We’re thrilled to introduce Sergio Muro, the new director of the Insider Prize, a contest for incarcerated writers in Texas. Sergio takes over from Adam Soto, who has grown the prize into something incredibly meaningful over the last three years, and who, luckily for us, will stay on at ASF as a senior editor. We are so grateful to Adam for his wonderful work and happy that he can now leave it in such capable new hands. Sergio Muro is a fiction writer from Laredo, Texas. He is also on the ... [READ MORE]
NOTEBOOK
The 2026 American Short(er) Fiction Prize
We are thrilled to announce that the brilliant Bret Anthony Johnston—internationally bestselling author of We Burn Daylight and Remember Me Like This and director of the Michener Center for Writers—will judge the 2026 American Short(er) Fiction Prize. The prize recognizes extraordinary short fiction under 1,500 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 ... [READ MORE]
The Halifax Ranch Prize 2025 Winners
We are thrilled to announce the winners of this year's Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize, judged by Eric Puchner. We consider it our privilege to have spent time with so many terrific submissions—thank you for giving us the opportunity to read your work. Congratulations to the winners! _____ First-Place Prize: "The Woman" by Jana Horn Judge Eric Puchner writes, "This emotionally insightful story about a woman who goes on a camping trip with her boyfriend and his daughter, who's been mysteriously ... [READ MORE]
Story Sessions: Susan Choi in Conversation with Deb Olin Unferth
Join ASF for the second installment of Story Sessions, a literary series that brings exceptional authors together for a freewheeling discussion about the power of stories and the ways we share them, on September 12, 2025, at Huston-Tillotson University from 6 – 8:00 p.m. We’re thrilled to welcome the National Book Award-winning novelist Susan Choi to the stage alongside acclaimed novelist Deb Olin Unferth. This event is free and open to the public and ASL interpretation will be provided. ... [READ MORE]
The Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize: Now Closed
We’re so pleased to announce that our judge for this year’s Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize will be Eric Puchner, author of the 2025 New York Times bestselling novel Dream State as well as the novel Model Home, a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, and two story collections. Puchner lives in Baltimore, where he is the director of the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University. The deadline to submit has been extended to June 15, 2025. In addition to publication and a $2,500 prize, we are ... [READ MORE]
The Halifax Prize Winners
We are thrilled to announce the winners of this year's Halifax Ranch Fiction Prize, judged by Daniel Mason. We consider it our privilege to have spent time with so many terrific submissions—thank you for giving us the opportunity to read your work. Congratulations to the winners! _____ First-Place Prize: "The Skilled Anatomist" by Colleen Rosenfeld Judge Daniel Mason writes, "'The Skilled Anatomist' takes a strange and beautiful conceit and runs with it, treading the uncanny space between ... [READ MORE]