We’d like to thank all of the writers who participated in the 2026 Big Moose Prize, and we are pleased to present the finalists and semi-finalists:
Finalists
Exit 18W by Robin Becker
Candyass by Gerri Brightwell
The Shop on Haagdijk Street by Dan Eerhart
Boats Drawn by Children by Rebecca Entel
The Novice by Anne Foster
Just a Preference by Megan Howell
Fragment by James Kaelan
The Terminal Stage by Michael Keen
Golden by Benjamin Vaughn Marshall
Liza is Gone by Denise Raynor
Division of Birds by Jessica Roeder
The Ruby, the River, and the Pines: A Southern Gospel in Three Parts by Randy Smith
Laura Lerner by Eugene Stein
Semi-Finalists
Dreams Forged in Starlight by Seth Borgen
The Utopia Suite by Erik Dussere
Take the Guitar Player for a Ride by David Giffels
Annmarie by Megan Howell
Trust by Nicole Im
Mister Conceited by Matthew Lansburgh
Nights in the New World by Dave A. Liu
Free Ms. Greene by Jan Richman
School for the Insane by Meg Richman
When We Were Plague by Deborah Schupack
The Full Stop by Jay Shearer
Dr. Bopstein and the U.S. Dept. of Dreaming by Joseph Skibell
The Capital of a Short-Lived Independence by A. B. Velasquez
Pork Tooth by Doug Walker
We will choose the winner from the pool of finalists in the coming weeks. Stay tuned!