The First Annual Ryan R. Gibbs Awards

Ryan Gibbs (1981-2012) was a gifted editor for NDR, an incredible writer of fiction and screenplays, a talented photographer, and, above all, a wonderful man and a dear friend. New Delta Review is honored to host these annual awards in his honor.

THE RYAN R. GIBBS AWARD FOR FLASH FICTION

That evening I slept on the top bunk in our room in the hostel and listened to Klara and the Russian make love below me. We had all been drinking, and I pretended to be asleep. She moaned softly and whispered things to him I didn’t understand. The Russian made awful noises. It made me think of the moment the machete went through the bull, right before it reached the throat—the sound the bull must have made right then. But this was over and over.

The next morning I told her goodbye and got on a train to Italy. When I got to Milan, I went to a hotel bar with red walls that were covered in fake plastic vines. I looked at the vines and drank beer and told the young bartender about Klara. He understood English very well and listened to the whole story. When I had finished, he smiled at me like we were old friends.

“I have met this same girl three months ago,” he said. “But she had dark hair and brown eyes. And she was called Sofia.”

— from Ryan Gibbs, “As the North Wind Lays Waste the Garden”

For this contest, NDR seeks short fiction (1,500 words or less) that stuns. We look for a full narrative in a small package and attention to every sentence. The winning author will receive a generous cash prize and publication in the Winter Issue of NDR.

THE RYAN R. GIBBS AWARD FOR PHOTOGRAPHY

The Ryan R. Gibbs Photography award seeks captivating work from emerging or established photographers. The winning photographs will receive a generous cash prize and publication, and their photographs will serve as the cover images for NDR’s 2013 Winter Issue.

Contests will open Summer 2013. Please check our Contests page, where details about eligibility and judging will be posted shortly.