Here are the winners of the 2017 Katha fiction contest co-sponsored by India Currents and the Wellstone Center in the Redwoods. This year’s judges were Steve Kettmann and Sarah Ringler of the Wellstone Center.
First prize – Alcatraz by Vrinda Baliga.
This story has been accepted for publication in the forthcoming 2018 Best California Fiction volume by Wellstone Books. The writer will receive a weeklong India Currents residency at the Wellstone Center in the Redwoods (at no charge) and a $300 cash prize from India Currents.
Second prize – Subterfuge in the Septagon by Mahanth Joishy.
Wellstone Books is interested in developing this story into a novel. In addition, the writer will receive a weeklong India Currents residency at the Wellstone Center in the Redwoods (at no charge) and a $200 cash prize from India Currents.
Third prize – Cherry Blossoms by Sandhya Acharya.
This writer will receive an Emerging Writer Residency at the Wellstone Center and a $100 cash prize from India Currents.
Two Honorable Mentions:
Exaptation by Samantha Rajaram
Garden of People by Neerja Raman
Founded by Sarah Ringler and Steve Kettmann, the Wellstone Center is a writer’s retreat tucked away in the Santa Cruz Mountains. They serve to support writers through writing residencies and author events set in a calm, beautiful environment, and they publish books through the Wellstone Books imprint.
India Currents is a media company devoted to the exploration of the heritage and culture of India as it exists in the United States. Through its print and digital platforms, it covers a wide range of subjects—arts, film, literature, travel, food, healthy living, and business. After 30 years in continuous publication, today, it has the largest circulation among Indian publications reaching over 200,000 readers every month
We thank all the participants for their submissions.