2024 MONTANA PRIZE FOR HUMOR 

Submissions: May 1 - Sept 30, 2024

Head judge: Molly McNearney

$1000 prize and publication in Whitefish Review

Molly McNearney is co-head writer and executive producer of Jimmy Kimmel Live! and the executive producer and writer of the 2024 Oscars. A Second City and ImprovOlympic alum, she produces and writes for the Primetime Emmys, and her credits cross over into film, other television, and acting. Comedy almost lost her to journalism, but we’re thankful she knew we need more humor in the world than news. Molly has the utmost respect for writers and invites authentic, fearless submissions.

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PREVIOUS CALLS NOW CLOSED 

Open call (#30)

For the start of 2024, we have issued an open call for submissions.

How can we become more clear about what matters and what we know is true?

We are all searching. Help us shed some light on the human condition through the wandering joy of art and bring us inside a broken openness that explores new possibilities and a greater awareness from the high elevations of the mountains and beyond.

Accepting submissions through March 31, 2024. Publication is planned for December 2024. The issue will be combined with submissions from "Dangerous Ideas."

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2024 Montana Prize for Fiction

Once a year, Whitefish Review offers a $1000 prize, winner-takes-all, for the best story submitted to our fiction contest, judged by author Rick Bass.

Submissions for the 2024 prize  open Oct 1, 2023 - Feb 15, 2024. 

Submission link at bottom of page.

CLOSED on Sept. 3

The submission period is closed for "Dangerous Ideas."

Whitefish Review reads submissions for fiction non-fiction, essay, poetry, visual art of all kinds, and photography. 

Dangerous Ideas (#30)

In 1642, Galileo Galilei was imprisoned under house arrest for life for publishing theories that stated the earth was not the center of the universe. His dangerous idea was scary to the Church, who believed in an Earth-centered universe.

We realize that there are dangerous ideas, that are, well, dangerous!  What we are seeking here is to challenge conventional wisdom for the better. Give us an analysis of some aspect of our culture or world that might seem scary or puzzling at first, but considered in a new light, might also make perfect sense.

The earth revolves around the sun. Let’s explore dangerous ideas. What are yours?

Publication is planned for September 2024.

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CLOSED on April 15

Opening Up: The Music Issue (#29) 

It takes time for an acoustic guitar to open up. Some say years or even a lifetime. Wood born from an old-growth forest, cut from downed timber and crafted by a luthier, needs to adjust to its new environment and relax into its new shape. 

As the wood opens, the strings vibrate more freely. The instrument begins to sing its magic. Over time, the sound will change as the instrument finds its true tone.

Does a tree have a voice? Every living thing has a voice. Of all the living creatures, wood has the best voice, for the voice of wood has a life beyond itself. Wood vibrates, resonates forever, physicists say, with all the sound it has ever generated or received. The wood has a memory.

Issue #29 is a celebration! We seek stories, poems, songs, and art raising a toast to old growth, new beginnings, music, and beauty — at the nexus of art and science as we continue to open up.

Publication is planned for March 2024. Also features the newest Montana Prize for Fiction winner.

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OUR MOST RECENT WORK

#28 Into the Unknown

Publication: August 2023

Issue #28 "Into the Unknown" features 40 writers and artists including winners of the Montana Prize for Fiction and Montana Prize for Humor. We also feature an interview with Susan Bridges to discuss her newly released collection of black and white photographs that she took on the set of the American Western epic, Heaven's Gate (Partisan Productions, 1980). Featured in the collection are never-before-seen images, including striking scenes from the director's chair and intimate portraits. In addition to Susan's work as an artist, the editors discussed a wide range of cultural and environmental issues including food insecurity, grizzly bears, community, and family—as well as the near-death scare and illness of her husband, the actor Jeff Bridges.

#27 The Vortex 

Publication: June 2022

After taking flight, the winds begin to spin. The air whirls in a circular motion that forms a vacuum in the center. On the river, we call this an eddy, the water swirling back upstream counter to the main current, forming a whirlpool. Inside these center spaces, there is calm. Let’s explore circles. What is lost and what is found? Coming together.

Please purchase a copy or become a subscriber and help keep this beautiful venture afloat.

FUNDRAISING

Whitefish Review accepts tax-deductible donations to keep our beautiful adventure afloat.