Note from The Editors: January 2025

Dear Readers,

The past few months at Under the Madness Magazine have been an exciting flurry of creativity, collaboration, and connection. Our team has worked hard to spotlight teen voices from across the globe, and we couldn’t be prouder of the pieces that have come together for this issue!

This letter works to highlight some of the special voices in our eighth issue, from a family-themed writing contest on Instagram to special features showcasing literary voices from Germany and the Philippines. These globe-crossing works reflect our commitment to building an inclusive literary community, and the stories shared have been truly inspiring. 

In this issue, we are thrilled to present the winners and finalists of our latest contests. The pieces featured in our Family Section explore the beauty, complexity, and resilience of familial bonds from weekly prompts on Instagram. We also recommend pairing your reading of Issue 8 with the interviews of the teen writers from our Philippine and German Special Issues, available at our Blog over the next few weeks.

Family Section Winners:

• Creative Nonfiction: “To Be Like You” by Anthonella Bitoka
  Runner-up: “Family” by Ahyeon Kim
• Fiction: “Family Story” by Sasha Vershynin
  Runners-up: “Tough Love: Short Story” by Anthonella Bitoka and “A Kill for Us” by Hailie Woodring
• Poetry: “My Home is Here” by Emecheta Christian
  Runners-up: “The Storm” by Eniola Ajao

Additionally, we are proud to feature a beautiful collection of works from our German Special Issue:

• Winner: “From the New World” by Vincent von der Forst
• With recognition for:
  “The Toddler Language Hack” by Elias Finn
  “Living Differently, Thinking Differently, Being Different” by Yunseo Jung
  “Being a Musician in Germany” by Anastasia Schmidtheisler
  “Letter to a Friend” by Viola
• "Future" by Jessica Fischer
• "Bury Me," "Dinner Table," and "Gracie" by June Fearing
• "The Black Flower" and "Y ory" by Jennifer Choi
  “Asylum” by Ella Schemmel

And finally, stunning storytelling in our Philippine Special Issue, thanks to the hard work of judges Avril Shakira Villar and Nico De Guzman:

• Winner: “My Sister’s Room” by Audrey De Leon
• With recognition for: some text
  • “A Good Critique” by John Kieth A. Gaganting 
  • “Everything was…”, “Cellular Warfare” and “Heist”by Megan Ashley Cardenas
  • “Parol” and “I’m Not on a Diet” by Tala Gan
  • “Hands that Hold the Sky”, “Inang’s Bayan True Heart”, “Threads of Joy” and “Hope’s Rising Tide” by Joyce Adducul
  • “Songs of Salanda” and “Dreams” by Malaya Kundiman Novicio
  • “Lola” and “Bagyo” by Shekina Oh
  • “One Touch Away” by Aceley Elle V. Pasa
  • “The Creation Truth” by Nathan B. Gumba

As managing editors––Helen, who has served as Managing Editor since spring 2024, and Sophie Rose, who has served since fall 2022––we are deeply grateful for the opportunity to lead this incredible publication. Thank you for being part of this journey with us and a special thank you to our Editor-in-Chief, Alexandria Peary and to our generous donor Robert Cruess along with our anonymous donors. 

Happy reading!

The Managing Editors

Sophie Rose Riopel and Helen Carle
Under the Madness Magazine

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