Nov 1, 2024 - Oct 31, 2025 third place winner by ruth latta

FOXY

Nolan sat down with the ten manuscripts that had made the short list for the literary fiction contest.  Literary criticism was his forte. Stories overly reliant on  dialogue, like this one on top of the pile, were destined for the "circular file."

English graduates often had a hard time finding employment in their field, but Nolan was the proud exception. He’d been chosen for the one teaching position available in the department.  

“I wanted a man, to show that Literature is not necessarily a women's field," said the department head. 

How gratifying! It was annoying how many young women thought they had a special talent in literature. Jacqueline Fox, “Foxy,” his ex-fiancee, also an English Ph.D., had shown a hitherto-unrevealed pettiness on learning that he'd been hired. Kidding turned to sniping, then she packed and moved out.

Luckily, love wasn't hard to find.  Now, to choose the winning story.

After reading them carefully, Nolan chose the one which had drawn him in immediately. The author took the reader inside a sensitive youth forever coming second to his bigger, more robust brother. The central character, Jack, was too willing to cater to his aggressive sibling, run his errands, listen to his tiresome opinions, and help him with his homework. Soon Beau stole Jack's spot on the debating team, then seduced his girlfriend. Jack was too full of brotherly love to protect himself.

The author had presented Beau subtly, leaving the reader to form his own conclusions. Eager to see who’d written this mini-masterpiece, Nolan rushed to the departmental office to find out the author of Story Number 25. There, he gazed in consternation. 

The name on the title page was "Jacqueline Fox."