Gorgeous, Here On Earth: The 2020/21 Elaine Wetterauer Writing Contest Chapbook
June 8, 2021
Every year, Seattle Arts & Lectures’ Writers in the Schools (WITS) program holds the Elaine Wetterauer Writing Contest to celebrate the wisdom, creativity, and heart captured in student and teacher writing.
The theme for this year’s contest was “On Earth, We’re Briefly Gorgeous,” inspired by the award-winning novel of upcoming SAL speaker, Ocean Vuong. On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous is written in the form of a letter by a Vietnamese son to his mother who cannot read, covering familial history, personal revelation, unconditional love, and the exploration of race, class, and masculinity.
This year’s contest invited applicants to use Vuong’s work—its intimacy, honesty, and vulnerability—as a point of inspiration for their own creation. The contest was open to all students, grades K-12, attending a WITS partner school during this school year. Teachers from these schools were also invited to submit their work, in a separately judged contest.
We are delighted to share with you the winning writing pieces, along with other superb submissions. Read all of these amazing poems in the Gorgeous, Here On Earth eChapbook.