FPS: Poetry of the Hunt Challenge Winners

Welcome back, writers. This time, the chase took center stage.

For Poetry of the Hunt, we asked poets to explore what it means to pursue something, or someone, that may never be caught. Whether the chase unfolded in the wild or within, these pieces moved with instinct and tension, carrying the quiet ache of almost finding what was lost.

What came back were poems steady and alive, each one hinting that the moment you stop chasing might be when you finally find it.

🏆 Winners

temporary taxidermy by Daniel K

Daniel K's poem feels full of longing, every image unfolding like a memory that won’t rest. The room of maps and notes hums with energy, haunted by what slips away. It carries a quiet mercy, the choice of connection over conquest, the ache of wanting and the calm that comes when love is let go.

The Arc of the Huntress by Gina C.

Gina C.'s lines moves like something wild and half-awake, all tension and heartbeat. The image of the nomad woman circling the edges with that fierce gentleness sticks around, especially in the way longing and mercy blur together. Every sound and shape calls up the sense of searching for something just out of reach, never quite letting go.

Hunt by Stephen A. Roddewig

Stephen A. Roddewig's piece moves like something wild in the dark, all sharp edges and cold breath. That moment where the wolf meets the serpent, both desperate and hungry, lands heavy and the struggle feels ancient, almost inevitable.

Wolf Light Refrained by Pixel Floyd

Pixel Floyd's writing sticks with you. There’s this mix of calm and wild that feels real, like being seen right before you disappear. The images of pine and wolf blur together, and what’s left is a soft ache that doesn’t go away.

Go Not-looking!! by Christopher Falcione

Christopher Falcione's submission feels like walking softly through a quiet forest, where the more you look, the more things slip away. The moment of letting the unicorn rest stays in the mind, turning pursuit into something calm and gentle. There’s an honest peace in realizing what you’re looking for might already be there.

🎖️ Runners-up

• Hunting Season by Cali Loria
• The Inevitable Hunt by Vitaline
• The Same Heaven by Natasha Collazo
• Drum God by Corvus
• 775,000 BCE, Atapuerca by Suze Kay
• Prey by Cathy Schieffelin
• Magnum Opus: The Greatest Love, The Greatest Loss. by Caladrius
• in her clutches by Amber Grace
• Tactile by Camille Ora-Nicole
• The Pack by Thomas Speer
• The Endless Hunt by Morgana
• Candy Canes by Sam Spinelli
• We Were All Weapons by Canuck Scriber Lisa Lachapelle
• Passage by Guia Nocon
• hunting for my reflection by angelina farrugia

🏅 Honorable Mentions

• To Regain by Mackenzie Davis
• The Hunt of Grief by Stephanie Hoogstad
• Revival's Dance by Georgie
• when? by Iris Obscura
• A Forever of Corners by Sarah O'Grady
• i want a penpal by Blythe
• Phoenix Rising by Harper Lewis
• Quarry II by Gabriel Huizenga
• An Eagle Flew Above by Kara Lu
• The Keepers by Kacy Walter

Check out the latest on Vocal Challenges.