It has been almost two months since author Shawn A. Cosby won the prestigious 2019 Anthony Award for Best Short Story during the annual Bouchercon World Mystery Convention in Dallas.

The Gloucester County resident still can’t believe his good fortune.

“It’s still pretty, pretty amazing,” Mr. Cosby says.

His short story, “The Grass Beneath My Feet,” published by the online crime-fiction journal TOUGH, was voted on by convention attendees and beat out four other finalists. Mr. Cosby was honored during the awards ceremony Nov. 2.

“It makes me feel like, ‘Man, I think I found what I’m good at.’ Maybe I do belong in the room with the James Pattersons and the Walter Mosleys of the world,” Mr. Cosby says.

While the award was a surprise all the way up to the moment conference officials called his name, a look over Mr. Cosby’s résumé points to a clear reason why he was chosen.

Mr. Cosby occupies a unique place in the modern literary world, as he taps into his history and experiences as an African-American man born and raised in poverty in the rural South to create crime and mystery fiction that comes from a perspective seldom seen in the genre.

That perspective is getting a big boost very soon, as Mr. Cosby is set to publish “Blacktop Wasteland” in July, the first of two books to be published as part of a deal with Flatiron Books.

A native of Mathews County, Mr. Cosby cites the influence of his teachers Lolita Payton and Jeff Bohn, as well as educator and community advocate Beatrice Bobo, as critical parts of his development as a writer.

Mr. Cosby began his writing career in the horror genre, but found himself gravitating toward crime and mystery work thanks to a lifelong appreciation for the crime genre and its stories that “spoke to me.” He sees the genre has potential as an avenue for stories unique to the African-American experience, while telling “our stories in a way that resonates with people.”

After years of writing, publishing and networking that didn’t seem to produce much progress, Mr. Cosby recently has garnered attention and accolades in rapid succession. A particularly impactful moment came during a panel at last year’s Bouchercon in Florida, where his response to the prejudiced comments of an audience member critical of the growing diversity in books caught the attention of a literary agent.

Now with an award under his belt, Mr. Cosby is enthusiastic about the road ahead. He is eager to see his work connect with young African-American men whose lives mirror his own. And he has high hopes for the path that lies ahead of him.

“I’m a college dropout from a poor, poor town, grew up poor in a 12-by-60-foot trailer, and I’m having a book published by one of the top five publishing companies in New York,” Mr. Cosby says.

“If I can do it, anybody can do it.”

Meet this week’s Personality and a writer who is telling his own story, Shawn A. Cosby:

Top honor: Anthony Award winner for best short story

Date and place of birth: Aug. 4 in Mathews County.

Current residence: Gloucester County.

Occupation: Writer, although I also serve as a mortuary assistant at J.K. Redmond Funeral Home in Shacklefords.

Education: Graduate, Matthews High School in 1992; I attended Christopher Newport University as an English major, but didn’t finish.

Family: Wife, Kimberly R. Cosby; and parents, Roy Cosby, a retired commercial fisherman, and mother, Joyce Cosby, a retired teacher’s assistant.

How I got news about this outstanding award: My friend, Kelly Garrett, sent me a Facebook message the day the award nominations came out.

Reaction: It was surreal. It was breathtaking. It’s probably the most exciting thing that’s happened in my writing career so far.

Meaning of award to me: It makes me feel like, “Man, I think I found what I’m good at. Maybe I do belong in the room with the James Pattersons and the Walter Mosleys of the world.”

When and where award was presented: Nov. 2 at Bouchercon, the Anthony Boucher Memorial World Mystery Convention in Dallas.

Story that won: “The Grass Beneath My Feet.”

First piece and why: “The Rat and The Cobra,” because I had read an article in the paper about two brothers that had been fighting over an inheritance. One tried to kill the other and it sparked my interest.

Why crime or mystery writing: I think crime just spoke to me as as an adult who was a child of poverty. I can speak to a lot of different issues that affect not just the black community, but the rural community in the South. And it’s a way to tell our stories in a way that resonates with people.

Who do you hope to inspire with your creative works: I really hope that my writing and my books will speak to young African-American men in the South.

How I start the day: I’m thankful I’m alive, and I usually try to think of five things I want to accomplish that day. I try to get at least three of them done.

A perfect day for me is: Getting two uninterrupted hours to write, two uninterrupted hours to read and sitting down and watching either an old crime movie or English mysteries on BBC America.

Something I love to do that most people would never imagine: I love to garden.

A quote that I am inspired by: “Lions don’t concern themselves with the thoughts of sheep” — from “Game of Thrones.”

My friends describe me as: Crazy, sarcastic and sometimes recklessly fearless.

At the top of my “to-do” list: To finish my current book by February, lose some weight over the holiday and learn to live in the moment.

Best late-night snack: Any type of heavy-duty thick nachos.

Favorite authors and why: Walter Mosley, because he’s an African-American writer who built his career on his own terms Dennis Lehane, because he elevates the crime and mystery story to art; and Stephen King, whose hard work and dedication to the craft I try to emulate.

The best thing my parents ever taught me: That doing the right thing is never easy, but it’s always worth it.

The person who influenced me the most: My grandmother, Helen Smith.

Books that influenced me the most: “Native Son” by Richard Wright, “The Hellbound Heart” by Clive Barker, “Provinces of Night” by William Gay, “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker, “Darkness, Take My Hand” by Dennis Lehane and “Devil in a Blue Dress” by Walter Mosley.

What I’m reading now: “They All Fall Down: A Thriller” by Rachel Howzell Hall and “Joe” by Larry Brown.

Next goal: To finish this book I’m working on right now.