Synergy

For over twenty years, the Maryland Writers'' Association (MWA) has fostered a literary arts community that supports and connects writers from across the state. The MWA is comprised of seven chapters spanning seven Maryland counties, and growing. Our diverse membership ranges from experienced professional freelancers and published authors, to emerging writers aspiring to be published, and to those who write as a creative outlet. Members produce both nonfiction and fiction, including novels, short stories, poetry, plays, speeches, feature articles, and essays. This year for the first time, the MWA partnered with Apprentice House to publish the winners of the 2014-2015 contest. The MWA received over two hundred submissions for the novel and short works categories combined. We are proud to present this anthology of winners from the short works submissions. This collection is a synergy of voices from Maryland and beyond, deftly undertaking themes such as humanity and loss with elegance and intensity. "This collection traverses the Mason-Dixon line and the Potomac. The stories and poems cross boundaries of geography and the human condition. Maryland, considered ''America in Miniature,'' is a diverse state and this anthology, skillfully crafted, is one of its prizes." -Jason Tinney, author of Ripple Meets the Deep, winner of Baltimore Magazine''s Best Book of 2015