Congratulations to this year’s Sunstone Fiction Contest winners! The crop of stories this year was especially robust, with an eclectic mix of genres, subjects, and voices. Sunstone subscribers and Patreon patrons (patreon.com/sunstone) can look forward to reading and hearing these stories soon.

1st place: “Companion Claws,” by Larry Menlove. From our judges: “The characters felt so deeply drawn in such a short time.” “Strong characters, great humor, crisp prose, and an interesting mix of Mormon cultural elements. Reminiscent of Brady Udall.”

2nd place: “Rededication,” by Joshua Foster. From our judges: “This story provides a compassionate but also unflinching look at a type of person who feels like he could show up in pretty much any ward.”

3rd place: “Pitchfork,” by Charmayne Warnock. From our judges: “By the end, I was crying. And endings are so much harder to write than beginnings.” “The prose here is delicious and the imagery/story will stick with me as if it were my own family lore.”