Hats off the winners! Ramona Ausubel has selected the ten finalists that will appear in Best Emerging Writers 2026, set for publication in print and online next April. Thank you to everyone who submitted, and congratulations to our finalists and all those shortlisted. We can’t wait to share the winning work with you all.
“Sequenced” by Sammi Chiyao
“ANIMALS IN THE FORGOTTEN ROOM” by Andres Cordoba
“What Makes Us Human“ by Danielle Shandiin Emerson
“Archive” by Gillian Esquivia-Cohen
“Thunderbird” by June Glass
“Art Crime” by Gabrielle Hovendon
“Kuskokwim” by Naomi Klouda
“A Story of June” by Jessie Petrow-Cohen
“Rabbits” by Greg Tebbano
“The Circus Strongman Mustache Mystique” by Cynthia Vander Ven