Welcome to Prime Number Magazine!

Issue 131, April — June 2018

(a Press 53 publication)

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Winners and Finalists named in the 2018 Prime Number Magazine Awards!

Prime Number Magazine is home to distinctive poetry and short fiction from writers around the world. Browse our selections by clicking on the author's photo or title of the poem or story. 

Winners of our monthly Flash Fiction Contest

Low $7 entry fee (a prime number) and a nice prize of $251 (also a prime number)

November 2017: "Jesus When I Am Seventeen" by Jade Ramsey, judged by James Claffey

November 2017: "Jesus When I Am Seventeen" by Jade Ramsey, judged by James Claffey

December 2017: "None of It's Been Good" by Stephanie Friedman, judged by Joseph Rein

December 2017: "None of It's Been Good" by Stephanie Friedman, judged by Joseph Rein

January 2018: "The Parable of the Yacht" by Lindsey Griffin, judged by Wendy J. Fox

January 2018: "The Parable of the Yacht" by Lindsey Griffin, judged by Wendy J. Fox

Winners of our FREE 53-Word Story Contest

Winner receives a free book by that month's judge

December 2017: "Inheritance" by Colleen Maloney, judged by Holly Iglesias, author of Sleeping Things: Prose Poems

December 2017: "Inheritance" by Colleen Maloney, judged by Holly Iglesias, author of Sleeping Things: Prose Poems

January 2018: "Taking Stock" by Meg Freer, judged by Felicia Mitchell, author of Waltzing with Horses

January 2018: "Taking Stock" by Meg Freer, judged by Felicia Mitchell, author of Waltzing with Horses

February 2018: "Bedtime Shadows" by Joyce Ann Wheatley, judged by Garrett Kim, our spring semester intern from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, School of Filmmaking

February 2018: "Bedtime Shadows" by Joyce Ann Wheatley, judged by Garrett Kim, our spring semester intern from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, School of Filmmaking

Editors' Selections

Guest Editor for Poetry

Yahya frederickson

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Yahya Frederickson teaches writing and literature at Minnesota State University Moorhead. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Montana and a PhD in English from the University of North Dakota. Between graduate degrees he taught for six years in Yemen, initially as a Peace Corps Volunteer. He has served as a Fulbright Scholar in Syria, Saudi Arabia, and Kyrgyzstan. His most recent book is In a Homeland Not Far: New & Selected Poems

"In Its Distance" by Cheryl Wilder

"In Its Distance" by Cheryl Wilder

"Sense of Snow" by Dmitry Blizniuk, translated by Sergey Gerasimov from Russia

"Sense of Snow" by Dmitry Blizniuk, translated by Sergey Gerasimov from Russia

"Skinny" by Sorella Lark Andersen

"Skinny" by Sorella Lark Andersen

Guest Editor for Short Fiction

ray morrison

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Ray Morrison's debut short story collection, In a World of Small Truths, was published by Press 53 in 2012 and included the story "Laid to Rest," winner of the 2011 Press 53 Open Award for Short Story (now the Prime Number Magazine Awards), judged by Chris Offutt. His stories have appeared in numerous publications. His second collection, I Hear the Human Noise, will be published by Press 53 in September 2018.

Meet Our Guest Editors for Issue 139, Oct-Dec 2018

(Submissions are open now through June 30 at Submittable)

Guest Editor for Poetry: Richard GarciaRead Richard's bio and his poem "Regret" from Porridge, winner of the 2016 Press 53 Award for Poetry, judged by Tom Lombardo

Guest Editor for Poetry: Richard Garcia

Read Richard's bio and his poem "Regret" from Porridge, winner of the 2016 Press 53 Award for Poetry, judged by Tom Lombardo

Guest Editor for Short Fiction: Jodi PaloniRead Jodi's bio and her story "Deep End" from her debut collection of short fiction, They Could Live with Themselves, runner-up for the 2015 Press 53 Award for Short Fiction

Guest Editor for Short Fiction: Jodi Paloni

Read Jodi's bio and her story "Deep End" from her debut collection of short fiction, They Could Live with Themselves, runner-up for the 2015 Press 53 Award for Short Fiction


prime number

any integer other than 0 or ± 1 that is not divisible without remainder by any other integers except ± 1 and ± the integer itself (Merriam-Webster's Dictionary)

In literature: poetry and prose that is distinctive and unique (Prime Number Magazine)

Prime Number Magazine is a Press 53 publication, founded by Clifford Garstang and Kevin Morgan Watson on July 1, 2010, beginning with Issue 2 and continuing in prime numbers.