Nigerian author Ucheoma Onwutuebe has been named a winner of the 2026 O. Henry Prize for Short Fiction for her story “Where Are You and Where Is My Money”.
First published in A Public Space No. 32, the piece was selected by guest editor Tommy Orange as one of 20 winning works for this year’s prize anthology, published by Vintage.
Onwutuebe’s epistolary story uses letters and emails to follow a young Nigerian woman whose boyfriend disappears with her money. Speaking to Africa in Words, Onwutuebe stated the narrative was inspired by a fiction workshop, Maria Semple’s novel Where’d You Go, Bernadette? and the Tinder Swindler public discourse. She noted that the dialogue borrowed heavily from the everyday speech of ordinary Nigerians.
The author joins a cohort of 2026 winners that includes established literary figures such as Colm Tóibín, Louise Erdrich and Brandon Taylor. Onwutuebe, who holds an MFA from the University of Nevada Las Vegas, has previously won the Waasnode Fiction Prize and held residencies at Yaddo, Art Omi and The Anderson Center. Her short fiction has appeared in Catapult, Prairie Schooner and Brittle Paper.
Established in 1919 to honour the legacy of American writer William Sydney Porter, the O. Henry Prize remains one of the most prestigious awards for short fiction. The annual anthology has historically highlighted early works by major authors, including Flannery O’Connor and Alice Munro.
•Featured image: Ucheoma Onwutuebe/The University of Tennessee
