We are thrilled to announce that Deb Olin Unferth, author of six remarkable books, including Wait Till You See Me Dance, Minor Robberies, and the forthcoming novel Barn 8, will judge this year’s American Short(er) Fiction Prize. The prize recognizes extraordinary short fiction under 1,000 words. The first-place winner will receive a $1,000 prize and publication. Previous winners of the Short(er) Fiction Prize have gone on to be anthologized in places such as The Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small ... [READ MORE]
NOTEBOOK
Web Exclusive Interview: Nora Lange
In Nora Lange's flash fiction, “Her Cousin Lena,” Rose records a long-distance phone call with her mother. Their exchange reveals a disconnect that, though often funny, describes the “love and horror” of a certain flavor of mother-daughter relationship. Haunting the conversation is the absent figure of Rose’s cousin, Lena, to whom the mother constantly compares her daughter, and who becomes the axis point of their unaddressed tensions. We chatted recently with Nora about her story and ... [READ MORE]
2019 The Halifax Fiction Prize Winner
We're delighted to announce that our wonderful judge Rebecca Makkai has selected the winner of The Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize. We received many terrific submissions—thank you for giving us the opportunity to read your work! Winner: "Visitors" by Rachel Vogel Judge's Citation "This story made me tremendously nervous, which is about the highest compliment I can give: It made me care, unsettled me, and had me holding my breath. Looking back on the actual events of the story, they're ... [READ MORE]
Web Exclusive Interview: Min Han
If you remove technology and industry, anything remotely modern about human beings, what sort of animal are we? What is the shape of our heart, after all? To explore these questions, Min Han went back to the Stone Age for August's Web Exclusive, "Ara's Man." We talked with the debut author about telling a universal story set in another world, about the importance of travel, and how bullshit it is that there aren't more stories where early females occupy the significant roles (that archaeology ... [READ MORE]
ASF Goes Back to School: Back Issues for the College Classroom
In recent years, we shipped over 300 free back issues of American Short Fiction to colleges and universities including Rowan University, the University of Iowa, the University of Wisconsin, Towson University, Missouri State University, and the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. If you’re a creative writing instructor who’s teaching a workshop at a U.S. college or university this fall, we’d be happy to send you a box of back issues to use in your classroom. These could be a teaching tool, or a ... [READ MORE]
The Internal Conversation Is Constant: An Interview with Danielle Lazarin
Danielle Lazarin’s debut story collection Back Talk (Penguin Books, 2018) features women grappling with what they—often deliberately—leave unsaid and displays the intricacies of the desires and rages that live inside those silences. Hailed as “beautifully crafted” by the New York Times, Back Talk is a story collection that lingers long after a first read, not only for its beautiful prose and unforgettable characters but for its quiet, powerful tensions. Here, Lazarin discusses her title story, ... [READ MORE]