Best of Anthologies For Awards and Accolades
Each year, prizes ranging from literary to genre are awarded to writers. Some anthologies compile the list of prize-winners and finalists. Below are some such Best Of anthologies. The longest running is the Best American series, published by Mariner Books. You’ll likely recognize this series, which ranges from The Best American Essays to The Best American Mystery and Suspense. We’ll get more into the history of this series below. To the best of my ability, I’ve compiled an overview. Many publishers — from large imprints to indies presses — publish Best Of anthologies, and each editor has their own idea what they consider “the best.” Keep that in mind as you read on, since your mileage may vary.
A Series of Wide-Ranging and Changing Genres
In addition to the mainstays of The Best American Short Stories and The Best American Essays, other genres have been added and/or retired. Current titles include The Best American Mystery and Suspense, The Best American Science and Nature Writing, The Best American Travel Writing, The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy, and the most recently-added anthology: The Best American Food Writing. Other Best American series that have since been retired include The Best American Recipes, The Best American Spiritual Writing, The Best American Comics, and more. In 2015, notable writer Lorrie Moore took on the task of choosing 40 stories from a century of past Best American Short Story anthologies. Her choices were published in 100 Years of The Best American Short Stories. Authors ranged from across a century, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jamaica Kincaid, George Saunders, and ZZ Packer. Truly, an entire article could be devoted to the Best American series, covering its long history, changes, and speculating the trends to come. The Best American series is due to have another set of books publish on November 1, 2022. At the time this article was written, not all table of contents for the books have been announced. No doubt there will be an abundance of great writing, showcasing the trends and reflecting events of the past year. I am sure there are some anthologies that I’m missing, but below are the anthologies I’m familiar with. The latest anthology, volume 14, does not have a cover image, but it compiles work from 2021 and is due to publish in October 2022. The image included here is of volume 13. Charles Peysaur is a renown editor and reviewer of speculative fiction, having reviewed hundreds, if not thousands of stories each year. Peysaur now writes reviews for Locus Magazine in addition to editing We’re Here. Published by Neon Hemlock Press, the latest addition of the anthology compiles work published in 2021. It’s guest-edited by L.D. Lewis and is now available for preorder on Neon Hemlock’s website. Last but certainly not least, there are also awards anthologies for very short stories, ranging from flash fiction, to microfiction, to drabbles (works of exactly 100 words). I expound on my love of flash fiction in a previous article; I mention two anthologies: Best Small Fictions and Best Microfiction, both of which have 2022 editions. Like the above anthologies, these have guest editor(s) that alternate each year. These are brilliant anthologies for little morsels of great writing. The prize is named after William Sydney Porter, whose pen name was O. Henry. After Porter’s death in 1910, friends of his came together to create the O. Henry Prize, which can be awarded to short story writers from all around the world. Recently, changes have been made to allow works in translation as well as a new guest editor each year. For the 2022 issue of winners, the anthology is edited by Valeria Luiselli.
The Best of the Best of the Best…
There are so many anthologies of talented writers across a spectrum of genres. The fun part of about these books lies in how no anthology is like any other. Sure, there may be the occasional crossover where one story appears in multiple anthologies, but that is often an exceptional case. Each anthology is compiled by an editor of certain experience, tastes, and interests. Each anthology is compiled of writers ranging from debuts to veterans in the field. And from year to year, each series changes and evolves. Some even retire, making way for new anthologies to bloom, helmed by new editors. The anthologies listed above could each fill a whole article about its inception and history. There’s so much to explore! Let this be a primer for writers and readers to see what’s out there. Pick one title from above. Take a gander at the table of contents. Soon you’ll be wading in great writing, which will lead you to more great writing, and more…
