Drue Heinz Literature Prize

Drue Heinz Literature Prize

The Drue Heinz Literature Prize recognizes and supports writers of short fiction and makes their work available to readers around the world. The award is open to authors who have published a book-length collection of fiction or at least three short stories or novellas in commercial magazines or literary journals.

Manuscripts are judged anonymously by nationally known writers. Past judges have included Robert Penn Warren, Joyce Carol Oates, Raymond Carver, Margaret Atwood, Russell Banks, Rick Moody, and Joan Didion.

Winners receive a cash prize of $15,000, publication by the University of Pittsburgh Press, and support in the nation-wide promotion of their book.

2023 DRUE HEINZ LITERATURE PRIZE

Selected by Deesha Philyaw

Small in Real Life

This compact but mighty collection explores both the heights and depths of the unsavory business of being human. With exquisite, emotionally rich prose, every story surprises and unsettles. Tenderness coexists with terror, beauty alongside betrayal. Characters are at turns earnest and terrible as they grapple with longing, lust, grief, regret, and disappointment. The heart of this brilliant collection is chaos—the way the universe is chaotic, unpredictable, and simply dazzling.
Deesha Philyaw

past winners

2022
It Falls Gently All Around and Other Stories

It Falls Gently All Around and Other Stories

By Ramona Reeves

Selected by Elizabeth Graver
2021
Now You Know It All

Now You Know It All

By Joanna Pearson

Selected by Edward P. Jones
2020
The Prince of Mournful Thoughts and Other Stories

The Prince of Mournful Thoughts and Other Stories

By Caroline Kim

Selected by Alexander Chee
2019
Driving in Cars with Homeless Men

Driving in Cars with Homeless Men

By Kate Wisel

Selected by Min Jin Lee
2018
The Dogs of Detroit

The Dogs of Detroit

By Brad Felver

Selected by Lynne Sharon Schwartz
2017
The Islands

The Islands

By William Wall

Selected by Selected by David Gates
2016
Dog Years

Dog Years

By Melissa Yancy

Selected by Richard Russo
2015
This Angel on My Chest

This Angel on My Chest

By Leslie Pietrzyk

Selected by Jill McCorkle
2014
The Spirit Bird

The Spirit Bird

By Kent Nelson

Selected by David Guterson
2013
The Old Priest

The Old Priest

By Anthony Wallace

Selected by Amy Hempel
2012
The Source of Life and Other Stories

The Source of Life and Other Stories

By Beth Bosworth

Selected by Sven Birkerts
2011
 The Necessity of Certain Behaviors

The Necessity of Certain Behaviors

By Shannon Cain

Selected by Alice Mattison
2010
The Physics of Imaginary Objects

The Physics of Imaginary Objects

By Tina May Hall

Selected by Renata Adler
2009
Triple Time

Triple Time

By Anne Sanow

Selected by Ann Patchett
2008
Out Loud

Out Loud

By Anthony Varallo

Selected by Scott Turow
2007
Paradise Road

Paradise Road

By Kirk Nesset

Selected by Hilary Masters
2006
Newsworld

Newsworld

By Todd James Pierce

Selected by Joan Didion
2005
Between Camelots

Between Camelots

By David Harris Ebenbach

Selected by Stewart O'Nan
2004
Bring Your Legs with You

Bring Your Legs with You

By Darrell Spencer

Selected by Michael Chabon
2003
Speed-Walk and Other Stories

Speed-Walk and Other Stories

By Suzanne Greenberg

Selected by Rick Moody
2002
American Standard

American Standard

By John Blair

Selected by Elizabeth Hardwick
2001
Destination Known

Destination Known

By Brett Ellen Block

Selected by C. Michael Curtis
2000
 In the Gathering Woods

In the Gathering Woods

By Adria Bernardi

Selected by Frank Conroy
1999
The Truly Needy and Other Stories

The Truly Needy and Other Stories

By Lucy Honig

Selected by Charles Johnson
1998
Necessary Fictions

Necessary Fictions

By Barbara Croft

Selected by Bharati Mukherjee
1997
Fado and Other Stories

Fado and Other Stories

By Katherine Vaz

Selected by George Garrett
1996
Vaquita and Other Stories

Vaquita and Other Stories

By Edith Pearlman

Selected by Rosellen Brown
1995
Dangerous Men

Dangerous Men

By Geoffrey Becker

Selected by Charles Baxter
1994
Departures

Departures

By Jennifer Cornell

Selected by Alice McDermott
1993
In the Walled City

In the Walled City

By Stewart O'Nan

Selected by Tobias Wolff
1992
Director of the World and Other Stories

Director of the World and Other Stories

By Jane McCafferty

Selected by John Edgar Wideman
1991
Have You Seen Me?

Have You Seen Me?

By Elizabeth Graver

Selected by Richard Ford
1990
Limbo River

Limbo River

By Rick Hillis

Selected by Russell Banks
1989
Cartographies

Cartographies

By Maya Sonenberg

Selected by Robert Coover
1988
Moustapha's Eclipse

Moustapha's Eclipse

By Reginald McKnight

Selected by Margaret Atwood
1987
In the Music Library

In the Music Library

By Ellen Hunnicutt

Selected by Nadine Gordimer
1986
Under the Wheat

Under the Wheat

By Rick DeMarinis

Selected by Alison Lurie
1985
The Man Who Loved Levittown

The Man Who Loved Levittown

By W.D. Wetherell

Selected by Max Apple
1984
The Luckiest Man in the World

The Luckiest Man in the World

By Randall Silvis

Selected by Joyce Carol Oates
1983
Private Parties

Private Parties

By Jonathan Penner

Selected by Wright Morris
1982
Dancing for Men

Dancing for Men

By Robley Wilson, Jr.

Selected by Raymond Carver
1981
The Death of Descartes

The Death of Descartes

By David Bosworth

Selected by Robert Penn Warren