gaylord Brewer

Poetry by Gaylord Brewer

Gaylord Brewer is the author of fifteen previous books of poetry, fiction, criticism, and cookery, including Country of Ghost (Red Hen, 2015) and The Poet’s Guide to Food, Drink, & Desire (Stephen F. Austin, 2015). His poems have appeared in Best American Poetry and The Bedford Introduction to Literature.

Poetry by Sara Shea

Poetry by Sara Shea

Sara Shea received her BA from Kenyon College, where she served as Student Associate Editor for The Kenyon Review. She's pursued graduate studies through the Great Smokies Writing Program at UNC Asheville and at Western Carolina University, where she studied with Ron Rash. Her work has appeared in

Poetry by Molly O'Dell

Poetry by Molly O'Dell

Molly O’Dell is a family physician and loves being outdoors, her primary influencer. She also loves writing and received an MFA from the University of Nebraska in 2009, published a chapbook, Off the Chart, and a multi-genre collection, Care is A Four Letter Verb, thanks to the regional and

Poetry by William Rieppe Moore

Poetry by William Rieppe Moore

William Rieppe Moore is from Richland County, South Carolina, and moved to Unicoi County, Tennessee, with his wife. He resumed to teaching high school English after earning an MA in English from East Tennessee State University. Moore's poetry has received various honors, including Pushcart Prize and Best of

This Edition

Volume 1, Edition 6 Porchlight is proud to publish the winner and runners-up in the 2025 William Gay Memorial Prize in Short Story: DANIEL REISS is the winner for his short story, "The Princess Motel." He received $500 and a trophy. Runners-up: KEN TEUTSCH for "Marylou Birdwell&

JON ROSS ANDERSON, William Gay Memorial Prize Runner-Up

JON ROSS ANDERSON, William Gay Memorial Prize Runner-Up

Jon Ross Anderson is an emerging writer, having published one other short story in Porchlight: A Journal of Southern Literature and poetry in NEBO Literary Journal. He is a student at Arkansas Tech University and works for his older brother preconditioning feeder calves in Timbo, Arkansas, which is relevant to

William Gay Memorial Prize in Short Story

William Gay Memorial Prize in Short Story

Porchlight is proud to announce that DANIEL REISS is the winner of the inaugural William Gay Memorial Prize for his short story, "The Princess Motel." As winner, Daniel will receive $500 and a trophy. His story, and well as the three runner-up entries, will be published in Porchlight

Poetry by Scott Hutchison

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Poetry by Scott Hutchison

Poetry by John Davis

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Poetry by John Davis

Fiction by Heather Adams

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Fiction by Heather Adams

Fiction by T.A. Walker

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Fiction by T.A. Walker

Poetry by Jonathan Fletcher

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Poetry by Jonathan Fletcher

Fiction by Paul Bowers

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Fiction by Paul Bowers

Fiction by Bethany Bruno

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Fiction by Bethany Bruno

Poetry by Amy Le Ann Richardson

Poetry by Amy Le Ann Richardson

Amy Le Ann Richardson is a writer, educator, and advocate based in Carter County, Kentucky, where she lives and works on her family farm. Deeply rooted in Appalachia, her writing explores place, resilience, motherhood, and our connection to the land. She is the author of two poetry chapbooks and the

Fiction by Hayden Crawford

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Fiction by Hayden Crawford

Fiction by Eldridge Thomas III

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Fiction by Eldridge Thomas III

Craft: Language into Language Demographics by Zyen Smoot

Craft: Language into Language Demographics by Zyen Smoot

Zyen Mingo-Smoot is an African-American and Afro-Indigenous poet from Varnado, Louisiana. Her primary themes are tackled through the contemporary southern gothic where she gathers the 20th century genre to examine modern-day socialization, landscape, and culture of the Deep South. Craft: Language into Language Demographics Language into language: when the language

Southern Bookstores Byway: Landmark Booksellers

Southern Bookstores Byway: Landmark Booksellers

Maybe it’s become a familiar story—book lovers open a bookstore—but Landmark Booksellers in Franklin is an exceptional difference, and their name suggests why. With twenty years of experience behind them now, Carol and Joel Tomlin have built another landmark in Middle Tennessee, a place that serves as