ESCANABA — Each year, Bay College and all of Michigan’s community colleges participate in the Liberal Arts Network for Development (LAND) Writing Competition. During the fall semester, current Bay College students were eligible to submit up to two entries in each of three categories: creative nonfiction, fiction, and poetry. The top two entries in each category advance to the state competition.

In the creative nonfiction category, first place was awarded to Hailey Derocher for “Uncle Ricky.” The second-place prize went to Dustin Geiger for the essay “The Jesus Mobile.”

In the fiction category, Dustin Geiger took first place for “The Silence.” The second-place award went to Alexis Litts for “Our World Today.”

Spencer Robinson’s piece titled “Two-Ton Towns” took first place in the poetry category, with second place being awarded to Cheyenne La March for the poem “Strawberry Season.”

The winning entries will not only advance to the state competition, but they will also be published this spring in Serendipity, Bay College’s annual literary and art magazine.

In addition, the above winners, judges also awarded honorable mention to the following entries: “Bed of Flowers,” by Nathaniel Nail; “My Lovers Take a Piece of Me,” by Nicholas Briones; “Let Them In,” by Luke Frederick; “Save Our Seas,” by Alexis Litts; “A Line in the Sand,” by Kate Linstad; and “A Place I Never Wanted to Leave,” by Jamie Kramer.