Helen Norris, an esteemed poet, short-story writer, and novelist, seemed to burst onto the literary scene with the 1985 publication of her first short-story collection, The Christmas Wife. Despite her collection of accolades, beginning in the mid 1980s and including a 1986 nomination for the PEN/Faulkner Award, this newly acclaimed writer actually began writing in 1940. Best known for her well-crafted stories that expose the intimacies of human relationships, Norris has gone through several phases in her publishing career: acclaimed young prodigy, Christian novelist, short-story writer, and poet laureate of the state of Alabama from 1999 to 2002.

Norris's career has been recognized thus far with four O. Henry Awards, a Pushcart Prize, two Andrew Lytle Awards, four Christian Book Association Awards, the Penwomen's Biennial Award, and the 2000 Harper Lee Award for Distinguished Alabama Authors. She was also a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Fiction Award. Norris's work has been compared...