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Sheena Holt is a student Managing Editor of Bayou Magazine, published by the University of New Orleans. Bayou Magazine is an annual literary magazine, accepting poetry, fiction, and fine art images. In partnership with TWFest, they publish the winner of our One-Act Play Contest. Bayou’s mission is to present exceptional, original writing by both established…

Ellis Anderson is the founder of the French Quarter Journal, an insider’s guide to local events and cultural experiences around New Orleans.  Ellis Anderson’s relationship with the French Quarter has been a real romance. She first came to the Quarter in 1978 as a street musician. She played violin, sang, and wrote poetry. Her journey…

Interview with One-Act Play Judge, Justin Maxwell By Reine Dugas   What is it about reading a play that first captures your interest? I’m in it for the novelty! I want to see something that I’ve never seen before. I’m happiest when I walk out of a theatre asking: What the hell was that?!? If…

Interview with Very Short Fiction Judge, Addie Citchens By Reine Dugas   When reading a story for the first time, what pulls you in first? Voice? Character? Idea? Normally, the first thing that pulls me in is voice. Overly chatty and off-putting voice can quickly turn me away from a story. For me, the voice,…

From Monic Ductan, 2025 Poetry Winner What inspired you to write your piece? I wrote “Mama Took Grandma to Vote for Kennedy” after a conversation I had with my mother. She told me that grandma was despondent after Kennedy was killed. I tried to reconcile that with what I know about American history and what…

Interview with TWFest 2025 Poetry Judge, Karisma Price By Reine Dugas   What is it about a poem that first captures your interest? I’m a sucker for beautiful language and the ways poets can “weird” a phrase. Poetry does not always have to follow chronological order or logic; therefore, poetry can both bend/play with how…

Interview with TWFest 2025 One-Act Play Judge, Justin Maxwell By Reine Dugas   What is it about reading a play that first captures your interest? I’m in it for the novelty! I want to see something that I’ve never seen before. I’m happiest when I walk out of a theatre asking: What the hell was…

Interview with TWFest 2025 Fiction Judge, Chin-Sun Lee By Reine Dugas   What is it about a story that first captures your interest? This is a hard thing to quantify, because every story is different and likewise, every beginning. That said, within the first few sentences, I need to feel a certain surefootedness; a sense…