Seán Hewitt

FRSL The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...

(born 1990) is a poet, lecturer and literary critic. In 2023, he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Literature The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, th ...

Biography

Seán Hewitt was born in

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

, UK, to an Irish mother and English father. He studied English at

Girton College, Cambridge Girton College is one of the 31 constituent colleges of the University of Cambridge. The college was established in 1869 by Emily Davies and Barbara Bodichon as the first women's college in Cambridge. In 1948, it was granted full college status ...

. Hewitt received his PhD, on the works of

J. M. Synge Edmund John Millington Synge (; 16 April 1871 – 24 March 1909) was an Irish playwright, poet, writer, collector of folklore, and a key figure in the Irish Literary Revival. His best known play ''The Playboy of the Western World'' was poorly r ...

, from the Institute of Irish Studies,

University of Liverpool , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

. He lives in Dublin, where he lectures at

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

. Hewitt was awarded an

Eric Gregory Award The Eric Gregory Award is a literary award given annually by the Society of Authors for a collection by British poets under the age of 30. The award was founded in 1960 by Dr. Eric Gregory to support and encourage young poets. In 2021, the seven ...

in 2019, and won the world's biggest ecopoetry award, the Resurgence Prize, in 2017. He also received a Northern Writers' Award in 2016. Hewitt was listed as one of ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' "30 under 30" artists in Ireland in 2020. His debut collection of poems, ''Tongues of Fire'', won The Laurel Prize in 2021. He was awarded the

Rooney Prize for Irish Literature The Rooney Prize for Irish Literature was created in 1976 by the Irish American businessman Dan Rooney, owner and chairman of the NFL Pittsburgh Steelers franchise and former US Ambassador to Ireland. The prize is awarded to Irish writers aged ...

in 2022.

Works

Hewitt's debut collection, ''Tongues of Fire'', was published by

Jonathan Cape Jonathan Cape is a London publishing firm founded in 1921 by Herbert Jonathan Cape, who was head of the firm until his death in 1960. Cape and his business partner Wren Howard set up the publishing house in 1921. They established a reputation ...

in 2020. ''Tongues of Fire'' was released to critical acclaim. It won The Laurel Prize in 2021, and was shortlisted for The Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year, 2020, the John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize, 2021, and the Dalkey Literary Award (Emerging Writer), 2021. It was Poetry Book of the Month in ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'', and a Book of the Year in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'', ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''The ...

'', ''Attitude'', and the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'', and was a

Poetry Book Society The Poetry Book Society (PBS) was founded in 1953 by T. S. Eliot and friends, including Sir Basil Blackwell, "to propagate the art of poetry". Eric Walter White was secretary from December 1953 until 1971, and was subsequently the society's chair ...

Recommendation. ''The Sunday Times'' wrote of Hewitt that "his poetry will stand the test of time".

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...

shortlisted novelist Max Porter describes Hewitt as "an exquisitely calm and insightful lyric poet, reverential in nature and gorgeously wise in the field of human drama." ''Tongues of Fire'' is a book of lyric poetry, and explores queer sexuality, grief, and the natural world. Hewitt's book-length study of the Irish playwright, poet and travel writer

, ''J.M. Synge: Nature, Politics, Modernism'', is published by

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

. Hewitt's memoir, ''All Down Darkness Wide'', was published in 2022.

Awards

* Winner of The Rooney Prize for Irish Literature, 2022. * Winner of The Laurel Prize, 2021. * Shortlisted for John Pollard Foundation International Poetry Prize, for ''Tongues of Fire'', 2021. *Shortlisted for the Dalkey Literary Award (Emerging Writer), 2021. *Shortlisted for The Sunday Times Young Writer of the Year Award, for ''Tongues of Fire,'' 2020. *

Recommendation, for ''Tongues of Fire'', 2020. *

, Society of Authors, 2019. *

Pamphlet Choice, for ''Lantern'', 2019. * Maurice J. Bric Medal of Excellence,

Irish Research Council The Irish Research Council ( ir, An Chomhairle um Thaighde in Éirinn) was launched in 2012 and operates under the aegis of the Department of Education and Skills. The core function of the organisation is to support research across a number ...

, 2019. * The Resurgence Prize,

Poetry School Poetry School is a national arts organisation, registered charity and adult education centre providing creative writing tuition, with teaching centres throughout England as well as online courses and downloadable activities. It was founded in 1997 ...

, 2017. *

Northern Writers' Award Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a r ...

New Writing North New Writing North, founded in 1996, is an Arts Council England agency based in the North of England for the development of writing. History New Writing North was established in 1996 in Newcastle upon Tyne, working with writers across the North Ea ...

, 2016.

Bibliography

* ''Rapture's Road'' (Jonathan Cape, 2024) * ''300,000 Kisses: Tales of Queer Love from the Ancient World'', with Luke Edward Hall (Penguin, 2023) * ''All Down Darkness Wide'' (Jonathan Cape (UK) and Penguin Press (USA), 2022) * ''Buile Suibhne'' / Seán Hewitt, wood engravings by Amy Jeffs (Rochdale, England: Fine Press Poetry, 2021) * ''J.M. Synge: Nature, Politics, Modernism'' (

, 2021) * ''Tongues of Fire'' (

, 2020) * ''Lantern'' (Offord Road Books, 2019)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hewitt, Sean 21st-century English poets 21st-century Irish poets 1990 births Alumni of Girton College, Cambridge Alumni of the University of Liverpool English poets Living people Writers from Warrington Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature