2026 Poetry Contest Winners

Poetry (Age Category: 55+)

First Place:

for baba

by Chris Bryant

Second Place:

A Poem About Nothing, opens a new window

by Drew Henderson

Third Place:

When I Get Old

by Vilma Blenman

Poetry (Age Category: 20-54)

First Place:

Sweat

by Lauren Frechette

Second Place:

A Blue Jay's Fall

by Yarlini Thanabalsingam

Third Place:

Awakened

by Pelatin Faqiri

Writing and Publishing Events

Staff List

Literacy and Language Resources

PickeringAdult2

Staff List

Have You Written A Book? Are You Looking To Self-Publish?

PickeringAdult2

Staff List

Literacy and Language Resources

PickeringAdult2

Staff List

Have You Written A Book? Are You Looking To Self-Publish?

PickeringAdult2

2025 Writing Contest Winners

Prose

First Place:

Drawn-Out Conclusion

by Danyel Bratu

Danyel Bratu is a 16 year old student. He currently attends Dunbarton High School.

Second Place:

Phoenix

by Julia Delbel

Julia Delbel has been obsessed with stories her entire life, and is now diving into fiction writing after writing articles about film and television for several years. Besides obsessing over media, she enjoys reading, skating, making online videos, and volunteering in the community, and is currently working to get her work out into the world on a larger scale, whether it be in prose or screenplay form.

Third Place:

The Last Guests

by Veronica Martineau

Veronica Martineau is a new writer currently completing a Creative Writing Certificate. She finds joy in spending time with loved ones, going for long walks, and keeping up with her gym routine. Most evenings end with her curled up on the couch alongside her snuggly cat and a good book or movie. Veronica enjoys reading across genres, including fantasy, fiction, and romance. She looks forward to continuing with her writing journey and sharing her stories.

Poetry

2024 Writing Contest Winners

Prose

First Place:

Cobwebs, opens a new window

by Suhaa Sheikh

Suhaa Sheikh is a writer of short stories, a fervent fan of insects, and a collector of shiny things. They primarily write in the surrealist, New Weird, and horror genres, with an emphasis on the natural world and environmental anxieties. At any given moment, you can probably find them on their 3rd cup of coffee.

Second Place:

The Silk-Cotton-Tree, opens a new window

by Khadijah Jabari

Khadijah Jabari is a writer who claims Toronto origins despite spending the last 18 years of her life living as North as Barrie & as East as Kingston. She is a U of T alum studying English literature with an Afro-centric focus and French. When she isn’t at the computer behind the fluffy behind of her orange cat Tanji she can be found at anime conventions or in pottery studios. She is a middle school teacher who enjoys getting her students to let their creativity blossom while exploring social justice issues. Her work brings fantasy to life for the readers who have typically been left behind.

Third Place:

Little Boy in a Dress, opens a new window

by Nathan Stevenson

Nathan is just starting a journey in the writing community. Nathan is also an artist and has been for a while, and can be found drawing, reading, listening to music or working on a personal writing project.

Poetry

First Place:

Black Paws , opens a new window

by Khadijah Jabari

Khadijah Jabari is a writer who claims Toronto origins despite spending the last 18 years of her life living as North as Barrie & as East as Kingston. She is a U of T alumni studying English literature with an Afro-centric focus and French. When she isn’t at the computer behind the fluffy behind of her orange cat Tanji she can be found at anime conventions or in pottery studios. She is a middle school teacher who enjoys getting her students to let their creativity blossom while exploring social justice issues. Her work brings fantasy to life for the readers who have typically been left behind.

Second Place:

Dead Canary, opens a new window

by Samantha Woods

Sam is a full time janitor, perpetual student, lifelong writer, avid reader and lover of all things creative.

Third Place:

And This is the End, opens a new window

by Sara Ghasemi

Sara has always loved writing, but would not consider themself a writer. This particular piece is a story of an older sibling who wished to disappear, but when time comes to collect their bet, they realize that this was not what they wanted.

Honourable Mentions

Live in Concert

by N.E. Rule

N.E. Rule attended Metropolitan Toronto University for both creative writing and business communications. Her writing portfolio includes software specs, marketing copy, and training materials; however, her passion is fiction. Readers Digest, Black Hare Press, Blank Spaces, and Off Topic Publishing are some publishers who have kindly accepted her work for inclusion in their anthologies. To access her work visit nerule.com

Alone No More, opens a new window

by Purabi Sinha Das

Purabi Sinha Das is the author of three books. What Will It Be This Time, a collection of personal essays, explores an immigrant’s life unfolding in a new country that can be daunting yet exhilarating. Her early nineteenth century set in India debut novel Moonlight-The Journey Begins shines a light on female bravery amidst heavy odds. Twenty Two For 22, a collection of stories, poetry, magical travel vignettes upholds hope through adversity. Purabi earned her Honours BA in English literature from Ranchi University, India. Connect with Purabi at www.purabisinhadas.com

Grief, Hope and Negligence, opens a new window

by Bithiah Simon

Bithiah Simon is your local wandering artist figuring things out one day at a time. She enjoys painting, writing poetry, and learning other avenues of creativity. If interested, here is her Substack where she posts other pieces of her work: https://substack.com/@bithiahwrites?r=4p7qnn

Silly Romance, opens a new window

by Wayne Wong

Wayne Wong was an orphan, has been married for close to 40 years & has two of the best daughters you could ask for. Wayne considers himself to be a very lucky man, to have been adopted when he was 4 years old to a wonderful mother & father that he had until he was 19 & 20 when he lost both to cancer. He also saw the Leafs win 4 Stanley cups!

2023 Writing Contest Winners

Prose

First Place:

Cyclops

by Rio Murphy

Rio Murphy loves Sci-fi and Horror stories, but nothing too scary. Her grandkids love stories too. “But not the scary ones!" She recently finished the "Writing Project Series" at the Pickering Central Library and had five poems accepted for the 2023 anthology! A senior, she is up early writing every morning with a group called "Breakfast Sprints" online, on Discord. She joins every writer’s group possible now she has the time—excited to pursue a lifelong desire to write and to learn to write better. Her secret ambition is to someday read at a “poetry slam”.

Second Place:

The Empty

by Myeisha Dyer

Myeisha Dyer is a student and stereotypical cat-lover who takes out too many library books at once and hopes to become a published author one day.

Third Place:

Lil Miss Nursey

by Nic Nelson

Nic Nelson is a published poet, burgeoning storyteller, and avid reader who lives in Pickering with her husband and young son. She was born in Hamilton Ontario, and spent sixteen of her formative years living in Nassau, Bahamas. Bahamian culture, history, and people provide a significant source of inspiration for her stories and are one of the primary lenses through which she makes sense of the world and recognizes her place in it. In this respect, she abides by her grandmother’s advice: Don’ forget where ya come from!

Poetry

First Place:

Conversation With a Bird

by Asma Ameen Majeed

Asma Ameen Majeed is a lover of words, cats, and dark rooms, either found trying to string words into coherent sentences, petting one of their two cats, Sage and Saffron, or just thinking. In the summertime, Asma can sometimes be found in their backyard whistling, in conversation with the birds. They do not often write poetry.

Second Place:

Red-winged Blackbird

by Raegen Montaque

Raegen Montaque is a Durham-based poet, writer, and visual artist who worked as an editor and proofreader for HLR Spotlight, and co-produced Humber’s BCPW 2022-2023 Evergreen anthology. Raegen’s love of writing began in 2016 with slam poetry and they have been enamoured with poetry and the written word ever since. Raegen’s favourite books are the ones that make them want to cry, scream or throw the book across the room in embarrassment or surprise. You can find Raegen trying to find the perfect word for a poem, finishing a project, or re-reading a sentence for the seventh time.

Third Place:

Doctor Doctor

by Elle-Mai Saar

Elle-Mai Saar is a lover of animals, chocolate, and the supernatural. In the summertime, you can find her up north soaking up the rays by the river and spending quality time with family and friends by a campfire. In her downtime, she enjoys binge-watching her favourite TV shows or movie series with her playful kitty, Whistler.

Honourable Mentions

By the Way

by Isobel Dalzell

Isobel Dalzell is a high school student, born and raised in Pickering. She enjoys studying history and English.

After the Movers

by Drew Henderson

Drew Henderson is an 87-year-old great-grandfather who likes to paint, write and walk. (Not so far these days, unfortunately).

Feed The Horde

by Shawn Roberts

Shawn Roberts is a poet and artist based out of Ajax, Ontario. Through his art and writing he explores the ever increasing madness of a technological world poisoned by social media while trying to draw attention to the beauty it still holds.

Peace Pickle

by Ariesha Mais

Ariesha Mais is a short story writer and poet. She started writing at eight years old and doesn't plan on stopping. When she isn't writing, she enjoys baking, jogging, and falling into random research rabbit holes.

2022 Writing Contest Winners

Prose

30 Days

by Lindy Nikolaou

Lindy Nikolaou is a teacher, lives in Pickering and enjoys many hobbies: Writing, reading, gardening and walking along Lake Ontario. Lindy's favourite meal is a hotdog while listening to the Bee Gees.

Forest Creature

by Carly Midgley

Carly Midgley is a writer and freelance editor with a soft spot for fairy tales and sister stories. She holds a BA in English literature from Trent University, where she was the 2014 recipient of the Timothy Findley Creative Writing Prize. When not writing, Carly can be found petting her two cats, drinking a lot of tea, and overanalyzing books and video games. For more information or to contact her, visit carlymidgley.com.

Poetry

Recovery

by Charlie Wascher

Charlie Wascher is an artist and full-time Canadian. Charlie has an avid interest in novels and writing. This is the first poem Charlie has ever written, based on anxiety and recovery.

The grangle wangle

by Audrey Kovacs

Audrey Kovacs is a huge Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter fan! Audrey loves classic literature but has a huge soft spot for old comics, especially DC comics!) and loves nonsense poems.

Honourable Mentions

Word's Edge

by Danyel Bratu

Danyel Bratu is an alien spy from the star system of Alpha Centauri, collecting information on the human race to relay back to his home planet. When he isn't being 100% spy-y, he enjoys drawing and writing.

The Rhyming Dilemma

by Drew Henderson

Drew Henderson is 86-year-old great-grandfather who likes to write, paint and watch soccer. What else does an 86-year-old need?

Fear Cost You

by Bethany Brown

Bethany Brown loves writing poetry because it offers a space to play with language. She does freelance writing and editing because they involve applying the mechanics of writing she finds so fascinating. For more of her work, see @thewriterwiredmind on Instagram.

My Name Is

by Abir Dabbour

Abir Dabbour is 23 years old and was born in Egypt, then moved to Canada with her parents in 2000 as a young child. Abir is usually a visual artist and painter moreso than a writer. However, Abir's love of literature inspired this freeform expression of a very personal and complex issue.

Walk in Deaf Shoes

by Farishta Normohamad

Farishta Normohamad is Deaf. Farishta's sign name is a “F” handshape along the side of my face, flipped to show her smile. This is Farishta's first English poem. The challenge was inspiring. Farishta's goal is to make an impact promoting accessibility and to recognize accommodations. Farishta's poem is about her Deaf identity and experience overall and her struggles still today.

Fathers

by Victoria Dwight

Victoria Dwight is a Pickering native. After moving away for two decades, she has recently returned and is rediscovering the city through adult eyes. She works as an Education Director and American Sign Language Interpreter and has a love for all things related to language.