Kelly Cherry ’61
Organizers of the Rebecca Mitchell Tarumoto Short Fiction Prize hope this year’s inaugural winner sets the standard for future awards.
Kelly Cherry ’61 accepted the prize in March for her work On Familiar Terms, a story of multiple generations told in fewer than 20 pages.
“The award is definitely starting out auspiciously with such an outstanding writer as Kelly Cherry,” said Gregory Donovan, senior editor of Blackbird, the online literary journal from which winners are selected. He said Cherry’s inaugural selection will make later winners “feel even more positive about the support it brings to their writing and their careers.”
Blackbird editors selected Cherry’s work for its subtle narrative voice, masterful compression of time, and affectionate portrayal of character.
The family of the late Tarumoto, an award-winning fiction writer, sponsors the prize, in part, to expand the audience for extraordinary short stories. The competition will pay particular attention to emerging writers.
Winners receive $2,000 and are asked to visit with Richmond-area students.
“I’m honored and delighted to receive the first Tarumoto Prize,” said Cherry, a former Virginia Poet Laureate and author of 20 books of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry; eight chapbooks; and translations of two classical plays. “I hope my story does justice to the donor’s generosity and the judges’ decision.”