[ALL 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25]

If your story is listed in the top 5 below, congratulations, you are among the 125 writers moving on to the 2nd Round kicking off at 11:59PM EDT this Thursday, April 11th!   Congratulations to everyone that submitted a story, narrowing down a top 5 in each heat was incredibly difficult and everyone should be proud for rising to the challenge and creating a story outside your comfort zone from scratch in 8 days.  We hope the challenge was inspiring and hope to see you in our next challenge!

#1 'Deviant' by Kenneth Rountree SYNOPSIS - A young woman in the Christian States of America loses her job as a secretary and becomes a zookeeper for the Department of Traditional Values.

#2 'The Penguins in the Savannah' by Rachel Unkovic SYNOPSIS - Following an existential crisis, a lawyer becomes a zookeeper and learns to stop questioning the status quo, even as it changes around him.

#3 'To the Director, Love, Nona' by Anya Si Ying Ow SYNOPSIS - A Letter of Resignation in four Acts.

#4 'Rec White and Black' by Patsy Lally SYNOPSIS - CIA Operative Travis Jones is desperate to leave the agency. He takes one last assignment as Zookeeper to a super secret intelligence gathering unit in a remove jungle.

#5 'You've Goat To Be Joking' by Theresa Romano & Steven Romano  SYNOPSIS - A zookeeper living under the oppressive reign of Joseph Stalin follows his true calling as a comedian, thanks to a chance encounter with a talking goat.

#Honorable Mention 'At The Zoo' by Mike Rice SYNOPSIS - Chief of Staff Tom Flynn is miffed when Governor Donald Phillips hires a zookeeper as his pollster for a tough re-election campaign, because Dabler’s animals can predict winners simply by choosing which bowl of nuts to eat. Flynn gets the last laugh, however, when the Governor learns that bowls of nuts are not always what they’re cracked up to be, when an assumed friend bites the hand that feeds him.

#Honorable Mention 'Get the Big Shovel' by Jeshua Enriquez SYNOPSIS - An idealistic young grad decides to make a difference in the world by joining Zookeep For America.

#Honorable Mention 'OBAMA'S WAR' by Bert Estrada SYNOPSIS - On top of the world, the most elusive man in history is captured in one long black afternoon. It’s the war we warned you about.

---