Minnesota writer Charles Baxter is one of three finalists for the prestigious Story Prize, an annual award that goes to an outstanding collection of short stories.
The three finalists are "There's Something I Want You to Do," by Baxter; "Thirteen Ways of Looking," by Colum McCann, and "Fortune Smiles," by Adam Johnson.
Baxter is the Edelstein-Keller Professor of Writing at the University of Minnesota. He is the winner of the Rea Award for the Short Story, and his book "Feast of Love" was a finalist for a National Book Award. Two stories from his new collection were selected for "Best American Short Stories." He is the author of five other story collections and five novels.
McCann is the author of both novels and short stories. He has won the National Book Award and the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, among other awards. He is from Ireland and now lives in New York.
Johnson's story collection won the National Book Award for 2015. He is also the winner of the Pultizer Prize for his novel, "The Orphan Master's Son." He teaches at Stanford.
The Story Prize winner will be announced March 2 in New York City. The winner will receive $20,000 and the runners-up will each receive $5,000. This year's judges are novelist Anthony Doerr, librarian Rita Meade and book critic Kathryn Schulz.
