G&A: The Contest Blog

Writers of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction whose work explores diaspora should consider submitting to the Lando Grants from the de Groot Foundation by February 5. Three grants of $7,000 each will go to authors writing about “the issues and challenges of immigration, migration, and/or the refugee experience.” Three additional awards, called Lando Writer of Note Grants, of $1,500 each will also be awarded.

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Using only the online submission system, submit a writing sample of five pages (graphic novelists may include up to 10 pages of prose and graphics), a brief bio, and a personal statement with a $22 entry fee. All writers currently engaged in a writing project are eligible. Visit the website for the required entry form and complete guidelines.

The Lando grants are named for Barry Lando, an investigative journalist and former producer of 60 Minutes, who is collaborating with the de Groot Foundation to offer the awards. In a statement, Lando says the prize draws attention to “one of the gravest problems facing the world today—the enormous rise in refugees and migrants fleeing catastrophic conditions in their homelands, desperate to start new lives in the globe’s more stable, prosperous nations. My goal is to encourage emerging authors to examine—via fiction or nonfiction, any aspect of this on-going challenge, from its varied causes to its impact in the ‘developed’ world. I am particularly interested in discovering potential authors and researchers with fresh ideas for solutions.”

While you’re hibernating through subzero temperatures, why not try your luck with over a dozen contests offering publication, money, travel, and even mentorship? Prizes include $5,000 and publication in Chautauqua for a work of fiction or nonfiction by an emerging writer who displays “daring formal and aesthetic innovations,” fellowships of up to $2,000 to support feminist fiction writers, and $1,500 along with a virtual five-month mentorship program for emerging poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers “from communities that are traditionally underrepresented in the publishing world.” Stay warm, folks, and send out your work!

Arts + Literature Laboratory
Edna Meudt Poetry Book Award 
A prize of $1,000 will be given annually for a poetry collection published in the previous year by a writer who is a resident of Wisconsin (or who previously resided in Wisconsin for at least five years). The winner will also receive a five-day stay at Shake Rag Alley Center for the Arts in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. Gabrielle Bates will judge. Entry fee: $30.

Arts + Literature Laboratory
Edna Ferber Fiction Book Award 
A prize of $1,000 will be given annually for a book of fiction published in the previous year by a writer who is a resident of Wisconsin (or who previously resided in Wisconsin for at least five years). The winner will also receive a five-day stay at Shake Rag Alley Center for the Arts in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. Alison Stine will judge. Entry fee: $30.

Arts + Literature Laboratory
Norbert Blei/August Derleth Nonfiction Book Award
A prize of $1,000 will be given annually for a book of nonfiction (including creative nonfiction) published in the previous year by a writer who is a resident of Wisconsin (or who previously resided in Wisconsin for at least five years). The winner will also receive a five-day stay at Shake Rag Alley Center for the Arts in Mineral Point, Wisconsin. Sonya Huber will judge. Entry fee: $30.

Black Lawrence Press
Big Moose Prize
A prize of $1,000, publication by Black Lawrence Press, and 10 author copies is given annually for a novel. The contest is open to traditional novels as well as “novels-in-stories, novels-in-poems, and other hybrid forms that contain within them the spirit of a novel.” The editors will judge. Entry fee: $28.

Chautauqua Institution
Chautauqua Janus Prize 
A prize of $5,000 and publication in Chautauqua is given annually for a single work of fiction or nonfiction by an emerging writer displaying “daring formal and aesthetic innovations that upset and reorder readers’ imaginations.” The winner also receives a $2,000 travel and lodging stipend to give a lecture at the Chautauqua Institution in summer 2024. Writers who have not published a book of over 15,000 words in any prose genre are eligible. Submissions may consist of unpublished work or work published no earlier than April 2023. Jimin Han will judge. Entry fee: $20.

Ghost Story
Screw Turn Flash Fiction Competition 
A prize of $1,000 and publication on the Ghost Story website and in the 21st Century Ghost Stories anthology is given biannually for a work of flash fiction with a supernatural or magical realist theme. The editors will judge. Entry fee: $15.

Inlandia Institute
Eliud Martínez Prize
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Inlandia Books is given annually for a book of fiction or creative nonfiction by a writer who identifies as Hispanic, Latino/a/e/x, or Chicana/o/e/x. Manuscripts must be written primarily in English. Fee waivers are available upon request. Entry fee: $15.

Iowa Review
Iowa Review Awards
Three prizes of $1,500 each and publication in Iowa Review are given annually for works of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $20.

Money for Women/Barbara Deming Memorial Fund
Individual Artist Grants for Women 
Grants of up to $2,000 each are given in alternating years to feminist poets, fiction writers, and nonfiction writers who are citizens of the United States or Canada. This year grants will be awarded to fiction writers. English translations of works originally written in another language are accepted. A limited number of fee waivers are available upon request. Entry fee: $25.

New Millennium Writings
New Millennium Writing Awards 
Four prizes of $1,000 each and publication in New Millennium Writings in print and online are given biannually for a single poem, a short story, a work of flash fiction, and a work of creative nonfiction. Previously unpublished works or works that have either appeared in a journal with a circulation under 5,000 or have been published only online are eligible. The editors will judge. Entry fee: $20.

PEN America
Emerging Voices Fellowship 
Twelve fellowships of $1,500 each and participation in a virtual five-month mentorship program, which includes one-on-one mentorship with an established writer; introductions to editors, agents, and publishers; a professional headshot; and a one-year PEN America membership, are given annually to emerging poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers “from communities that are traditionally underrepresented in the publishing world.” Fellows also participate in workshops on editing, marketing, and building a professional platform. Writers who have not yet published a book and who do not hold an advanced degree in creative writing are eligible. Entry fee: $25. 

Poetry Northwest
James Welch Prize for Indigenous Poets 
Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Poetry Northwest are given annually for a single poem by an Indigenous poet. The winners also receive an all-expenses-paid trip to read with the judge at Poets House in New York City in the fall. Writers who have published no more than one full-length book and who are community-recognized members of tribal nations within the United States and its territories are eligible. A Native poet of national prominence will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: None.

Regal House Publishing
Terry J. Cox Poetry Award 
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Regal House Publishing is given annually for a poetry collection. John Warner Smith will judge. Entry fee: $25. 

Schaffner Press
Nicholas Schaffner Award for Music in Literature 
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Schaffner Press is given annually for a poetry collection, a novel, a story collection, an essay collection, or a memoir that “deals in some way with the subject of music and its influence.” English translations of works originally written in another language with the author’s permission are accepted. Entry fee: $25.

Stanford Libraries
William Saroyan International Prize for Writing 
Two prizes of $5,000 each are given biennially for books of fiction and nonfiction published in the previous two years. The awards, cosponsored by the Stanford Libraries and the William Saroyan Foundation, are “intended to encourage new or emerging writers and honor the Saroyan legacy of originality, vitality, and stylistic innovation.” Writers who have published up to three books are eligible. Entry fee: $50.

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Writing Prizes 
Three prizes of $2,000 each and publication in swamp pink are given annually for a single poem, a short story, and an essay. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $15.

WOMR/WFMR Community Radio
Joe Gouveia Outermost Poetry Contest 
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a single poem. Marge Piercy will judge. Entry fee: $15.

Visit the contest websites for complete guidelines, and check out the Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more contests in poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation.

Emerging Latinx poets: Start the new year off ambitiously by submitting to the biennial Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize, administered by the Huizache Literary Initiative at University of California in Davis, by February 16! The winning poet receives $1,000, publication by University of Nevada Press as part of its New Oeste Series, and an invitation to give a reading with the contest judge at UC Davis.

Using only the online submission system, submit 48 to 100 pages of poetry. Latinx poets residing in the United States who have neither published, nor have committed to publish, a full-length collection are eligible. Juan Felipe Herrera will judge. There is no entry fee.

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Established in 2004 by Letras Latinas at the University of Notre Dame’s Institute for Latino Studies “at a time when publishing opportunities for Latinx poets were few,” the Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize has given exposure to poets with a wide variety of backgrounds and aesthetic approaches throughout its 20-year trajectory. When he first conceived of the prize, founder Francisco Aragón drew inspiration from Montoya’s The Iceworker Sings and Other Poems (Bilingual Press, 1999), a collection of urban elegies, prayers, and letters that touch on the poet’s experience as an ice plant worker and address the precarious conditions of a modern world divided by race and class. Most recently, Jordan Pérez won the prize for Santa Tarantula (University of Notre Dame Press, 2024), selected by Alexandra Lytton Regalado and Sheila Maldonado for the ways in which the poet “assembles her poems as shadowboxes, curious collections of the natural world, bible stories, and family memories” that account for “the everyday of a Latinx life in the South.”

What better way to end the year than by giving contests that recognize emerging and established writers in various genres a shot? Prizes with a December 31 deadline include $20,000 (and three $1,000 prizes for finalists) for a unified and complete sequence of poems published in the United States; $15,000 and travel and lodging expenses to attend an awards ceremony in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for a book of fiction by an emerging African American writer; and $1,000 plus publication for a chapbook of short fiction, short nonfiction, or graphic narrative. Eleven contests consider all entries for publication. Read on to learn more, and best of luck!

American Library Association
W.Y. Boyd Literary Award 
A prize of $5,000 is given annually for a novel published in the current year that is set in a period when the United States was at war. Entry fee: None.

Baton Rouge Area Foundation
Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence  
A prize of $15,000 is given annually to an emerging African American writer for a book of fiction published in the current year. The winner also receives travel and lodging expenses to attend an awards ceremony and participate in educational outreach events in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 2024. Anthony Grooms, Edward P. Jones, Elizabeth Nunez, Francine Prose, and Patricia Towers will judge. Entry fee: None.

Before Columbus Foundation
American Book Awards 
Awards are given annually for books published in the United States during the current year to recognize “outstanding literary achievement from the entire spectrum of America’s diverse literary community.” Anyone, in addition to writers and publishers, may submit nominations for the awards. Entry fee: None.

Black Caucus of the American Library Association
Literary Awards 
Four prizes of $1,000 each are given annually for a poetry collection, a first novel, a book of fiction, and a book of nonfiction (including creative nonfiction) by African American writers published in the United States in the current year. The awards honor books that depict the “cultural, historical, or sociopolitical aspects of the Black Diaspora.” Entry fee: None.

Boulevard
Short Fiction Contest for Emerging Writers 
A prize of $1,500 and publication in Boulevard is given annually for a short story by a writer who has not published a nationally distributed book. The editors will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $18.

Burnside Review
Press Book Contest
A prize of $1,000, publication by Burnside Review Press, and 10 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. Arda Collins will judge. English translations of works originally written in another language are accepted. Entry fee: $25. 

Cleveland Foundation
Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards
Three to four prizes of $10,000 each are given annually for a poetry collection, a book of fiction, and a book of nonfiction (including creative nonfiction) published during the current year “that contribute to our understanding of racism and our appreciation of cultural diversity.” Rita Dove, Henry Louis Gates Jr., Joyce Carol Oates, Steven Pinker, and Simon Schama will judge. Entry fee: None.

Crosswinds
Poetry Contest 
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Crosswinds is given annually for a single poem. April Ossmann will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $20.

Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry
Griffin Poetry Prize  
A prize of $130,000 Canadian (approximately $96,748) is given annually for a poetry collection published during the current year and written in, or translated into, English. Should the prize-winning book be a translation, 60 percent of the prize is awarded to the translator and 40 percent to the poet. Finalists each receive $10,000 Canadian (approximately $7,442) for their participation in the Griffin Poetry Prize Shortlist Readings held in Toronto. Entry fee: None.

Hub City Press
C. Michael Curtis Short Story Book Prize 
A prize of $5,000 and publication by Hub City Press is given biennially for a short story collection. Writers who have not published more than one book in any genre and who currently reside in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, or West Virginia and who have lived there for at least two consecutive years are eligible. Maurice Carlos Ruffin will judge. Entry fee: $25.

Lascaux Review
Lascaux Prize in Short Fiction 
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Lascaux Review is given annually for a short story. Previously published and unpublished stories are eligible. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $15.

LitMag
Virginia Woolf Award for Short Fiction 
A prize of $2,500 and publication in LitMag is given annually for a short story. The winner will also have their work reviewed by agents from Bankoff Collaborative, the Bent Agency, Brandt & Hochman, Folio Literary Management, InkWell Management, Sobel Weber Associates, and Triangle House Literary. The editors will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $20.

Livingston Press
Tartt Fiction Award 
A prize of $1,000, publication by Livingston Press, and 60 author copies is given annually for a first collection of short stories by a U.S. citizen. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: None.

Michigan Quarterly Review
Jesmyn Ward Prize in Fiction 
A prize of $2,000 and publication in Michigan Quarterly Review is given annually for a short story. David Lynn will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $25.

Michigan Quarterly Review
Laurence Goldstein Prize in Poetry  
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Michigan Quarterly Review will be given annually for a single poem. Lawrence Joseph will judge. All entries will be considered for publication. Entry fee: $20.

The Moth
Poetry Prize 
A prize of €6,000 (approximately $6,572) and online publication in the Irish Times is given annually for a single poem. Three runner-up prizes of €1,000 (approximately $1,095) each and online publication in the Irish Times are also given. The four shortlisted poets, including the winner, will also be invited to read at an online awards ceremony in spring 2024. Hannah Sullivan will judge. Entry fee: €15 (approximately $16).

Ohio University Press
Hollis Summers Poetry Prize 
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Ohio University Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Entry fee: $30.

Plentitudes
Prizes in Fiction, Nonfiction, and Poetry 
Three prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Plentitudes will be given annually for a single poem, a short story, and an essay. Mahtem Shiferraw will judge in poetry, Joss Lake will judge in fiction, and Daniel Allen Cox will judge in nonfiction. All entries will be considered for publication. Entry fee: $20.

Poetry Society of America
Four Quartets Prize 
A prize of $20,000 is given annually for a unified and complete sequence of poems published in the United States in a print or online journal, a chapbook, or a book during the current year. Three finalists, including the winner, will receive $1,000 each. Entry fee: None.

Poetry Society of America
Robert H. Winner Memorial Award 
A prize of $2,500 and publication on the Poetry Society of America website is given annually to a poet over 40 who has published no more than one book. Nathan McClain will judge. Entry fee: $15 (there is no entry fee for PSA members). Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Poetry Society of America
Alice Fay Di Castagnola Award 
A prize of $1,000 and publication on the Poetry Society of America website is given annually for poetry from a manuscript-in-progress. Lucy Ives will judge. Entry fee: $15 (there is no entry fee for PSA members).

Press 53
Award for Short Fiction 
A prize of $1,000, publication by Press 53, and 53 author copies is given annually for a story collection. Claire V. Foxx will judge. Entry fee: $30.

Tupelo Press
Dorset Prize 
A prize of $3,000, publication by Tupelo Press, and 20 author copies is given annually for a poetry collection. The winner also receives a two-week residency at Gentle House in Port Angeles, Washington. Shane McCrae will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $30.

University of Tampa Press
Danahy Fiction Prize 
A prize of $1,000 and publication in Tampa Review will be given annually for a short story. All entries will be considered for publication. Entry fee: $25 (which includes a subscription to Tampa Review).

Visit the contest websites for complete guidelines, and check out the Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more contests in poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation.

Ten writers have won the Whiting Foundation’s Creative Nonfiction Grant for 2023. Now in its eighth year, the $40,000 prize aims to support multi-year book projects. Unlike the $50,000 Whiting Awards for emerging writers, authors can apply for the Creative Nonfiction Grant; judges award applicants whose work “displays singularity of voice, arresting narrative vision, a clear contribution to our culture at large, and in-depth, quality research,” according to a statement from the foundation.

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The winners include Nicholas Boggs for James Baldwin: A Love Story, a consideration of Baldwin’s relationships with his mentor, lover, and two artistic collaborators, forthcoming from Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Eiren Caffall for The Mourner’s Bestiary, which investigates the loss of marine ecosystems in the Gulf of Maine and the Long Island Sound alongside the story of a family’s battle with a serious illness and the author’s own family history of a genetic kidney disease, forthcoming from Row House Publishing; Sarah Chihaya for Bibliophobia, a blend of literary criticism and memoir examining readers’—including the author’s—affective relationships with books, forthcoming from Random House; Alexander Clapp for Waste Wars: A Journey Through the World of Globalized Trash, a journalistic examination of the international garbage business and its geopolitical consequences, forthcoming from Little, Brown; Kendra Taira Field for The Stories We Tell, which investigates African American family narratives from the Middle Passage to the present, forthcoming from W. W. Norton; Molly O’Toole for The Route: The Untold Story of the New Migrant Underground, which explores a migrant passage from Brazil to the U.S.–Mexico border, forthcoming from Crown; Dom Phillips with collaborators for How to Save the Amazon: Ask the People Who Know, a “character-driven” narrative of travel through the imperiled rainforest, forthcoming from Manilla Press, an imprint of Bonnier Books in the United Kingdom; Carrie Schuettpelz for The Indian Card: A Journey Through America’s Native Identity Problem, about the nuances of Indigenous ethnicity in the U.S., forthcoming from Flatiron Books; Sonia Shah for Special: The Rise and Fall of a Beastly Idea, which troubles the notion of human exceptionalism among other animals, forthcoming from Bloomsbury; and Reggie Ugwu for Brilliance Is All We Have: Black Filmmakers and the Fight for the Soul of America, a deep-dive into the history of Black American cinema, forthcoming from Bloomsbury.

Each of the winning projects underwent two first-round readers, who considered the “substance, narrative skill, quality of research, and impact” of the work. Sixteen finalists were evaluated by a panel of four judges, who chose the final ten grantees based on how the grant would contribute to the book. Experts in the field of work under consideration, readers and judges served anonymously to keep them from feeling pressure to choose any one work over another.

“This year’s grantees are doing venturous work, reporting from often hostile places on complex matters of deep import to us all,” Courtney Hodell, Whiting’s director of literary programs, said in a statement. “For some, the journey is an inward one. All these writers are animated by a drive for beauty as well as truth, and this combination is what makes books endure. Whiting is thrilled to support such risk-taking.”

To learn more about the Whiting Foundation’s Creative Nonfiction Grant, visit the foundation’s website. Check out the Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more contests in poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation. 

With just a couple of weeks until Thanksgiving, be grateful for time off to prepare your work for a variety of upcoming contests that have a November 30 deadline! Prizes include $2,500 and publication for a short work of fiction, graphic narrative, or memoir or an excerpt from a longer work of prose; $2,500, publication, and 50 author copies for a poetry chapbook; and $1,000 and publication for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction translated from any language into English. Continue reading to find details on nearly a dozen other prizes, and good luck!

Autumn House Press
Rising Writer Prize 
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Autumn House Press is given in alternating years for a debut work of poetry or fiction. The 2024 prize will be given for poetry. The winner will also receive a $500 grant for travel and book promotion. Eduardo C. Corral will judge. The submission fee may be waived in cases of financial need. All finalists are considered for publication. Entry fee: $25.

Beloit Poetry Journal
Chad Walsh Chapbook Series
A prize of $2,500, publication by Beloit Poetry Journal, and 50 author copies is given annually for a poetry chapbook. A limited number of fee waivers are available upon request via e-mail. Entry fee: $20.

BOA Editions
A Poulin Jr. Poetry Prize
A prize of $1,000 and publication by BOA Editions is given annually for a first book of poetry by a U.S. resident. Matthew Shenoda will judge. Entry fee: $25. 

Fish Publishing
Fish Short Story Prize 
A prize of €3,000 (approximately $3,287) and publication in the annual Fish Publishing anthology is given annually for a short story. The winner will also be invited to attend a five-day short story workshop and read at the West Cork Literary Festival in July 2024. Sarah Hall will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: €20 (approximately $22) for online submissions; €22 (approximately $24) for mailed submissions.

Green Linden Press
Wishing Jewel Prize 
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Green Linden Press is given annually for an innovative book of poetry “that questions the boundaries of genre, form, or mode while engaging the rich possibilities of lyrical expression.” English translations of poems originally written in another language are accepted. Christopher Nelson will judge. All finalists are considered for publication. Entry fee: $25.

Green Linden Press
Stephen Mitchell Translation Prize 
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Green Linden Press will be given annually for a book of poetry, fiction, or creative nonfiction translated from any language into English. Christopher Nelson will judge. All finalists will be considered for publication. Entry fee: $25.

LitMag
Anton Chekhov Award for Flash Fiction 
A prize of $1,250 and publication in LitMag is given annually for a work of flash fiction. The winner will also have their work reviewed by agents from the Bent Agency, Brandt & Hochman, Folio Literary Management, InkWell Management, Sobel Weber Associates, and Triangle House Literary. The editors will judge. Entry fee: $16. 

Munster Literature Center
Gregory O’Donoghue International Poetry Competition 
A prize of €2,000 (approximately $2,192) and publication in Southword is given annually for a single poem. The winner will also receive a four-night hotel stay with full board to give a featured reading at the Cork International Poetry Festival in Cork, Ireland, in May 2024 and will be featured on the Southword Poetry Podcast. Entry fee: €7 (approximately $8).

Narrative
Fall Story Contest 
A prize of $2,500 and publication in Narrative is given annually for a short story, a short short story, an essay, a short graphic narrative, a short work of memoir, or an excerpt from a longer work of prose. A second-place prize of $1,000 and publication in Narrative is also awarded. The editors will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $27.

Nina Riggs Poetry Foundation
Nina Riggs Poetry Award 
A prize of $1,000 is given annually for a single poem that examines relationships, family, or domestic life and was published in a book or magazine in the last three years. English translations of poems originally written in another language are accepted. Entry fee: None.

Quarter After Eight
Robert J. DeMott Short Prose Contest 
A prize of $1,008.15 and publication in Quarter After Eight is given annually for a prose poem, a short short story, a micro essay, or other work of short prose. Dianne Seuss will judge. All entries are considered for publication. Entry fee: $15.

Red Hen Press
Quill Prose Award 
A prize of $1,000 and publication by Red Hen Press is given annually for a story or essay collection, a novel, or a hybrid work of prose by a queer writer. Carlos Allende will judge. Entry fee: $10.

Tadpole Press
100-Word Writing Contest 
A prize of $2,000 is given biannually for a work of flash poetry or prose. English translations of works originally written in another language are accepted. Entry fee: $15. 

White Pine Press
Poetry Prize
A prize of $1,000 and publication by White Pine Press is given annually for a poetry collection. Entry fee: $20.

Visit the contest websites for complete guidelines, and check out the Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more contests in poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and translation.

There’s still almost a month’s time to apply to the David J. Langum Sr. Prize in American Fiction! The award is given annually for a book of historical fiction published during the current year that helps to make “the rich history of America accessible to the general reader.” Self-published books are not accepted. The winner receives a prize of $1,000. Submissions are open through December 1.

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Publishers or authors may submit two copies of a book (or galleys) published in 2023. There is no entry fee. Visit the website for complete guidelines.

Founded by David J. Langum Sr. in 2001 and formerly known as the Langum Charitable Trust, the Langum Foundation seeks to reward books “out of a conviction that too many historians today write only for each other’s reading” and not for “the American public.” Previous winners of the David J. Langum Sr. Prize in American Fiction include Mark Barr for Watershed and Louisa Hall for Trinity.