SPOTLIGHT
The 2012 Townsend Prize for Fiction
Thomas Mullen, 2012 Townsend Prize Winner (Photo by Bill Roa)
Mullen Wins GPC-Sponsored Townsend Prize for Fiction
Author Thomas Mullen is the winner of the 2012 Townsend Prize for Fiction for his novel, “The Many Deaths of the Firefly Brothers.”
Mullen received the award in front of some 200 people gathered at Atlanta Botanical Garden’s Day Hall to celebrate excellence in literary fiction. The event was sponsored by Georgia Perimeter College’s Southern Academy for Literary Arts and Scholarly Research, The Chattahoochee Review and the Georgia Center for the Book.
Selected by an out-of state jury, Mullen’s book about the adventures of two bank-robbing brothers during the Great Depression was judged the best among 40 books published by Georgia writers in the past two years. He received an engraved silver platter and a $2,000 monetary award.
All ten of the Townsend finalists attended the event. They included Daniel Black, “Perfect Peace”; Lynn Cullen, “Reign of Madness”; Ann Hite, “Ghost on Black Mountain”; Joshilyn Jackson, “Backseat Saints”; Collin Kelley, “Remain in the Light”; Andrew Plattner, “A Marriage of Convenience”; Josh Russell, “My Bright Midnight”; Joseph Skibell, “A Curable Romantic”; and Amanda Kyle Williams, “The Stranger You Seek.”
"It's really wonderful to be recognized, and it's particularly rewarding to be recognized with this state award," said Mullen, who is the author of two other novels as well. "There are so many ways to be judged, and to be chosen by people who really care about the craft, that's so flattering."
Mullen moved to Decatur three years ago from Washington, D.C. and commented on how welcoming the literary community has been. Connecting with an author one admires, he said, is as simple as picking up the phone and saying, "'Hey, I loved your book. Let's have coffee.'"
Mullen said in writing “The Many Deaths of the Firefly Brothers,” he was particularly attracted to the 1930s. “This was the Great Depression, and people were starving to death … that was an important element [about] why these people were making these crazy decisions. … I really wanted to delve into that.”
Earlier in the evening, GPC student Joshua Karl received a $1,000 Atlanta Writers Club scholarship announced by Atlanta Writers Club president Clay Ramsey. Karl was nominated by GPC English professor and Chattahoochee Review editor Anna Schachner.
Author Ann Beattie was the keynote speaker for the Townsend Prize. Beattie, who gave a reading of one of her short stories earlier in the day to students and faculty at the Dunwoody Campus, spoke about the value of those who are “writer’s writers.”
“Really fine fiction is meant to slow us down,” she said, as she gave examples of authors who remained unknown beyond a group of literary fans but still brought immense pleasure to the reader.
Liam Madden, chair of the college’s Southern Academy, was the program’s master of ceremonies.
Created in 1981, the biennial prize was named for Jim Townsend, the founding editor of Atlanta Magazine and an early mentor to Georgia writers Pat Conroy, Terry Kay, Bill Diehl and Anne Rivers Siddons. Previous winners for the Townsend include Kathryn Stockett for “The Help” and Alice Walker for “The Color Purple.” Georgia Perimeter College has been the main sponsor of the prize since 1997.
(Article by Rebecca Rakoczy originally appeared in GPC's online newsletter, The Loop.)
