Arthur Powers

8621 Wheeling Drive
Raleigh NC 27615

Peace Corps/Brazil (1969-73). Corporate & international lawyer in Chicago, Rio de Janeiro, and Boston (1975-85).  Human rights lawyer and community/union organizer for Catholic Church in eastern Amazon region of Brazil (1985-92): lived in a village on the Araguaia River, working with subsistence farm families in an area of violent land conflicts.  Director of international development projects in Northeastern Brazil (1992-96).  Legal Director in Brazil for Raytheon Company, working to install the Brazilian government’s environmental monitoring & air traffic control system for the Amazon (1997-2006).  Married to Brenda King-Powers; two daughters, one granddaughter.

Education: Shimer College, B.A. (1967); Harvard Law School, J.D. (1975); U. of New Hampshire, Ph.D. in Natural Resources Policy: Sustainable Rural Development (2010).

Editor: CatholicFiction.net (2012-2014).     Board Member:  The Raleigh Review 

Judge:  2014-2016 Tom Howard/John Reid Short Fiction & Essay Contests; 2015 Dappled Things J.F. Powers Short Fiction Contest

 

Writing Awards:

  • 1984 Fellowship in Fiction, Massachusetts Artists Foundation
  • Fiction Award, Catholic Press Association (1st prize –1995, 2nd prize – 1998, 3rd prize - 2006)
  • 2008 Tom Howard Short Story Award  (2nd prize) – The Bridge
  • 2011 Finalist – Press 53 Fiction Contest
  • 2012 Finalist – Press 53 in both Fiction and Flash Fiction categories
  • 2012 Winner – 1st place – Tuscany Press Novella award - The Book of Jotham
  • 2012 Finalist – New Orleans Review/Walker Percy Award - Redemption
  • 2014 - Catholic Arts & Literature Award - A Hero For The People
  • Pushcart Prize nominations:
    • 2005 -    (poem) – Ancient Paths
    • 2012 – “Thorn” (short story) – Prime Number
    • 2012 – “Carla” (short story) – Dappled Things
    • 2013 -  “Finding” (poem) – Apple Valley Review
  • Best New Poets nomination
    • 2013 -  “Finding” (poem) – Apple Valley Review
  • Best of the Net nomination
    • 2013 -  “Finding” (poem) – Apple Valley Review

 

Books:

  • A Hero For The People – Stories of the Brazilian Backlands (Press 53, 2013)
  • The Book of Jotham (Tuscany Press, 2013)
  • Edgewater (Finishing Line Press, 2015)
  • Sketches/Brazil (Finishing Line Press, 2019)
  • Padre Raimundo's Army (Wiseblood Books, 2020)

 

Published Short Stories:

  • “The Bridge” in St. Anthony Messenger – 5/94
  • “Claudio” in Critic – winter/95
  • “Back Country People” in St. Anthony Messenger – 2/97
  • “Home Town” in The Heartlands Today (Vol. 7) – fall/97
  • “And We Shall Be Together…” in The Roanoke Review – Spring/00
  • “Commedia Dell’Arte” in Dreams & Visions – Autumn/02
  • “Grace And The Chickens” in St. Anthony Messenger – 7/03
  • “Hate” in The Worcester Review – fall/04
  • “Commedia Dell’Arte” in Sky Songs II (anthology) – 3/05
  • “Pastor Eugenio’s Confession” in Liguorian – 10/05
  • “Switzerland” in St. Anthony Messenger 02/06
  • “Carla,” “Stone,” and “A Hero For The People” in Dappled Things 9/06 (featured author)
  • “Inheritance” in Liguorian – 10/06
  • “Famine” in XNK Magazine – spring/08
  • “Friar Robert’s Thief” in Liguorian – 07/08
  • “Carla and Jaime” in Dappled Things vol. 3, issue 4 – fall/08
  • “Two Foxes” in XNK Magazine – spring/09
  • “Exú” in Dappled Things vol. 5, issue 1 – winter/09
  • “Carla” in Dappled Things 5th anniversary edition/11 (Pushcart Prize Nominee)
  • “Thorn” in Prime Number issue 11 – 09/11 (Pushcart Prize Nominee)
  • “Come Into My House And Stay….” in Dappled Things vol. 6, issue 3 - 2011
  • “Two Foxes” & “Four Liters of Wild Honey” in anthology: Being Human: Call of the Wild (Ed. Bibliotekos 2012)
  • “Lists” in Prime Number issue 17.3 – 02/12
  • “Sonata on a Michigan Night” in Prime Number issue 19 – 04/12
  • “Padre Raimundo’s Army” in St. Katherine Review vol. 2, #3 – 09/12
  • “The Giant of Chaldor” in Catholic Flash Fiction – August 2012
  • “Padre Raimundo’s Army” in anthology: Puzzles of Faith & Patterns of Doubt (Ed. Bibliotekos 2013)
  • "Four Litres of Wild Honey" bi-lingual English/Spanish in Triadae - November 2014
  • "Ordination" in Dappled Things - December 2014
  • "Land" in Open Road Review (India) - spring 2015
  • "The Fruit Tree" in anthology: Just So Stories (18th Wall Press 2015)
  • "Santa Cruz" - in Pilgrim: A Journal of Catholic Experience - February 2016
  • "The Secret of Time" in anthology: It's About Time Time (Main Street Rag 2016)
  • "Venus If You Do" and "Claudio" in anthology: Image & Likeness (Full Quiver 2017)
  • "Madeleine's Hats" in Liguorian - March 2018
  • "Famine" in Aesthetica Creative Writing Annual 2018
  • "Mozambique" in anthology: Everywhere Stories 3 (Press 53, 2018)
  • "Shadow Companion" in Embark - July 2019
  • "Padre Raimundo's Army" in Better Than Starbucks - September 2019
  • "All Things Visible & Invisible" in Windhover - August 2020
  • "Carmelucia" in Dappled Things - October 2020

 

Additional Publications/Experience:

  • Essays in America, Brazilian Business, Commonweal, Cooperação Ativa, Florida/Brazil Institute Review, International Lawyer, Our Sunday Visitor, Terra Nova, Savvy Author, Faith-Filled Fiction, & others
  • Poetry (magazines) in America, Americas Review, Anthology of Magazine Verse & Yearbook of American Poetry, Apple Valley Review, Chicago Tribune Magazine, Church Herald, Harvard Advocate, Hiram Poetry Review, hotmetal press, Kansas Quarterly, Longhouse, Main Street Rag, New Blackfriars, Papyrus, Plains Poetry Journal, Rattapallax, Roanoke Review, Sandlapper, Sisters Today, South Carolina Review, Southern Poetry Review, Southwest Review, Sou’wester, Texas Quarterly, Windhover, & many others
  • Poetry (anthologies) in Place of Passage: Contermporary Catholic Poetry(Story Line Press, 2000); Red, Whites & Blues: Poets on the Promise of America (University of Iowa Press, 2004); Solace in So Many Words (Weighed Words, 2011); Imago Dei: Poems From Christianity & Literature (Abilene Christian University Press, 2012), and others.
  • Comic play produced at Shimer College reading theatre (1989)
  • Guest Editor of A New Song (2002-3); editor CatholicFiction.net (2011-2013); Board Member - The Raleigh Review
  • Featured author in Dappled Things (Sept. 2006)
  • Founding member, first treasurer and former vice president of The Catholic Writers’ Guild.
  • Leader of writing workshops and mentor of writers.