Senior Spotlight: Madeline Arcaro

Madeline Arcaro was awarded for her short story by the Wilbur and Niso Smith Foundation.

The Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize is an international prize that supports and celebrates the best adventure writing today. Part of the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize, the Author of Tomorrow Award is an annual competition open to young people across the world who have completed a short piece of adventure writing in English.

With over 750 submissions, Arcaro's short story "Salt in Her Lungs" was selected by Niso Smith herself to receive the "Highly Commended" award in the 16-21 category for stories between 1,500 and 3,000 words.

"I [want] to extend my deepest thank you to you and the rest of the English department for all of the support I’ve received in getting me to the point where I’m confident enough to share my writing and submit my work," said Arcaro, who graduates this coming spring. "The award is the icing on the cake and it is an honor to take it home, but the department at UMD is truly something special. I feel as though I have grown so much not only as a writer, but as a person, in my time in the department."

You can read her story here, and her interview with the Wilbur and Niso Smith Foundation here.