Isabella Sotlar Named Undergraduate Winner of Felix Christopher McKean Memorial Award

The Program in Creative Writing and Translation is pleased to announce that Isabella Sotlar has been awarded the undergraduate Felix Christopher McKean Memorial Award.

Sotlar’s poem “Elijah-Raised in the Fire” appears in Issue 7 of The Diamond Line, the U of A’s undergraduate literary magazine, this spring.

Sotlar is a sophomore honors English major concentrating in creative writing with a minor in Italian. She is an avid writer of fiction, poetry and songs, and enjoys reading fantasy, fiction and romance. Her interests outside of the literary arts include spending time outdoors and surfing.

“The inspiration for ‘Elijah-Raised in the Fire’ was drawn from my younger brother Elijah, along with Biblical references,” Sotlar noted about the awarded poem. “In general, I draw a lot of creativity from the people close to me, as well as books and dreams.”

The award was founded in 1945 to honor the memory of McKean, an Arkansas native of Lockesburg who, while studying foreign languages, business and mathematics at the U of A, discovered a passion for writing poetry. After McKean was killed in the line of duty during World War II, his mother established the award with funds from his serviceman life insurance, stipulating that it be granted to students as a literary award for poetry. 

This story also appeared in the University of Arkansas News publication.