Four authors identified as Australian have been included in the 75-strong longlist for the prestigious Frank O’Connor International Short Story Prize.

They are Andy Kissane, The Swarm (Puncher and Wattmann), Susan Midalia, An Unknown Sky and Other Stories (The University of Western Australia Publishing), Jennifer Mills, The Rest Is Weight (University of Queensland Press) and Josephine Rowe, Tarcutta Wake (University of Queensland Press).

The prize, named after Frank O’Connor (1903 – 1966), an Irish author best known for his short stories and memoirs, is said to be the single biggest prize for a collection of short stories published for the first time in English anywhere in the world.

The longlist for the 2013 award includes previous winner Ron Rash, previous shortlistee Peter Stamm, Hollywood actress Molly Ringwald and recent winner of the Sunday Times Short Story Award, Junot Diaz.

A shortlist of up to six books will be selected in late May and the winner publicly announced in July. The award will be presented at the culmination of the Cork International Short Story Festival in September.