The Toucan's 2011 Papayas...err, Pushcart Prize Nominees!

So we had six possible nominations, and in the interest of fairness we split them up with three prose pieces and three poems. We enjoyed all of these mightily and hope you did too, and in case you didn't, we'll provide links to the pieces so you can read them with this new light of glory upon them. Apparently there isn't a way to hyperlink in this note, but if you copy and paste the link in your browser, you should be all set.

Drumroll, please....

Prose

"Hiding", Paul Beckman, Issue #9 (December 2010)
An amusing short about a man who the whole world seems to be avoiding...perhaps with good reason.

"Chicken Fingers Parmagina", Sam D. Church II, Issue #11 (May 2011)
Who says The Toucan doesn't publish recipes? Just not ones for successful romance.

"Hatchlings on the Road to Nowhere", Jacob Edwards, Issue #11 (May 2011)
One of our favorite and farthest-flung contributors (from Oz, mate), Jacob Edwards invokes everything from  evolution to the Talking Heads on a drive...all while avoiding those pesky scrub turkeys.

Poetry

"Scowl", James Sandham, Issue #10 (February 2011)
It's "Howl"; for the Naught Generation. Need we say more?

"Snip Snip Snip", John J. Trause, Issue #11 (May 2011)
In case you couldn't tell, Issue 11 was a kick-ass issue. And those die-hard Toucan fans might recall this poem kicking off our Poem of the Week feature. The funny thing is, Mr. Trause (one of our most vivid contributors), has just informed us he always believed this poem to be unpublishable. Apparently, we at the Toucan just like poems about haircuts.

"i put the ass in b(ass)", Sarah Anne Stinnett, Issue #12 (July 2011)
Two poems for the price of one, and a large dash of musical cleverness.

Thanks to everyone who submitted work and who was published! The selection process was REALLY, REALLY hard, especially in the Poetry Department. But submit again, and who knows, maybe yours will shine with that extra bit of shine next year! (Or maybe it'll win the cage match with the other poems this time around. Cross-training, and feed it well.)

And now, are we all looking forward to Issue #14 on Thursday?

YES! (Except for Liz, who has to post it. Didn't we have an intern for a reason?)

Love, The Birds