Founded in 1991 by editor Laura Furman, American Short Fiction was first published until 1998 by the University of Texas Press in cooperation with the Texas Center for Writers and with The Sound of Writing broadcast on National Public Radio.

During its initial run, the magazine featured short stories by some of the best writers working in the form, including Reynolds Price, Gina Berriault, Louise Erdrich, Dagoberto Gilb, Andrea Barrett, Antonya Nelson, Joyce Carol Oates, Charles Baxter, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Dan Chaon, among many others.

American Short Fiction was a two-time finalist for the National Magazine Award in Fiction. Stories originally published in the magazine have been included in major literary anthologies such as The O. Henry Prize Stories, Best American Short Stories, the Graywolf Annual, and the Pushcart Prize: Best of the Small Presses.

Acquired by the independent nonprofit organization Badgerdog Literary Publishing, American Short Fiction resumed publication with Issue 33 in Winter 2006.

Four times a year, the magazine's editors select and publish short stories and novel excerpts by established and new writers.

It is our goal to discover and publish new fiction in which transformations of language, narrative, and character occur swiftly, deftly, and unexpectedly.

AWARDS AND ACCOLADES

American Short Fiction has been recognized by its peers for both content and design:

NATIONAL MAGAZINE AWARD
Finalist in Fiction, 1993 and 1995

PUSHCART PRIZE IN FICTION
Jean Thompson, "Who Do You Love?" 1994

O. HENRY PRIZE
Peter Weltner, "The Greek Head," 1993
Elizabeth Oness, "The Oracle," 1994

O. HENRY PRIZE SERIES EDITOR
Laura Furman, 2003-present, Founding Editor of American Short Fiction

NEW STORIES FROM THE SOUTH
Annette Sanford, "Helen and Roses," 1993

BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES
Joyce Carol Oates, "Ghost Girls," 1995
Elizabeth Winthrop, "The Golden Darters," 1992

BEST AMERICAN SHORT STORIES "100 Most Distinguished Stories"
Lynn Freed, "Selina Comes to the City," 2001

THE GRAYWOLF ANNUAL
Kathleen Cambor, "Obsessions," 1992

ASSOCIATION OF AMERICAN PUBLISHERS AWARD
Excellence in Design and Production, 1997

PRESS

Badgerdog Literary Publishing Re-launches American Short Fiction
The Austin Chronicle: May 13, 2005