On Monday 8 April, we unveiled the longlist for the 2024 RSL Ondaatje Prize. This year marks the twentieth anniversary of the prize, which was instituted in 2004 to celebrate outstanding works of fiction, non-fiction or poetry that best evoke the spirit of a place. ‘Place has always been important to me as a writer, and I’ve loved the brilliant variety of its imaginative reflections in the longlist,’ says Francis Spufford, who judged the prize alongside Jan Carson and Xiaolu Guo. They whittled down 194 entries in selecting their longlist of fourteen authors. Jan Carson says: ‘Judging the RSL O ..read more

This spring the RSL public programme will be popping up in some new spaces, featuring literary luminaries alongside emerging voices, celebrating iconic texts alongside new writing, UK writers as well as writers from across the Americas.  The RSL Lecture will be a feature of this year’s Newcastle Poetry Festival where Anthony Joseph will speak about ‘The Architecture of Longing’ in poetry.  Anne Michaels, an RSL International Writer, will be here from Toronto offering a lecture on poetry in memory of poet Wanda Barford. Michaels will also be in conversation with Claire Messud on their ..read more

The shortlist for the 2024 V.S. Pritchett Prize has been announced. The V.S. Pritchett Short Story Prize is an annual award for unpublished short stories between 2,000 to 4,000 words in length. The winner will receive £1,000 and their entry will be published in Prospect magazine online and the RSL Review. Commenting on this year’s shortlist, judge Julia Armfield said: “The range and variety of tones and genres on display with this year’s entries was extremely exciting and it was a struggle to whittle down a shortlist. I hope that the stories we have selected go some way to reflecting a breadth ..read more

The longlist for the 2024 V.S. Pritchett Award has been announced. The V.S. Pritchett Short Story Prize is an annual award for unpublished short stories between 2,000 to 4,000 words in length. The winner will receive £1,000 and their entry will be published in Prospect magazine online and the RSL Review. This year’s judges Julia Armfield, Fred D’Aguiar and Juliet Jacques have selected the following: Michael Byrne – ‘Twéo-mann’ Stuart Evers – ‘Martinez’ Sarah Featherstone – ‘Dust’ Gill Fryzer – ‘Off Lizard Point’ Dave Lewis – ‘Pachyderm Hiraeth’ Kate Lockwood Jefford – ‘A Family Gathering’ Grái ..read more

We are delighted to announce that submissions to the Entente Littéraire Prize (Prix de l’Entente Littéraire), a new UK-France literary prize for writers of young adult literature, are now open. The submissions window will be formally opened at Receptions at the French Embassy in London and the British Embassy in Paris on 23 January as part of the celebrations to mark the start of the 120 anniversary of the Entente Cordiale.   Announced in September 2023 by Her Majesty The Queen and Madame Brigitte Macron during the King and Queen’s State Visit to France, the Entente Littéraire P ..read more

Now in their sixth year, the RSL Literature Matters Awards aim to enable literary excellence and innovation, providing writers with financial support to undertake new literary projects that extend the reach of literature. For the first time, eight projects from writers working across multiple disciplines and forms have been chosen by judges Polly Atkin, Alycia Pirmohamed and Charlie Swinbourne. Congratulations to our 2023 winners: Pragya Agarwal (£2,900). ‘Writing Eco-grief’ uses writing workshops and masterclasses to document the experience of living and parenting in the time of the anthropoc ..read more

Established in 2017, the RSL Giles St Aubyn Awards support writers with their first commissioned works of non-fiction with 3 awards – one of £10,000, one of £5,000 and one of £2,500. This year’s Awards were judged by Leila Aboulela, Fiona St Aubyn and Tom Burgis. Congratulations to our 2023 winners: £10,000 – Oliver Basciano – Outcast: A History of Us Through Leprosy (Faber & Faber) Outcast is an important book about social connectivity and resilience. Taking leprosy’s 4,000-year history – and its enduring contemporary significance – as its central conceit, this work of astonishing n ..read more

Have your say in 2024! We’re now OPEN to recommendations to find our next International Writers. Anyone, anywhere can recommend. Your recommendations will be read by a panel of Fellows including Kit Fan (Chair), Moniza Alvi, Kwame Anthony Appiah, Chloe Aridjis, Homi K. Bhabha, Margaret Busby, Maureen Freely, Deirdre Osborne and Nathalie Teitler. Submit your recommendation here! The post International Writers Recommendations open for 2024 appeared first on Royal Society of Literature ..read more

To celebrate our 203rd birthday, and the end of the third year of RSL 200, we can now reveal 12 new RSL International Writers, and two new awards and prizes for 2024! ‘The ever-expanding portfolio of the Royal Society of Literature initiatives continues the essential support and acknowledgement of writers at different stages of their careers along with a commitment to fostering global relationships. Thriving and impactful, it is an utterly unique organisation, founded two centuries ago, and embracing inclusivity in the twenty-first century.’ – Bernardine Evaristo ..read more

RSL Jerwood Poetry Awards Mentoring and financial support of over £40,000 annually for one poet from each UK nation The 2024 Awards Nominations from selected organisations will be invited from December 2023. Mentors will be announced in the new year, when the nominated poets will be invited to apply. About the Awards The RSL Jerwood Poetry Awards is a new flagship programme supporting poets across Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and England to make significant step-changes in their careers. Through direct financial support, mentoring, professional development workshops and project fu ..read more