by Mary Venuto
University of Kentucky’s undergraduate literary arts journal, Shale, earned an honorable mention from the 2013-2014 Sigma Tau Delta Outstanding Literary Arts Journal awards. Shale is an on-campus literary journal that features poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, world language pieces and art submitted by UK students. The journal is partnered with the English Department, Writing Center, and the Department of Modern and Classical Languages, Literatures, and Cultures.
Shale staff submitted the spring 2013 issue to the annual Outstanding Literary Arts Journal contest. Katie Cross, president of the local chapter of Sigma Tau Delta and Co-Editor-in-Chief of Shale, will be presenting a collection of original poetry and accepting the award at the Sigma Tau Delta conference. The conference will be held February 26-March 1, 2014 in Savannah, Georgia.
“I remember being a poetry editor last spring,” said Cross, “reading through the submissions and just feeling that there was something particularly special about that batch of poems we received.”
This was the first issue of Shale to ever win an award. It was also first to feature a color cover and the second issue to print world languages pieces. The use of InDesign for the layout is also thought to have propelled the journal forward.
“I am delighted to see that it is becoming the pride and joy of the undergraduate creative community at the University of Kentucky,” said Editor-in-Chief, Sarah Hayden.
This honorable mention is a testament to the dedication of Shale’s tireless staff and to the talent of authors and artists. “We are thriving because the creative community at UK is thriving,” said Hayden “and we hope to continue to do so.”