This spring, two GCSU English professors were named finalists for the 2025 Townsend Prize for Fiction, one of Georgia’s most prestigious literary honors. Although author Denene Millner ultimately received the award at a ceremony on April 16, GCSU’s Peter Selgin and Chika Unigwe were both recognized for their acclaimed novels, “A Boy’s Guide to Outer Space” and “The Middle Daughter.”
The Townsend Prize was established in 1981 in memory of Jim Townsend, the founding editor of “Atlanta Magazine.” The prize has been sponsored by a variety of universities, publications, museums and centers in the past, but it is currently sponsored by the Atlanta Writers and the Georgia Writers Museum.
“The Prize honors the best piece of literary fiction written by a Georgia author during the time since the last award,” said the Atlanta Writers Club. “A selection committee that includes members of the Georgia literary community will consider all qualified contenders for the cash prize and silver platter by reviewing all eligible work and narrowing the list of possibilities to ten finalists, which will then be sent to three out-of-state judges for the final decision.”
Finalists are selected based on literary excellence, originality and insight, with the goal of recognizing the depth and diversity of Georgia’s fiction writers. Previous winners of the prize include some of Georgia’s most well-known writers, such as Celestine Sibley, Alice Walker, Ferrol Sams, James Kilgo and Terry Kay. This year’s awards ceremony, held at the Callanwolde Fine Arts Center in Atlanta, honored all ten finalists in a celebration of Georgia’s vibrant literary culture.
“First, we’re looking for excellence and originality in language,” Chattahoochee Review editor Lawerence Hetrick said. “Second, we’re looking for human insight.”
This year, journalist and author Millner took home the prize for her 2023 novel “One Blood,” published by Forge Books. The novel traces the lives of three generations of Black women throughout the second half of the 20th century, confronting issues of racism, classism and identity. Millner has authored more than 30 books across fiction, nonfiction and children’s literature, including several New York Times bestsellers.
Among the finalists was GCSU’s Unigwe, who has been an assistant professor of creative writing at the university since 2020. Born in Nigeria, Unigwe has received numerous international honors, including the 2012 Nigerian Prize for Literature, a Commonwealth Short Story award and a Rockefeller Foundation fellowship. Her latest novel, “The Middle Daughter,” published by Dzanc Books in April 2023, offers a bold and contemporary reimagining of the Hades and Persephone myth through a modern Nigerian lens.
“I had a fun, wonderful evening surrounded by family and fellow writers,” Unigwe said in an Instagram post following the event.
She thanked the Atlanta Writers Club, the Georgia Writers Museum and Dzanc Books for giving “The Middle Daughter” a home in North America.
Selgin, a professor of creative writing at GCSU, has also had an impressive literary career. He has published three novels, two children’s books, three guides on the craft of writing and two essay collections. His short story collection, “Drowning Lessons,” received the Flannery O’Connor Award for Fiction in 2007, and his memoir “The Inventors” won the 2017 Housatonic Book Award.
Selgin is also an award-winning playwright—his play “A God in the House” was honored at the Eugene O’Neill Playwrights Conference. His most recent novel, “A Boy’s Guide to Outer Space,” was released in November 2023 by Regal House Publishing. The coming-of-age story earned him a well-deserved spot among this year’s Townsend finalists.
The recognition of both Unigwe and Selgin as Townsend Prize finalists not only highlights their individual accomplishments but also speaks to the strength of GCSU’s creative writing program. As Georgia’s literary community continues to diversify, the Townsend Prize remains a meaningful celebration of storytelling, honoring the voices who are shaping the future of Southern literature.