Hawarden: 10 writers shortlisted for prestigious Gladstone’s Library residency award

Ten Writers have been shortlisted for a prestigious residency award at a unique Library.

The ten authors in the running to receive the Writer in Residence award at Gladstone’s Library in Hawarden, Flintshire have been announced this week.

They include poets, non-fiction writers, novelists and children’s authors.

The shortlisted writers are Liz Berry (The Home Child), Tawseef Khan, (Muslim, Actually), Alycia Pirmohamed (Another Way to Split Water), Joanna Miller (The Eights), Selali Fiamanya (Before We Hit the Ground), JR Thorp (LearWife), Sarah Tarlow (The Archaeology of Loss), Carole Hailey (The Silence Project), Camilla Chester (Call Me Lion) and Caroline Crampton (A Body Made of Glass).

Rev’d Dr Andrea Russell, Warden of the Library, said: “As a member of the final judging panel, I know we will have a hard time deciding who will receive the awards. Submissions this year have been of a very high standard. Our shortlisting team was bowled over by the sheer variety and breadth of the writing they looked at, so we are very pleased to be able to reach this point.

“I very much look forward to revealing our Writers in Residence of 2025.”

Gladstone’s Library, which was founded in the late 1800s by four-times Prime Minister William Ewart Gladstone, has three Reading Rooms which hold 10,000s of books and collections items, 26 bedrooms and an on-site restaurant.

Each year since the scheme was set up in 2011, three to five writers have been invited to spend several weeks at the Library, reading, writing and researching.

The Writer in Residence programme was first set up by then warden Peter Francis and current trustee Damian Barr, author of the novel You Will Be Safe Here, and memoir Maggie and Me (recently adapted into a major play produced by the National Theatre of Scotland), to support emerging writers. It is designed to help authors who have at least one traditionally published book but are struggling to find the time, space and funds to be creative. It is now supported by a kind donor.

Dr Louisa Yates, Director of Collections and Research at the Library, said: “It’s a privilege to be able to share the Library with the many authors who have successfully applied over the years. One of the great joys is being able to watch their work develop here, to see that difficult follow-up manuscript take shape and then, very often, find it on a bookshop shelf further down the line.

“There is a pervasive myth that once you have found a publisher, then that’s it, you have made it, but from frequent contact with writers of all stripes, we know that it is a precarious industry for emerging authors, and we are proud to be able to offer much needed support.”

Liz Berry, author of The Home Child, said: “I was dreaming of having some space and time to concentrate on my writing when a friend told me about a magical library where a writer could stay, read, research and write in blissful peace. This is the first residency or retreat I’ve applied for since I became a mum ten years ago. It was a big step for me to apply for the programme so to be shortlisted feels like a lovely encouragement and validation.”

 Tawseef Khan, author of Muslim, Actually, said: “I loved the idea of getting away from my busy life to get my head down and work on something without any distractions. I’m absolutely thrilled to be on the shortlist. I never imagined that I would ever get close to an opportunity like this.”

Alycia Pirmohamed, author of Another Way to Split Water, said: “I was drawn to the WiR Programme both for the very rare opportunity to spend a month with focused writing time and space and the Gladstone community itself. Having just finished a novel by an author I love, where she lists Gladstone’s Library in her acknowledgements, I feel totally ecstatic to join the shortlist and to be a small part of its legacy of helping writers achieve their goals.”

Joanna Miller, author of The Eights, said: “I am thrilled to be short-listed for the programme and am very grateful to the selection team for picking my debut novel, The Eights, which is about the first women at Oxford. To be shortlisted is very encouraging, especially since so many writers I admire, like Wendy Cope, Sarah Perry, Naomi Alderman, and Jessie Burton, have been past recipients of the award.”

Selali Fiamanya, author of Before We Hit the Ground, said: “My next project tackles issues across psychiatry, law, politics, religion and ethics: the Gladstone Library’s archives are a research goldmine, and the residence would give the time for deep reflection in a beautiful setting.”

JR Thorp, author of LearWife, said: “Every artist wants time, and not just snatched time: full, uninterrupted time in which to unfold ideas and see if they can hold weight. Other writers speak so glowingly of their time at the Library that I had to apply to feel its magic myself. Being shortlisted: what a gift.”

Sarah Tarlow, author of The Archaeology of Loss, said: “Being shortlisted is a huge honour. Being a sole parent, I hadn’t applied before for anything that took me away from the children, but now they are fledged, I might have an opportunity to see if I can really build a new career as a writer, even in my mid-50s. However it turns out for me, the Writers in Residence scheme is such a generous and practical way to support the future of excellent writing across all genres.”

Camilla Chester, author of Call Me Lion, said: “I’m totally thrilled that Call Me Lion has been shortlisted. I see it as validation that trying to increase empathy through children’s literature is the right thing to do, especially in the times we live in today.” 

Carole Hailey, author of The Silence Project, said: “I’m absolutely delighted to be shortlisted – many authors I admire have been previous Writers-in-Residence at Gladstone’s Library and I have long aspired to join their ranks. It’s thrilling to imagine that I may have the opportunity to spend four weeks in such an inspiring place, writing, surrounded by books, and immersing myself in all that the Library has to offer.”

Caroline Crampton, author of A Body Made of Glass, said: “I’ve been lucky enough to have a couple of friends take part in the Writer in Residence Programme in previous years, and so have heard first hand from them how beneficial it is. That’s what spurred me on to apply myself. The Library itself has been a feature of my life for approaching a decade: various members of my family make annual visits, and as I live in the area I always try to come by when they are there. For all these reasons, I’m honoured to be on the shortlist, it feels like a vote of confidence in the work I’ve already done and all that I hope to do in the future.”

The 2025 Writers in Residence will be announced in September.

The successful writers will present a talk and writing masterclass during their one-month residency, and members of the public are invited to book places at these.

Visit  www.gladstoneslibrary.org to find out about events at the Library, the Writer in Residence scheme and more.