As series editor of the O. Henry Awards prize stories collection, it is Laura Furman’s job to read through hundreds of literary magazines with the goal of finding the twenty best stories published in the United States or Canada in a given year. Furman, who teaches graduate and undergraduate writing courses at UT, has taken out her literary gold pan and come up with twenty more excellent tales for The Pen/O. Henry Prize Stories 2010 (Anchor Books). It’s hard to imagine how she sifted through so many undoubtedly great pieces of short fiction to come up with the crème de la crème, but we should all be grateful she did. more ›

If you’re like many aspiring writers, the will to sit down and string words together after a long day of doing whatever it is you do is sometimes hard to come by. Often, the best way to kick-start the creative process is by imposing some sort of external force upon yourself, a force that will compel you to actually put your ass in a chair and write. (This works especially well if you pay for said external force.) All this to say, if you have an idea for a short story—and who doesn’t?—consider the excellent opportunity afforded by the upcoming O. Henry Short Story Master Class. It’s a chance to write in the former home of short story master O. Henry, he of “Gift of the Magi” and surprise ending fame. more ›

In the face of weather that money can’t change, it pays to have good neighbors. Saturday around noon, with hopeful punsters standing in mud puddles under tents and the rain unrelenting, the Hilton came through with an offer that no one could sneeze at: the use of their ballroom. A bedraggled and grateful crowd shuffled from the backyard of the O. Henry Museum over to the big house. And the fancy digs could not dampen the low humor. While the streaming video webcast was washed out and the contestants were all wet, the word nerds still managed to shine. Their puns, thankfully, had spark. more ›

Short-story master William Sydney Porter (O. Henry) is remembered for his twist endings. Each year, twenty stories published in the US or Canada receive the prestigious award that bears his name. Editor Laura Furman, a professor at UT’s Michener center and founder of Austin-based lit mag American Short Fiction, had the onerous task of sorting through heaps of submissions for inclusion in The PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories 2009. more ›

Happy 146th birthday, William S. Porter! Join the party at Brush Square Saturday night by watching two films that celebrate the pun-loving short story writer who called himself O. Henry. Mr. Porter spent several years in Austin, where he wrote, sang, worked odd jobs and was accused of embezzlement – setting an example for many a subsequent slacker and guaranteeing that his place of residence is now treated as a virtual shrine to Keeping it Weird. more ›