FPS: The Sound of First Frost Challenge Winners

For The Sound of First Frost, we asked you to tune into the subtle shift where autumn fades and winter begins. That in-between time when the air turns sharper, the light leans paler, and everything, from sound, to scent, to texture, feels just a little different.

Here are the entries that stood out most:

🏆 Winners

In formation by Sam Spinelli

Sam Spinelli's poem captures the first frost with an electric originality. The way molecules 'click and clack' into formation creates a palpable rhythm that resonates with the onset of winter. The piece stands out for transforming a scientific transition into a living, breathing moment of change.

November Drum by Kara Lu

Kara Lu's November Drum crafts an immersive world where autumn's lingering warmth gives way to the stark clarity of winter. The imagery sharpens with phrases like 'taut and translucent' sky and 'exposed nerves' making the seasonal shift something you can almost feel on your skin.

My Autumn by Aubrey Rebecca

Aubrey Rebecca's piece resonates through its raw, sensory immersion. The voice is clear and haunting, anchoring the reader in a moment that feels both intimate and universal. It stands out for making the frost an echo of grief, connecting nature’s transition with a heart’s ache.

To the Beckoning Jailer by Mackenzie Davis

Mackenzie Davis casts winter as a mysterious 'jailer,' merging voice and sensory imagery to capture the shift from autumn to frost. The 'deep, high purple' whispers and 'taste of colors' pull you in, but it’s the sting of 'red, cracked hands' that lingers. A vivid take on the season's slow change.

the wilds of solstice sun and stars by Heather Hubler

Heather Hubler's poem captures that quiet moment when autumn gives way to winter. With details like ‘peppermint frost’ and ‘saffron-silkened leaves’ the shift feels textured and real. It's this depth of detail that makes the piece linger long after you've read it.

🎖️ Runners-up

• On The Porch Between Frost & Fall by Caladrius
• If Winter Were a Dress by Gina C.
• Plink by Melissa Ingoldsby
• November Is My Husband by Ella Bogdanova
• Callisto by Jessica Dowding
• Winter's Scout by Rachel Deeming
• Frost Queen by Edward Swafford
• Snowfall by Corvus
• For Everything There is a Season by Hannah Moore
• strange alchemy by Blythe
• Crystalized by K.B. Silver
• The Intermediary Thief by The Dani Writer
• A Cold Hymn Sung Silent by John R. Godwin
• Coming Soon, Iʻll Be Gone by Pōlani Monderen
• The frost before the dawn by Paris Rosemont

🏅 Honorable Mentions

• Winter Night by Silver Daux
• Frost Quakes by Kelli Sheckler-Amsden
• Am I? by Morgana
• the lord of winter by Raistlin Allen
• A'wander by Lark Hanshan
• Frosty Companion by Polite Adjacent
• (F)All of Autumn by Teresa Renton
• Southern Goodbye by Harper Lewis
• bedding down by Dane BH
• Harmonicist by Marilyn Glover

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