Seán Hewitt's novel, Open, Heaven (Vintage) has been shortlisted for The Dylan Thomas Prize 2026. This is the second time Seán has been shortlisted for the award, with his poetry collection Rapture's Road previously shortlisted last year.
The Dylan Thomas Prize is the world's largest and most prestigious prize for young writers. Awarded for the best published literary work in the English language, written by an author aged 39 or under, the Prize celebrates the international world of fiction in all its forms including poetry, novels, short stories and drama.
Comprising four novels and two poetry collections, the shortlist is:
- To Rest Our Minds and Bodies by Harriet Armstrong (Les Fugitives) – novel (UK)
- We Pretty Pieces of Flesh by Colwill Brown (Chatto & Windus, Vintage) – novel (UK)
- Joy is My Middle Name by Sasha Debevec-McKenney (Fitzcarraldo Editions) – poetry (US)
- Under the Blue by Suzannah V. Evans (Bloomsbury Poetry) – poetry (UK)
- Open, Heaven by Seán Hewitt (Jonathan Cape, Vintage) – novel (UK)
- Borderline Fiction by Derek Owusu (Canongate) – novel (UK)
Irenosen Okojie MBE, Chair of Judges, said: “This is a marvellous, galvanising shortlist. We're thrilled by the scope, breadth and depth of these works across forms. These books have profound things to say about the ways we live, what it means to be human and overall are propulsive reads that imbue the writing space with new energies.”
The British Library will host a shortlist celebratory event on Wednesday 13 May with the winner announced during a ceremony in Swansea on Thursday 14 May, marking International Dylan Thomas Day.