Ellen Birkett Morris is the author of Beware the Tall Grass, winner of the Donald L. Jordan Award for Literary Excellence, judged by Lan Samantha Chang, published by CSU Press. She is also the author of Lost Girls: Short Stories, winner of the Pencraft Award and finalist for the Clara Johnson, IAN and Best Book awards. Her fiction has appeared in Shenandoah, Antioch Review, Notre Dame Review, and South Carolina Review, among other journals. She is a winner of the Bevel Summers Prize for short fiction. Morris is a recipient of an Al Smith Fellowship for her fiction from the Kentucky Arts Council.
Morris is also the author of Abide and Surrender, poetry chapbooks. Her poetry has appeared in The Clackamas Literary Review, Juked, Gastronomica, and Inscape, among other journals, and in eight anthologies. Morris won top prize in the 2008 Binnacle Ultra-Short Edition and was a finalist for the 2019 and 2020 Rita Dove Poetry Prize. Her poem “Abide” was featured on NPR’s A Way with Words. Her essays have appeared in Newsweek, AARP’s The Ethel, Oh Reader magazine, and on National Public Radio.
Morris holds an MFA in creative writing from Queens University-Charlotte.
https://www.ellenbirkettmorris.com/
Interview: The Making of Her, Bernadette Jiwa, Dutton – Given her background, living with and listening to relatives across the generations tell stories, it is no surprise that Bernadette Jiwa was drawn to write an intergenerational story in THE MAKING OF HER.
Admit This to No One, Leslie Pietrzyk, Unnamed Press – Leslie Pietrzyk’s ADMIT THIS TO NO ONE takes on the intersection of the personal and the political through the lens of a group of women connected to a powerful Speaker of the House.
In the Lonely Backwater, Valerie Nieman, Fitzroy Books – Valerie Nieman isn’t afraid to explore the world through writing whatever the genre. She is the author of five novels, short fiction collection, and three poetry collections.
North, Brad Kessler, Harry N. Abrams – In his fourth book, North, Brad Kessler tells a story of a boundary expanding encounter between a Somali refugee, a Vermont monk, and an Afghan War veteran that poses important questions about boundaries and belonging.
Interview: Coolest American Stories 2022, Elizabeth Coffey, Mark Wish – For new writers, short story anthologies are a wonderful way to explore a range of styles and get a sense of what editors are looking for in contemporary fiction.
Not a Thing to Comfort You, Emily Wortman-Wunder, University of Iowa Press – Emily Wortman-Wunder’s writing journey is a wonderful example of two things that experienced writers know; you can’t rush good writing and writers write best about the topics that intrigue them.
Melodie Winawer’s second novel Anticipation is a historical novel that spans generations and combines science, romance, and suspense to tell a story of hope and healing. After the death of her husband, Helen, overworked in her job as a scientist and overwhelmed by...
Deer Season, Erin Flanagan, Nebraska – Writer Erin Flanagan’s debut novel Deer Season is a literary mystery that offers a deep look at small town life with humor, insight and a keen eye for the human condition.