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Four students in Mississippi State’s Department of Communication are earning awards for their nonfiction submissions in the Story State Storytelling Competition.

The competition is being held in advance of “Story State: Fostering Innovative Storytelling,” a Thursday [Feb. 25] virtual event aimed to help the next generation find their place in the genealogy of Mississippi writers. Free and open to the public, "Story State" will be broadcast at 1 p.m. from .��

Story State Storytelling Competition winners include:

—Ashlynn McCain, a senior communication and psychology double-major from Starkville, 2021 Master Storyteller and $250 prize for her short story “5031.”

—Victoria Newton, a senior communication major from Nesbit, second place for her dramatic play “Trapped.”

—Vernell Allen, a junior communication and English double-major from Brookhaven, third place for his manuscript “This Is to Say.”

—Collin Christein, a sophomore communication major from Northampton, Pennsylvania, honorable mention for his short film “No Need to Run.”