Gabby Rivera, winner of Gina Berriault Award

Celebrate the winner of the 2020 Gina Berriault Award: Gabby Rivera. The Bronx-born, queer Puerto Rican author is on a mission to create the wildest, most fun stories ever. She’s the first Latina to write for Marvel Comics, penning the solo series “America” about America Chavez, a portal-punching queer Latina powerhouse. “F*cking outstanding” is how Roxane Gay described Rivera’s critically acclaimed debut novel, “Juliet Takes a Breath,” republished in 2019 by Penguin Random House. Free.

Supported by the George and Judy Marcus Funds for Excellence in the Liberal Arts.

Gina Berriault Award

Peter Orner, in conjunction with Fourteen Hills Press, inaugurated the Gina Berriault Award in 2009 to pay homage to the eponymous writer, a former SF State Creative Writing professor who with every story embodied a certain selflessness and unflinching compassion. The award is given annually to a writer with a similar spirit who has shown a love for storytelling and a commitment to helping young writers. Past recipients include NoViolet Bulawayo, Cristina García, Yiyun Li, Adam Johnson and Tommy Orange.

Fourteen Hills Press

Fourteen Hills Press established its nonprofit literary journal, Fourteen Hills: The San Francisco State University Review, in 1994. Staffed and produced by graduate students in the Creative Writing Department, the journal’s alumni includes recipients of Pulitzer, Pushcart and O. Henry prizes, as well as state laureate recognition.