Ourglass Student Publication

magazine cover featuring an assortment of blue and white butterflies on an orange background

The "best-of-the-best" creative writing produced by our talented community of students.

Ourglass, now in its 43rd year of publication, is the journal of the English and Graphic Design programs at CCD. It is dedicated to providing a forum for the poetry, prose, drama, design, and artwork of our students. Visual arts and design work included in each Ourglass issue is selected from the Annual CCD Student Art & Design Show. For more information about submitting student artwork, please contact Lincoln Phillips, Professor of Visual Arts.

If you are attending CCD, please consider submitting your work. We accept submissions of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and one-act plays, as well as any interesting combinations thereof, through this online form. Please note that "best of the best" means we seek to honor the complexity, beauty, and variety of the voices present in CCD's students, and we encourage you to submit.

Past works were written by people from a variety of backgrounds (both native and non-native English speakers and have included language other than English) who contributed works that expressed complexity, vulnerability, and took risks. All work submitted must include your name, current phone number, and an email address you check frequently.

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Important Information

While we don't impose limits on submissions, here are our suggestions that will help you get into our pages. Please indicate if your submission is  poetry, prose, essays/criticism, or a short play. Please do not combine separate genre submissions into one file.

  • Poetry: Submit 3-5 poems. We are not averse to form or style.
  • Prose (short-story fiction/nonfiction/flash fiction): Submit one piece or a collection of pieces, preferably under 8,000 words.
  • Essays/Criticism: Submit one piece or collection of connected pieces, preferably under 8,000 words.
  • Short Plays: Submit one play preferably between 10-12 pages. Plays should be in script format.

Response time: We accept submissions from each academic year (summer to spring) and respond in August. Please Note: Due to the volume of work we consider, it may take 4-6 months (sometimes longer) to hear from us. Please be patient in our response time. If you're not accepted, please do try again next year! We love hearing from CCD students and alumni.

Submit Your Work!

All writing submissions (excluding student editors) will be eligible for the Leonard Winograd Award, named in honor of longtime English professor and editor of Ourglass Leonard Winograd. The award is given annually to recognize excellence in writing. Finalists are chosen by the editors, and the winner is selected by an anonymous faculty member not associated with Ourglass. To donate to the Winograd Award, go to the CCD Foundation website. Be sure to mark this as a "Tribute Gift" to the Winograd Award.

When you donate for a past issue, you are not only helping Ourglass and the Leonard Winograd Award, you are also helping the CCD Foundation and their scholarship fund to aid other CCD students. We’ll cover the cost of shipping! How cool is that! 

Interested in an issue between 2016-2019? Contact us at our email below. 

YearOrganizationAwardEditorsDesign
1991Community College Humanities Assocation, Lit. Magazine CompetitionLiterary Magazine CompetitionBill Richards, Susan Simons, Steve ThomasRichard Jividen
1992CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition2nd Place Winner Southwestern DivisionJim BryantRichard Jividen
1993CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition1st Place, Southwestern DivisionJim Bryant, Kathy WinogradRichard Jividen, Gretchen Heinemann
1994CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition1st Place, Southwestern DivisionRichard FleckRichard Jividen
1997CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition2nd Place, Southwestern DivisionLeonard WinogradRichard Jividen, Gretchen Occhionero
1998CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition2nd Place, Southwestern DivisionJennifer Gessner, Richard FleckRichard Jividen, Gretchen Occhionero, Sue Helsel
2003CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition2nd Place, Southwestern DivisionLeonard WinogradSue Helsel, Richard Jividen, Gretchen Occhionero
2013CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition2nd Place, NationalJeffrey Becker, Jennifer GessnerJohn Kjos, Sue Samuelson
2015CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition1st Place Magazine From Small CollegesJeffrey BeckerAndria Regan, John Kjos, Sue Samuleson
2017CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition3rd Place, Best MagazineBrian Dickson, Annie HowleySena Bryant, John Kjos, Sue Samuelson
2018CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition1st Place Tie, National Brian Dickson, Annie Howley, Jeffrey BeckerJames Fladung, Sue Samuelson, Doug Ekstrand
2019CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition1st Place, Southwestern DivisionBrian Dickson, Mary-Claire Ibarra, Elisa Turner, Jeffrey BeckerKrissy Main, Sue Samuleson, Doug Ekstrand
2019National Council Teachers of EnglishSuperior CategoryJeffrey Becker, Brian Dickson, Mary-Claire Ibarra, Elisa TurnerKrissy Main, Sue Samuleson, Doug Ekstrand
2020National Council Teachers of EnglishExcellent CategoryJeffrey Becker, Brian Dickson, Mary-Claire Ibarra, Maizie VatsaasMariely Marquez-Lopez, Gretchen Occhionero
2021CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition1st Place, Southwestern Division, 40th Anniversary EditionJeffrey Becker, Brian Dickson, Mary-Claire Ibarra, Maizie VatsaasLisa Stacy, Gretchen Occhionero
2022National Council Teachers of EnglishExcellent CategoryBrian Dickson, Jeffrey Becker, Mary-Claire Ibarra, Alexandra ErtelMariely Marquez-Lopez, Gretchen Occhionero, Alon Morris, Andrew Orduna
2022CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition2nd Place, Southwestern DivisionBrian Dickson, Jeffrey Becker, Mary-Claire Ibarra, Alexandra ErtelMariely Marquez-Lopez, Gretchen Occhionero, Alon Morris, Andrew Orduna
2023CCHA, Literary Magazine Competition2nd Place, Southwestern DivisionBrian Dickson, Jeffrey Becker, Mary-Claire Ibarra, Riley Nugyen, Sabrina SpannGretchen Occhionero, Cassie Renier, Zoe Whitely
2023National Council Teachers of EnglishSuperior CategoryBrian Dickson, Jeffrey Becker, Mary-Claire Ibarra, Riley Nugyen, Sabrina SpannGretchen Occhionero, Cassie Renier, Zoe Whitely

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