Best in Class

Active year-long subscribers who received the “Utility Edition” in the spring also were sent a surprise shipment of Field Notes “Blue Exam Books,” along with an optional homework writing assignment. Almost a thousand people submitted their work for a chance to win prizes. We had a blast reading them all. Though it was very tough, we managed to select six essays as “Best in Class” and randomly awarded the prizes.

Thanks a million to everyone who took part and congrats to the winners. You never can tell what extras or exclusive bonuses might be included in your year-long subscription. You’ll just have to sign up for one to find out.

Winners of a custom run of 250 personalized memo books: Marty Allen of Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin for his essay “Grandma and the Cop” and Diana Crockett of Carmel Valley, California for her memoir about “Chasing Fairies.”

Winners of an individually signed copy of Aaron Draplin’s Pretty Much Everything: Ben Kemble of Louisville, Kentucky for his story “My Rival Kelsey” and Jeremiah Taylor of Jonesborough, Tennesee for his profile of his “Paw Paw.”

Winners of a Year-Long Subscription to our Quarterly Editions: Heidi Raatz of St. Paul, Minnesota for her essay “Valentine Crush” and Madeline (6th grade) & Zoe (5th grade) Lim of Incline Valley, Nevada for their stories that asked the questions “How to Be a Tiger?” and “How Many Gerbils?”

We’re not posting individual grades but you can assign yourself your own grade based on this curve. 

• 25% A
• 44% B
• 21% C
• 5% D
• 2% NSFW
• 2% Indicipherable
• 1% Scary

Thanks again for taking part. Good luck next year, everyone passed!