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NSCC Creative Work Showcased in Licton Springs Review
By Matt Misselbeck | June 11, 2007
The 16th edition of Licton Springs Review, the award-winning literary journal of North Seattle Community College, was released on Thursday, May 7th. The annual publication showcases the best poetry, fiction, non-fiction, photography and fine art produced by students, staff, faculty and alumni. This year the journal includes some of the strongest work to date, including pieces that won the top awards at the district-level juried competition.
In addition, four student works were singled out for the Marcia Barton Prize, which are awarded annually to entries that excel in each category. The awards were instituted in 2003 to help recognize and appreciate student work at NSCC and honor Marcia Barton, the retired English teacher who founded the Licton Springs Review sixteen years ago.
The focus of the Review has always been on learning and creativity. According to Tracy Heinlein, the faculty advisor for the Review, that work often comes from surprising sources. “There are a lot of people producing great work within our campus community—people you might never have known were quietly honing their craft. That’s why we go out and get material from all over campus. Who would have known that the night janitor worked on oil paintings in his spare time, or that the student in the accounting department wrote beautiful poetry? It’s been our pleasure to showcase some of this quality work.”
To further illustrate her point, Heinlein tells a story about a particular international student who worked as a bus driver for King Country Metro. He attended NSCC part-time, and produced an essay for one of his classes that he submitted for publication that made it into Licton Spring Review. “It was a fantastic essay about the apple orchards in his home country, and it was awarded the Marcia Barton Prize for non-fiction,” Heinlein recalls. “He had to work the night of the awards, but did get permission to pull the bus into the parking lot, run in to the ceremony to accept his award, and then run back out and finish his route.”
It’s this devotion to finding and celebrating our collective creativity that has won the literary review multiple awards at both the state and national level, and has solidified its place as an important asset for the entire NSCC community.
You can check out the latest release of Licton Springs Review by grabbing a free copy at the campus bookstore, or online at www.lictonspringsreview.com.
2007 Marcia Barton Award Winners:
Poetry: “Living Waters” by Tammy Mae McPherson
Fiction: “Our Daily Bread” by Melissa Davidson
Non-Fiction: “Broken, a memoir” by Suki Bourquin
Art: “Intelligent Design” by Susan Park
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