Literature society in London
TheRoyal Society of Literature (RSL ) is alearned society founded in 1820 byKing George IV to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 800 Fellows, elected from among the best writers in any genre currently at work. Additionally, Honorary Fellows are chosen from those who have made a significant contribution to the advancement of literature, including publishers, agents, librarians, booksellers or producers. The society is a cultural tenant at London'sSomerset House . The RSL is an independent charity and relies on the support of its Members, Patrons, Fellows and friends to continue its work.
The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) was founded in 1820, with the patronage ofGeorge IV , to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent",[ 1] Thomas Burgess ,Bishop of St David's (who was later translated asBishop of Salisbury ). From the beginning of the 21st century, Presidents have served four-year terms and the RSL has employed a professional director to oversee its membership and outreach programmes.[ 2] Queen Camilla , who took over in the role from QueenElizabeth II .[ 3] [ 4]
Official seal Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature : are elected annually and accorded the privilege of using the post-nominal letters FRSL. Traditionally, around 14 newfellows per year were elected, with a total number of about 500 being maintained.[ 2] [ 5]
Past fellows includeSamuel Taylor Coleridge ,J. R. R. Tolkien ,W. B. Yeats ,Rudyard Kipling ,Thomas Hardy ,George Bernard Shaw ,Arthur Koestler ,Chinua Achebe ,Ruth Prawer Jhabvala ,Robert Ardrey ,Sybille Bedford ,Muriel Spark ,P. J. Kavanagh ,Hilary Mantel , and SirRoger Scruton . Present Fellows includeMargaret Atwood ,Bernardine Evaristo ,David Hare ,Kazuo Ishiguro ,Andrew Motion ,Paul Muldoon ,Zadie Smith ,Nadeem Aslam ,Sarah Waters ,J. K. Rowling , andNick Cave .[ 6] Byron 's pen,T. S. Eliot 'sfountain pen , which replacedDickens 'squill in 2013,[ 7] George Eliot 's pen,[ 8] Jean Rhys andAndrea Levy being additional choices from 2020.[ 9] [ 10]
In 2018, the RSL launched the initiative "40 Under 40", which saw the election of 40 new fellows aged under 40.[ 11] [ 9] [ 12] [ 13] [ 12] [ 6] [ 14] [ 15]
From 2023, the RSL began to be criticized over the new diversity of fellowship[ 16] stabbing of Salman Rushdie and thecancellation ofKate Clanchy .[ 17] Bernardine Evaristo defended the RSL inThe Guardian over the changes to fellowship and issues offreedom of speech , and stated that the RSL "cannot take sides in writers' controversies and issues, but must remain impartial."[ 18] [ 19] X : "Just wondering if the Royal Society of Literature is 'impartial' about attempted murder?"[ 20] [ 21] Independent newspaper[ 22] [ 23] [ 24] Charity Commission in response to what it described as a "sustained campaign of misinformation being made against it".[ 25] [ 26]
In January 2025, Director Molly Rosenberg and ChairDaljit Nagra stepped down from their positions,[ 14] [ 27] Ruth Scurr .[ 28]
The society publishes an annual magazine, theRSL Review [ 29]
In 2000, the RSL published a volume that provides a description and history of the society, written by one of its fellows,Isabel Quigly .[ 2]
From 2012, the RSL established a membership programme offering a variety of events to members and the general public. Membership of the RSL is open to all.[ 30]
In 2021, the RSL launched "Literature Matters: Reading Together", a project aiming to make recreational reading accessible to young people across the UK.[ 31]
Through its prize programmes, the RSL supports new and established contemporary writers.
TheRSL Christopher Bland Prize – £10,000 for debut prose writers aged 50 or over. TheEncore Awards – £10,000 for best second novel of the year. The RSL took over the administration of this award in 2016. The RSLGiles St Aubyn Awards for Non-Fiction – annual awards, currently one of £10,000 and one of £5,000 and one of £2,500, to authors engaged on their first commissioned works of non-fiction (replaced theJerwood Award in 2017). The RSLOndaatje Prize – an annual award of £10,000 for a distinguished work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry, evoking the spirit of a place. TheV. S. Pritchett Memorial Prize – an annual prize of £1,000 for the best unpublished short story of the year. TheBenson Medal – awarded to those who have done sustained and outstanding service to literature. The RSL Literature Matters Awards for projects which connect with audiences or topics outside the usual reach of literature.[ 32] Sky Arts RSL Writers Awards awarded to British writers of colour at the beginnings of their careers.[ 33] Entente Littéraire Prize[ 34] Companion of Literature – the highest honour that thesociety can bestow upon a writer; inaugurated in 1961, it is held by up to 12 writers at any one time.[ 35] Council and presidents [ edit ] The Council of the Royal Society of Literature is central to the election of new fellows, and directs the RSL's activities through its monthly meetings. Council members serve for a fixed term of four years, with new members being elected by Council when members retire.[ 36]
Patron Queen Camilla President Bernardine Evaristo Presidents Emeriti Michael Holroyd Colin Thubron Marina Warner Acting Chair of Council Ruth Scurr Vice-Presidents Council The current list of approximately 800 fellows: Fellow Year of Hassan Abdulrazzak 2024 *Julia Abel Smith 2008 Leila Aboulela 2023 *Melanie Abrahams 2020 Peter Ackroyd 1984 Donald Adamson 1983 Fleur Adcock 1984 Sulaiman Addonia 2022 Diran Adebayo 2006 Mojisola Adebayo 2018 John Agard 2007 *Sandra Agard 2022 Bola Agbaje 2018 Patience Agbabi 2017 Hanan al-Shaykh 2019 *Clare Alexander 2021 Monica Ali 2019 Yasmin Alibhai-Brown 2022 Keith Alldritt 1978 *Ellah Wakatama Allfrey 2019 David Almond 2011 *David Altaras 1996 Karin Altenberg 2023 Moniza Alvi 2023 Mark Amory 1996 Tahmima Anam 2017 Anthony Anaxagorou 2023 *Linda Anderson 2020 *Adjoa Andoh 2022 *Nelle Andrew 2023 Carole Angier 2002 Romalyn Ante 2023 Raymond Antrobus 2020 Kwame Anthony Appiah 2017 Lisa Appignanesi , Vice-President2015 Anne Applebaum 2021 Michael Arditti 2022 *Sarah Ardizzone 2024 Chloe Aridjis 2020 Simon Armitage , Vice-President2004 Claire Armitstead 2022 Karen Armstrong 2005 Bruce Arnold 1994 Mona Arshi 2022 Michael Asher 1996 Rosemary Ashton 1999 Zawe Ashton 2021 Jenn Ashworth 2018 Nadeem Aslam 2010 *Syima Aslam 2019 *Lucy Astor 2024 Polly Atkin 2022 Kate Atkinson 2010 Margaret Atwood 2010 Tash Aw 2023 Sir Alan Ayckbourn 1991 *Pete Ayrton 2019 David Baddiel 2019 Paul Bailey 1999 *Bibi Bakare-Yusuf 2019 *Mohit Bakaya 2023 Sarah Bakewell 2012 John Banville 2007 Richard Barber 1971 Juliet Barker 2001 Pat Barker 1995 Damian Barr 2020 Sebastian Barry 2009 Susan Bassnett 2007 *Sanchita Basu De Sarkar 2024 Sir Jonathan Bate 2004 Laura Bates 2018 Martin Bax 2002 Sally Bayley 2021 Dame Mary Beard , Vice-President2019 Dame Gillian Beer 2006 Sir Antony Beevor 1999 *Sharmilla Beezmohun 2019 Rosalind Belben 1999 Jay Bernard 2018 Emily Berry 2018 *Richard Beswick 2023 Homi Bhabha 2021 *Xandra Bingley 2019 *Robert Binyon 2000 Dea Birkett 2000 Julia Blackburn 2002 Terence Blacker 2017 Malorie Blackman 2009 Sir Quentin Blake 2013 Rachael Boast 2022 *Ruth Borthwick 2018 Elleke Boehmer 2019 Malika Booker 2022 *Mair Bosworth 2020 William Boyd 1982 Susie Boyt 2022 Tony Bradman 2024 Melvyn Bragg 1971 Carys Bray 2023 Piers Brendon 2010 Howard Brenton 2017 Simon Brett 2015 Robin Briggs 1999 *Jenny Brown 2021 *Tony Brown 2020 Alan Brownjohn 1999 James Buchan 2001 Rowan Hisayo Buchanan 2023 Moira Buffini 2014 Melvin Burgess 2022 Anna Burns 2021 John Burnside 1999 *Margaret Busby 2017 Jez Butterworth 2019 A. S. Byatt (Dame Antonia Byatt )1983 David Cairns 2001 Lucy Caldwell 2018 Sir David Cannadine 1999 Vahni Capildeo 2019 John Carey 1982 Peter Carey 1989 Ciaran Carson 2014 Jan Carson 2023 Miranda Carter 2011 Helen Castor 2017 David Caute 1998 Nick Cave 2022 Hugh Cecil 1997 Aidan Chambers 2009 *Charles III 2002 Debjani Chatterjee 2019 Amit Chaudhuri 2009 Tracy Chevalier 2008 Kayo Chingonyi 2022 Anne Chisholm , Vice-President1989 Rupert Christiansen 1997 Kate Clanchy 2010 Susannah Clapp 2013 Gillian Clarke 2000 John Clay 1998 *Frances Coady 2024 *Michael Codron 2019 Jonathan Coe 2012 Michaela Coel 2022 Joseph Coelho 2023 J. M. Coetzee 1988 Josh Cohen 2023 Richard Cohen 2017 *Gill Coleridge 2021 Linda Colley (Lady Cannadine)2004 *Geraldine Collinge 2024 Sophie Collins 2018 Cressida Connolly 2020 Tony Connor 1972 P. J. Conrad 1974 Peter Conradi 2010 David Constantine 2007 *Jon Cook 2021 Artemis Cooper (Lady Beevor)2016 Susan Cooper 2020 Wendy Cope 1992 John Cornwell 1985 Frank Cottrell Boyce 2012 Cressida Cowell 2021 Jim Crace 1999 Robert Crawford 2021 Jacqueline Crooks 2024 Kevin Crossley-Holland 1998 Patricia Cumper 2023 *James Currey 2023 Tony Curtis 2000 Rachel Cusk 2012 Emma Dabiri 2023 David Dabydeen 2000 Fred D'Aguiar 2022 William Dalrymple 1995 Richard Davenport-Hines 2003 Andrew Davies 1996 Carys Davies 2022 Norman Davies 2013 Paul Davies 1999 Russell T. Davies 2022 Stevie Davies 1998 Dick Davis 1981 Richard Dawkins 1997 Jill Dawson 2020 Elizabeth Day 2024 April De Angelis 2020 Louis de Bernières 2006 Margreta de Grazia 2021 Alain de Botton 2011 *Tim Dee 2017 Ferdinand Dennis 2022 Edmund de Waal 2021 Kit de Waal 2022 Anita Desai 1978 Imtiaz Dharker 2010 David Dilks 1986 Maura Dooley 2006 Tishani Doshi 2023 *Jonathan Douglas 2021 Robert Douglas-Fairhurst [ 37] 2015 Roddy Doyle 2003 Dame Margaret Drabble 1973 Jane Draycott 2020 Dame Carol Ann Duffy 1999 Maureen Duffy , Vice-President1985 Sasha Dugdale 2020 Ian Duhig 2006 Sarah Dunant 2024 Douglas Dunn 1981 Jane Dunn 1999 Nell Dunn 2004 Geoff Dyer 2005 Will Eaves 2021 Reni Eddo-Lodge 2021 David Edgar 1985 Helen Edmundson 2015 Yvvette Edwards 2020 Max Egremont (Lord Egremont)2001 Menna Elfyn 2015 Inua Ellams 2018 Anne Enright 2010 Wendy Erskine 2023 Diana Evans 2020 Martina Evans 2024 Sir Richard Evans 1999 Bernardine Evaristo 2004 Sir Richard Eyre 2011 Jenni Fagan 2023 Ruth Fainlight 2007 Duncan Fallowell 2015 Kit Fan 2022 Paul Farley 2012 Sebastian Faulks 1994 Lara Feigel 2018 James Fenton 1983 Adam Fergusson 2009 Maggie Fergusson 2007 William Fiennes 2009 Orlando Figes 2003 Anne Fine 2003 Tibor Fischer 2003 Leontia Flynn 2022 Richard Ford 2012 Aminatta Forna 2012 Richard Fortey 2009 Roy Foster 1992 Adam Foulds 2009 Linda France 2024 Gavin Francis 2023 *Dan Franklin 2019 Peter Frankopan 2020 Lady Antonia Fraser 2003 Robert Fraser 2007 Michael Frayn 1969 Maureen Freely 2012 Annie Freud 2024 Esther Freud 2019 Stephen Fry 2019 Athol Fugard 1986 John Fuller 1980 Neil Gaiman 2018 Patrick Gale 2021 Janice Galloway 2023 Jane Gardam 2005 *Anthony Gardner 2004 Philip Gardner 1986 Rosie Garland 2023 Alan Garner 2011 Timothy Garton Ash 2005 Jamila Gavin 2015 *Kate Gavron 2020 Gabriel Gbadamosi 2024 Maggie Gee , Vice-President1994 *Sue Gee 2024 Adèle Geras 2013 Amitav Ghosh 2009 Peter Gill 2019 Sir David Gilmour, 4th Baronet 1990 Paul Gilroy 2016 Lesley Glaister 1994 Victoria Glendinning , Vice-President1982 Julian Gloag 1970 Salena Godden 2020 *David Godwin 2020 *Georgina Godwin 2023 Vesna Goldsworthy 2021 *Lennie Goodings 2020 Priyamvada Gopal 2024 Edmund Gordon 2018 Lyndall Gordon 2002 Warwick Gould 1997 James Graham 2018 Colin Grant 2020 Linda Grant 2013 *Victoria Gray 2021 Anthony Grayling 2006 Peter Green 1956 Lavinia Greenlaw 2004 Bonnie Greer 2022 Germaine Greer 2016 John Gribbin 1999 *Chris Gribble 2023 Niall Griffiths 2022 Vona Groarke 2024 Guy Gunaratne 2024 Romesh Gunesekera 2004 Kirsty Gunn 2020 Xiaolu Guo 2022 Sunetra Gupta 2024 Tanika Gupta Abdulrazak Gurnah 2006 Jen Hadfield 2021 Tessa Hadley 2009 John Haffenden 1986 William Hague (Lord Hague)2009 Daniel Hahn 2020 Sarah Hall 2016 John Halperin 1985 James Hamilton-Paterson 2023 Sir Christopher Hampton 1976 *Lucy Hannah 2024 Sophie Hannah 2024 Sir David Hare 1985 Kiran Millwood Hargrave 2023 Claire Harman 2006 Richard Harries (Lord Harries of Pentregarth)1996 Alexandra Harris 2013 Joanne Harris 2022 Robert Harris 1996 Tony Harrison 1984 David Harsent 1999 Rosalind Harvey 2018 Sir Max Hastings 1996 Lady Selina Hastings 1994 Roy Hattersley (Lord Hattersley)2003 Daisy Hay 2018 Cameron Hazlehurst 1973 John Hemming CG2013 Philip Hensher 1998 W. N. Herbert 2015 Mick Herron 2024 *Mark C. Hewitt 2023 Rachel Hewitt 2018 Seán Hewitt 2023 Ella Hickson 2018 Rosemary Hill 2010 Tobias Hill 2011 Bevis Hillier 1997 Tim Hilton 1993 Afua Hirsch 2024 Victoria Hislop 2024 Henry Hitchings 2015 Peter Hobbs 2014 Eva Hoffman 2007 Michael Hofmann 2023 *Andrew Holgate 2020 Tom Holland 2016 Alan Hollinghurst 1995 *Richard Hollis 2019 Richard Holmes 1975 Sir Michael Holroyd President Emeritus1968 Jeremy Hooker 2021 Christopher Hope 1990 Nick Hornby 1996 *Sarah Hosking 2021 Sarah Howe 2018 Kerry Hudson 2020 Kathryn Hughes 2006 *Peggy Hughes 2023 Lucy Hughes-Hallett 2010 Roland Huntford 2001 Aamer Hussein 2004 Angela Huth 1978 *Sir Nicholas Hytner 2019 Armando Iannucci 2019 Khadijah Ibrahiim 2024 Robert Icke 2018 Robert Irwin 2001 Kazuo Ishiguro 1989 Howard Jacobson 2012 Maya Jaggi 2023 Kathleen Jamie 2009 Deborah Jay 2005 Alan Jenkins 2002 Sir Simon Jenkins 2003 Liz Jensen 2005 Catherine Johnson 2019 Linton Kwesi Johnson 2013 *Paula Johnson 2008 Jennifer Johnston 2009 Cynan Jones 2019 Steve Jones 2011 Anjali Joseph 2024 Anthony Joseph 2023 Gabriel Josipovici 1997 Alan Judd 1990 Margaret Jull Costa 2013 Meena Kandasamy 2022 Bhanu Kapil 2022 Joanna Kavenna 2024 Jackie Kay , Vice-President2002 Jonathan Keates 1992 Laurence Kelly 2003 Peter Kemp[ 38] 2015 Thomas Keneally 1973 A. L. Kennedy 1999 *Prince Edward, Duke of Kent 1978 Hannah Khalil 2022 Mimi Khalvati 2009 Andrew Kidd 2023 Thomas Kilroy 1972 Lucy Kirkwood 2018 Matthew Kneale 2003 Zaffar Kunial 2022 Hari Kunzru 2014 Hanif Kureishi 2008 Kwame Kwei-Armah 2014 David Kynaston 2010 Olivia Laing 2019 Nick Laird 2013 John Lanchester 2002 Robin Lane Fox 1974 Lee Langley 1996 James Lasdun 2009 Bryony Lavery 2002 Patrice Lawrence 2023 Mark Lawson 2015 Zachary Leader 2007 Dame Hermione Lee 1992 Brendan Lehane 1999 Mike Leigh 2008 Rebecca Lenkiewicz 2017 Deborah Levy 2017 Paul Levy 1980 Gwyneth Lewis 1999 Alison Light 2021 Joanne Limburg 2022 Toby Litt 2023 Dame Penelope Lively 1985 Samuel Lock 2001 David Lodge 1976 Michael Longley 1988 *Sharmaine Lovegrove 2021 Hannah Lowe 2022 Edward Lucie-Smith 1964 Andrew Lycett 2010 Richard Mabey 2011 Alexander McCall Smith 2014 Karen McCarthy Woolf 2022 Geraldine McCaughrean 2009 Val McDermid 2016 Ian McDonald 1970 Ian McEwan CBE1983 Robert Macfarlane 2011 Roy McFarlane 2023 Darren McGarvey 2023 Lisa McGee 2022 Roger McGough 2004 Patrick McGrath 2002 Patrick McGuinness 2019 Jamie McKendrick 2014 Andrew McMillan 2020 Ian McMillan 2022 *Jean McNicol 2024 Ben Macintyre 2014 Shena Mackay 1999 Rory MacLean 2007 *Christopher MacLehose 2021 Margaret MacMillan 2003 Tessa McWatt 2021 Candia McWilliam 1994 Sabrina Mahfouz 2018 *Claire Malcolm 2024 Sir Noel Malcolm 1997 Nesrine Malik 2023 David Malouf 2008 Norman Manea 2011 Alberto Manguel 2010 Philip Mansel 2010 Sarah Ladipo Manyika 2023 Patrick Marber 2002 Patrick Marnham 1988 Justin Marozzi 2021 *Robyn Marsack 2023 Philip Marsden 1996 Rosalind Marshall 1974 Adam Mars-Jones 2007 Yann Martel 2014 Francesca Martinez 2022 Allan Massie 1982 Hisham Matar 2013 Douglas Matthews 1998 Glyn Maxwell 1999 *Shirley May 2020 Jonathan Meades 2019 James Meek 2020 Gita Mehta 2021 Pauline Melville 2018 Edward Mendelson 2003 Jeffrey Meyers 1983 China Miéville 2015 Andrew Miller 2012 Kei Miller 2018 Michael Millgate 1983 Pankaj Mishra 2008 Rohinton Mistry 2009 David Mitchell 2013 Julian Mitchell 1985 Deborah Moggach 1999 Nadifa Mohamed 2018 Ray Monk 2015 Caroline Moorehead 1993 David Morley 2018 Sir Michael Morpurgo 2004 Sinéad Morrissey 2019 Blake Morrison , Vice-President1988 Helen Mort 2018 Sarah Moss 2019 Kate Mosse 2020 Sir Andrew Motion 1984 Sir Ferdinand Mount 1991 Fiona Mozley 2022 Paul Muldoon 1981 *Henderson Mullin 2023 Raman Mundair 2022 Alice Munro 2002 Richard Murphy 1968 Benjamin Myers 2023 Daljit Nagra 2017 Beverley Naidoo 2023 Suniti Namjoshi 2023 *Susheila Nasta 2019 Patrick Ness 2023 Charles Nicholl 2005 Grace Nichols , Vice-President2007 Virginia Nicholson 2019 William Nicholson 1999 Adam Nicolson (Lord Carnock)2005 *Alastair Niven 2021 Gerard Noel 1999 Barney Norris 2018 Okechukwu Nzelu 2024 Edna O'Brien 2011 Sean O'Brien 2007 Bernard O'Donoghue 1999 Maggie O'Farrell 2021 Andrew O'Hagan 2010 Redmond O'Hanlon 1993 Kaite O'Reilly 2023 Irenosen Okojie 2018 Ben Okri 1997 Musa Okwonga 2022 David Olusoga 2019 *Sir Christopher Ondaatje 2003 Michael Ondaatje 2012 Chibundu Onuzo 2018 Susie Orbach 2019 *Deirdre Osborne 2022 *Ursula Owen 2020 Helen Oyeyemi 2012 Ruth Padel 1998 *Stephen Page 2019 Sir Michael Palin 2020 Peter Parker 1997 Nii Ayikwei Parkes 2024 Sandeep Parmar 2020 Vinay Patel 2018 Don Paterson 2004 *Emma Paterson 2023 Brian Patten 2003 Glenn Patterson 2023 *Polly Pattullo 2022 Laline Paull 2023 Tim Pears 2012 Sarah Perry 2018 Pascale Petit 2018 *Ruthie Petrie 2021 Adam Phillips 2012 Caryl Phillips 2000 Mike Phillips 2000 Winsome Pinnock 2020 David Plante 2002 Clare Pollard 2024 Jacob Polley 2024 Stephen Poliakoff 1985 Peter Pomerantsev 2021 Max Porter 2020 Lucy Prebble 2018 *Alexandra Pringle 2017 *Stuart Profitt 2019 (Baron)David Profumo 1995 *Simon Prosser 2021 David Pryce-Jones 1980 Kate Pullinger 2024 Philip Pullman , Vice-President2001 Craig Raine 1984 Nina Raine 2019 Ross Raisin 2018 Ian Rankin 2016 Nicholas Rankin 2009 Frederic Raphael 1964 Sigrid Rausing 2020 Piers Paul Read 1972 Anne Redmon 1980 Deryn Rees-Jones 2024 Christopher Reid 1999 *Emma Rice 2024 Sir Christopher Ricks 1970 Jane Ridley 2007 Matthew White Ridley, 5th Viscount Ridley 1999 Denise Riley 2019 Gwendoline Riley 2018 William Rivière 2000 Graham Robb 1999 Andrew Roberts 2001 Michèle Roberts 1999 *Sue Roberts 2023 Robin Robertson 2010 Roger Robinson 2020 *Fiammetta Rocco 2021 Monique Roffey 2022 Jane Rogers 1994 Stephen Romer 2011 Jacqueline Rose 2022 Michael Rosen 2006 Meg Rosoff 2013 Jacob Ross 2006 Leone Ross 2023 J. K. Rowling 2002 Anthony Rudolf 2005 Carol Rumens 1984 David Runciman (Viscount Runciman of Doxford)2021 Katherine Rundell 2020 Sir Salman Rushdie 1983 Frances Ryan 2022 Amy Sackville 2018 Sunjeev Sahota 2018 S. F. Said 2021 Lawrence Sail 1998 Edward St Aubyn 2011 *Marina Salandy-Brown 2020 Fiona Sampson 2010 *Sarah Sanders 2020 Philippe Sands 2020 Sathnam Sanghera 2016 J. J. Scarisbrick 1969 Sir Simon Schama 2016 *Aki Schilz 2023 Ann Schlee 1997 Michael Schmidt 1993 *Patricia Schute 1991 Lawrence Scott 2019 Richard Scott 2024 Ruth Scurr 2015 Simon Sebag-Montefiore 2003 Anne Sebba 2021 Elisa Segrave 2001 Richard Sennett 1999 *Kadija Sesay 2021 Vikram Seth 1994 Miranda Seymour 1996 Elif Shafak , Vice-President2019 Nicholas Shakespeare 1999 Kamila Shamsie , Vice-President2011 Jo Shapcott 1999 Owen Sheers 2023 Warsan Shire 2018 Elaine Showalter 2011 Nikesh Shukla 2019 *William Sieghart 2019 Posy Simmonds 2004 Helen Simpson 1996 Iain Sinclair 2009 Sunny Singh 2023 Adam Sisman 2015 Lemn Sissay 2022 Robert Skidelsky (Lord Skidelsky of Tilton)1978 Gillian Slovo 2013 Dorothea Smartt 2019 Ali Smith 2007 Cherry Smyth 2022 Deborah Smith 2018 *John Saumarez Smith , Benson Medallist 1996 Zadie Smith 2002 *Nicola Solomon 2019 Ahdaf Soueif 2002 Diana Souhami 2024 *Wole Soyinka 1983 Frances Spalding 1984 *Nicholas Spice 2019 Jean Sprackland 2021 Francis Spufford 2007 *Alice Spawls 2024 Hilary Spurling 2005 Sir John Spurling 2010 Martin Stannard 1999 C. K. Stead 1995 Polly Stenham 2018 Rory Stewart 2009 Stanley Stewart 2001 Sir Tom Stoppard 1972 Peter Stothard 2023 Rebecca Stott 2021 Sir Roy Strong 1999 Andrea Stuart 2014 *SuAndi 2024 Kate Summerscale 2010 *Tom Sutcliffe 2020 John Sutherland 1990 *David Sutton 2012 *Bill Swainson 2023 Graham Swift 1984 Charlie Swinbourne 2022 Meera Syal 2017 Michael Symmons Roberts 2014 George Szirtes 1982 Bryan Talbot 2018 Preti Taneja 2023 D. J. Taylor 1997 Joelle Taylor 2022 Sara Taylor 2018 Kae Tempest 2015 Adam Thirlwell 2018 Dame Emma Thompson 2021 Tade Thompson 2023 Ian Thomson 2003 Rupert Thomson 2015 Jack Thorne 2020 Colin Thubron President1969 Ann Thwaite 1987 Stella Tillyard 2019 Gillian Tindall 1983 Colm Tóibín , Vice-President2007 (Count)Nikolai Tolstoy 1979 Claire Tomalin , Vice-President1976 *Boyd Tonkin 2020 Barbara Trapido 2011 Jeremy Treglown 1989 Dame Rose Tremain 1983 Lynne Truss 2004 Jenny Uglow , Vice-President1998 *Amy Wack 2024 Erica Wagner 2023 James Walvin 2006 Alan Warner 2013 Dame Marina Warner 1984 Sarah Waters 2009 Robert Wells 1994 Stanley Wells 2013 Timberlake Wertenbaker 1999 Sara Wheeler 1999 *Sylvia Whitman 2023 Helen Wilcox 1999 Verna Wilkins 2021 Eley Williams 2018 Hugo Williams 1988 Nigel Williams 1994 Lord Williams of Oystermouth 2003 *Mary-Kay Wilmers 2017 A. N. Wilson 1982 Bee Wilson 2023 Frances Wilson 2008 Dame Jacqueline Wilson 2005 Jeanette Winterson 2016 *Gaby Wood 2021 James Wood 2011 Michael Wood 1992 Gerard Woodward 2005 Pamela Woof 1999 Kit Wright 1997 Ann Wroe 2007 Evie Wyld 2018 *Lola Young, Baroness Young of Hornsey 2020 Louisa Young 2024 Gary Younge 2021 Adam Zamoyski 2006 Theodore Zeldin 1999
The * before the name denotes an Honorary Fellow. The list is online at the RSL website.[ 39] [ 40]
RSL International Writers [ edit ] The RSL International Writers programme is a new life-long honour and award recognizing the contribution of writers across the globe to literature in English, and the power of literature to transcend borders in bringing people together, the inaugural list of recipients being announced in 2021.[ 41]
Year Writer Country Language(s) Genre(s) Panel of Nominators 2021 [ 41] Don Mee Choi (b. 1962)South Korea United States Korean andEnglish poetry, translation Annie Ernaux (b. 1940)France French novel, memoir, autobiography David Grossman (b. 1954)Israel Hebrew novel, essays Jamaica Kincaid (b. 1949)Antigua and Barbuda United States English novel, essays, short story Yan Lianke (b. 1958)China Mandarin novel, short story Amin Maalouf (b. 1949)Lebanon France French novel, essays Alain Mabanckou (b. 1966)Republic of Congo France French novel, poetry, essays Javier Marías (1951–2022)Spain Spanish novel, short story, essays, translation Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o (1938–2025)Kenya English andKikuyu novel, drama, short story, essays Claudia Rankine (b. 1963)United States English poetry, essays, drama Olga Tokarczuk (b. 1962)Poland Polish novel, short story, poetry, essay, screenplay Dubravka Ugrešić (1949–2023)Croatia Croatian novel, essays 2022 [ 42] Anne Carson (b. 1950)Canada English poetry, essays Maryse Condé (1937–2024)France French novel, drama, essays Tsitsi Dangarembga (b. 1959)Zimbabwe English novel, drama, essays, screenplay Cornelia Funke (b. 1958)Germany German novel Mary Gaitskill (b. 1954)United States English novel, short story, essays Faïza Guène (b. 1985)France French novel Saidiya Hartman (b. 1960)United States English essays Kim Hyesoon (b. 1955)South Korea Korean poetry, essays Yōko Ogawa (b. 1962)Japan Japanese novel, short story, essays Raja Shehadeh (b. 1951)Palestine Arabic memoirs, essays Juan Gabriel Vásquez (b. 1973)Colombia Spanish novel, short story, essays Samar Yazbek (b. 1970)Syria Arabic novel, short story, essays 2023 [ 43] Tony Birch (bornc. 1957 ) Australia English novel, short story, essays Yussef El Guindi (b. 1960)Egypt United States English drama Lorna Goodison (b. 1947)Jamaica English poetry, essays, memoir Yaa Gyasi (b. 1989)Ghana United States English novel Han Kang (b. 1970)South Korea Korean novel Yiyun Li (b. 1972)China United States English short story, novel Attica Locke (b. 1974)United States English novel Valeria Luiselli (b. 1983)Mexico Spanish andEnglish essays, novel Anne Michaels (b. 1958)Canada English poetry, novel Scholastique Mukasonga (b. 1956)Rwanda France French short story, novel Maria Stepanova (b. 1972)Russia Russian poetry, novel, journalism Gao Xingjian (b. 1940)China France Chinese novel, drama 2024 [ 44] [ 45] Jo Ann Beard (b. 1955)United States English essays Nuruddin Farah (b. 1945)Somalia Somali andEnglish novel, short story, essays, drama Carolyn Forché (b. 1950)United States English poetry, essays, translation Georgi Gospodinov (b. 1956)Bulgaria Bulgarian novel, poetry, drama Witi Ihimaera (b. 1944)Māori andEnglish novel, short story, memoir, drama, essays Marlon James (b. 1970)Jamaica English andJamaican Patois novel Haruki Murakami (b. 1949)Japan Japanese novel, short story, essays Suzan-Lori Parks (b. 1963)United States English drama, screenplay Judith Schalansky (b. 1980)Germany German novel, essays Samanta Schweblin (b. 1978)Argentina Spanish novel, short story Kim Scott (b. 1957)Australia English novel, short story, essays Olive Senior (b. 1941)Jamaica English andJamaican Patois poetry, short story, novel, essays
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