Pulitzer Prize for Fiction

The Pulitzer Prize for Fiction is one of America's most distinguished literary honours, awarded annually since 1918 for 'a distinguished work of fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life.' Administered by Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism on behalf of the Pulitzer Prize Board, it was originally called the Pulitzer Prize for the Novel before expanding its scope in 1948 to encompass short story collections and other prose fiction. Winners and finalists are selected by a jury of literary experts who read widely across the year's eligible submissions. The winner receives a certificate and a cash award of $15,000. Finalists (typically two or three in addition to the winner) have been officially announced since 1980, bringing further recognition to a small cohort of outstanding titles each year. The announcement typically comes in April or May. The prize has recognised some of the most enduring American novels of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, including To Kill a Mockingbird, The Grapes of Wrath, Beloved, and The Road. In some years the Board declines to award the prize even when finalists are named, as occurred in 2012—a rare and controversial decision that year. The prize's emphasis on American life and authorship distinguishes it from more internationally oriented awards such as the Booker Prize. Administered from Columbia University in New York City, the Pulitzer Prizes also recognise excellence in journalism, drama, music, history, biography, and poetry, making the Fiction prize part of a broader celebration of American cultural achievement.