NPR

'The Future Of Literature': Whiting Awards Celebrate 10 Emerging Writers

The novelists, poets and playwrights won Wednesday partly for their work so far, but also for the promise they've shown. If previous winners are an indication, it's a promise they're likely to keep.
The 2019 Whiting Award recipients (clockwise from top left): poet Kayleb Rae Candrilli, poet Tyree Daye, novelist Hernan Diaz, playwright Michael R. Jackson, fiction writer Terese Marie Mailhot, nonfiction writer Nadia Owusu, playwright Lauren Yee, poet Vanessa Angelica Villarreal, novelist Merrit Tierce and fiction writer Nafissa Thompson-Spires.

Fair warning: It may be tough to find some of the 2019 Whiting Award winners on the shelves of your local bookstore. Most of the emerging writers have little more than a single widely published book to their name. A couple of them don't even have that.

But what the 10 new Whiting recipients lack in publishing credits and international awards, they more than make up for in talent and promise — at least, according to

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from NPR

NPR4 min read
From Pandemic To Protests, The Class Of 2024 Has Been Through A Lot
Pomp and circumstance again fall victim to circumstance for some students in the graduating class of 2024, as protests over the war in Gaza threaten to disrupt commencement ceremonies.
NPR2 min read
Short-term Loss For Long-term Gain? The Ethical Dilemma At The Heart Of EVs
As mines meet mineral demands for electric vehicles, they put communities and ecosystems at risk. Sustainability researcher Elsa Dominish says the EV industry cannot repeat fossil fuel's mistakes.
NPR4 min read
Yes, Apple's New IPad Ad Is Ugly And Crushing, But Art Can't Be Flattened
The newest iPad ad depicts instruments, books and art supplies flattened into Apple's thinnest product ever. But anyone who owns and loves art in any form knows: The practicality isn't the point.

Related Books & Audiobooks