Three Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) students have been selected as finalists in the 2015 Gaithersburg Book Festival High School Student Short Story Contest. The MCPS students are among a total of 14 finalists from Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

First-, second- and third-place winners, along with a fan favorite, will be announced at the Gaithersburg Book Festival on Saturday, May 16. The event will be held on the grounds of City Hall in Gaithersburg from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Students were asked to write short stories of 1,000 words or less that were inspired by one of three photographs that were featured on the Gaithersburg Book Festival website. The top three stories will be selected by Sarah McCoy, author of The Baker’s Daughter and The Time It Snowed in Puerto Rico. Winners will receive $100, $50 and $25 gift certificates, respectively.

The MCPS finalists, and the titles of their short stories are:

Riley Corboy, Gaithersburg High School, “Primary Colors”
Maggie Leon, Gaithersburg High School, “Falling Chandeliers”
Annika La Vina, Walter Johnson High School, “Finding a Super Power”

The finalists’ stories have been posted on the Gaithersburg Book Festival website. Visitors are encouraged to go read the stories and “like” their favorite stories to help determine the “Fan Favorite” entry.

The Gaithersburg Book Festival is an annual all-day celebration of books, writers and literary excellence. Now in its sixth year, the Festival has become one of the premier literary events in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.