Crooked Spine contest archive
After the Last Exit
500-Word Contest
The final cut
After the Last Exit
Winner
Christine McIntee
“Saguaro Highway”
“There’s no one out here to save me now. Not that there was before.”
Christine McIntee is a contributing author in the 2026 Whatcom Writes Anthology, founder of the Bellingham Horror Book Club, and an AAS in Cybersecurity degree holder. She loves literature, cats, poetry, video games, tabletop games, and philosophy. She has reached 100% achievement completion in DARK SOULS: REMASTERED. You can stay up to date with her work at christinemcintee.com find her on Instagram @christinemcinteewrites
Winner
Ashley Mangtani
“Neutral”
“Her voice gave out on the two hundredth night. Screaming is for people with somewhere to arrive.”
Ashley Mangtani is a slipstream writer whose work explores ecological and social collapse, and the roles people inhabit in moments of crisis. His work appears or is forthcoming in Smokelong Quarterly, Strange Horizons, Litro, Washington Square Review, Boudin, Heavy Feather Review, BULL, Expat Press, Thin Skin, HAWKEYE, Mobius, Third Wednesday, Rock Salt, Neon Dystopia, Apocalypse Confidential, and others.
Winner
Aodh Alexander
“Missed Connection Outside Moab, Utah”
“He was keeping a reasonable distance, but just looking into his headlights made me feel like an actor looking up at their spotlight.”
Aodh Alexander is a Kansas City-based author, musician, and bookseller. When he isn't weighing and playing scales, he can be found at the nearest movie theater, endlessly throwing frisbees for his beautiful dogs, or doodling on Instagram.
