Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize

Marian Crotty is the 2019 recipient of the honor from the University's Susan B. Anthony Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies for her first book of short stories, What Counts as Love.

The annual prize was created in 1976 to recognize American women on the precipice of promising writing careers.

On the 40th anniversary of its inception, the Janet Heininger Kafka Prize recognized a short story collection: Mia Alvar’s In the Country. The University awards the annual prize to a promising but less established American woman writer of fiction.

The award is being given for Townsend's debut novel Saint Monkey, which was named by The Root as one of the 15 best works published by black authors in 2014.

Freeman will receive the award and $7,500 prize on Thursday, Oct. 23. As part of the award ceremony, Freeman will give a reading from the novel and she will sign copies of her book during a reception after the event.