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Omni's work was selected by ’Pemi Aguda for the CRAFT 2025 Novelette Print Prize, which welcomes submissions of polished novelettes ranging from 7,500 to 15,000 words. 

1989 follows Davyon, who is sent to Denver after a fight with his abusive father, as he prepares for basketball tryouts. The novelette's structure as an interview creates ample space for the narrator's reflection on his experience being coached by Church, a closeted ex-pro who is tough on Davyon. 

"I wanted to interrogate the forms of masculinity that shaped me in 1989," Omni shared. "As a biracial man who identifies culturally as African American, it was also important for me to spotlight Black masculinity, especially as it pertains to the world of basketball during this era."

Omni's other awards include a PEN/Dau Short Story Prize, the Jesmyn Ward Prize in Fiction, and the Margaret Walker Memorial Prize in Creative Writing. His writing has appeared in the Michigan Quarterly Review, The Best Debut Short Stories 2025, and is forthcoming in Virgin Islands Noir. 

"I am so grateful to be recognized for something that I have written, and Cole Meyer and the team at CRAFT have been amazing,” Omni said. "That said, this recognition brings with it a chance to share something I wrote with the public, which leaves me feeling a bit vulnerable nowadays."

Omni teaches African American literature and creative writing at Lake Forest College and is cofounder of SoulClap: A Black Joy Journal.

1989 is available at Red Mare Press.