Short story writer Lydia Davis of Albany, New York, is among 24 individuals who will receive a $500,000 fellowship from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Davis is currently a writer-in-residence and an associate professor of English at SUNY Albany. Her books of fiction include Break It Down (1986), The End of the Story (1995), Almost No Memory (1997), and Samuel Johnson Is Indignant (2001).
Two writers of books for children, Angela Johnson and Peter Sis, also received fellowships.
The unrestricted fellowships, also known as "genius grants," are given annually to individuals "who have shown extraordinary originality and dedication in their creative pursuits and a marked capacity for self-direction."
