Since the beginning of her career as a professor of nursing in the Graduate Entry Prespecialty in Nursing(GEPN) program, Linda Honan,’89 MSN, PhD, CNS-BC, RN, ANEF, FAAN has asked her students to journal their experience.
“When you write, you learn what you think about things. GEPN is so fast. I was always afraid they would forget the rigors of what they had been through otherwise. And my hope is that when they look at the journals 10 years later, they have patience for people who are going through it now.”
These private thoughts were never submitted as graded assignments, but 17 years ago Honan created an outlet for the literary energy by establishing the Creative Writing Awards (CWA). The annual event started modestly, but has recently featured hors d’oeuvres and dinner before a packed ballroom listened to three prize winners read their work aloud. Each winner also received a check for $1,000.
Honan has cultivated CWA since its infancy, encouraging students to enter and fostering confidence in their writing with the same vigor that she demands proficiency in their clinical skills. She is also fiercely protective of the event as an outlet for student expression—not even COVID-19 (coronavirus disease) could stop it this year.
“There was no way it wasn’t going to go on,” Honan said. “As long as I’m breathing the air, the CWA was going to happen. There was no doubt the event would be denied, but the awards would continue.”
For the complete list of honorees and to see the full text of the winning essays, click here.