Derek Owusu and Seán Hewitt Among Finalists for Prestigious Dylan Thomas Prize
The Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize has unveiled its highly anticipated shortlist, with six writers now in contention for the £20,000 award. This annual prize honors fiction in any form—including novels, short stories, poetry, and drama—by authors aged 39 or under, paying tribute to the Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, who passed away at that age.
Notable Shortlisted Authors and Their Works
British-Ghanaian writer Derek Owusu and British-Irish poet Seán Hewitt are standout names on the shortlist, both having been previously nominated for the prize. Owusu, a 2023 nominee, is recognized for his third novel, Borderline Fiction, which follows a young black man navigating relationships and mental health challenges. The Guardian praised it as "disarmingly poignant."
Hewitt, nominated in 2025 for his poetry collection Rapture’s Road, returns with his debut novel, Open, Heaven. This work, described by Sarah Perry in the Guardian as a "tender, skilled and epiphanic work," portrays gay first love with sensitivity and depth.
Diverse Voices and Themes on the Shortlist
The shortlist comprises four novels and two poetry collections, selected from a longlist of 12. Author and judging panel chair Irenosen Okojie noted that these "galvanising" works "have profound things to say about the ways we live and what it means to be human."
Other finalists include Harriet Armstrong, the youngest at 25, with her darkly comic campus novel To Rest Our Minds and Bodies, which explores gen Z gender relations and mental health. Colwill Brown is shortlisted for her debut novel We Pretty Pieces of Flesh, a story about three working-class girls growing up in Doncaster.
The poetry collections come from debut authors: American poet Sasha Debevec-McKenney with Joy is My Middle Name, engaging with themes of sex, race, addiction, and pop culture, and Bristol-based Suzannah V Evans with Under the Blue, a meditation on the realities of care.
Judging Panel and Prize Legacy
Joining Okojie on the judging panel are writers Joe Dunthorne, Nidhi Zak/Aria Eipe, Prajwal Parajuly, and Eley Williams. The Dylan Thomas Prize has a rich history, with last year's winner being Palestinian author Yasmin Zaher for her novel The Coin. Previous recipients include Caleb Azumah Nelson, Arinze Ifeakandu, and Patricia Lockwood, among others.
The winner will be announced on 14 May at a ceremony in Swansea, the birthplace of Dylan Thomas. This event highlights the ongoing celebration of emerging literary talent and the diverse narratives shaping contemporary fiction.
