Sky Arts RSL Writers Awards winners announced

The RSL has announced the recipients of the 2022 Sky Arts Royal Society of Literature (RSL) Writers Awards, which celebrate and nurture British writers of colour at the beginnings of their careers. 

Five winners will receive 10 mentoring sessions over the course of 12 months with an RSL Fellow writing in their form, as well as two sessions with Sky Arts ambassador Bernardine Evaristo.

The winner of the fiction category is Kim Squirrell, who will be mentored by Nadifa Mohamed. Squirrell is a British writer of Caribbean-Irish heritage. She explores narratives in poetry and prose, drawing on archives, family histories and the natural world. In 2021 she was shortlisted for the James Berry Poetry Prize and won the Bridport Prize Dorset Award for her novel in progress.

Mohamed said: “I chose Kim as my mentee as I was drawn to the poetry and rhythm of her prose. She is writing historical fiction which feels free and is stylistically interesting; I’m also drawn to her examination of the relationships between women of African and European backgrounds in early Caribbean history.”

In non-fiction, British-Zambian lawyer and writer Sabrina Mahtani will be mentored by Nikesh Shukla. Mahtani previously worked for Amnesty International and The Elders, a group of global leaders founded by Nelson Mandela. She co-founded AdvocAid, a civil society organisation in Sierra Leone that provides access to justice for women in detention. She also curates Women Beyond Walls, a platform focused on ending the over-incarceration of women and hosts a podcast.

“There was a clarity of idea in Sabrina’s application that excited me, and the writing sample was absolutely knockout,” Shukla said. “It was visceral and heartbreaking and told the beginnings of a story that demands to be told. I look forward to working with Sabrina to get this story out into the world.”

Hannah Shury-Smith will be mentored by Inua Ellams for playwriting. Shury-Smith’s work has been performed at the Corpus Playroom, Theatre503 and Talawa’s Fairfield Halls Studio.

“I chose Hannah because in her application I saw a writer exploring form and voice in theatre,” Ellams said. “Her voice was fresh, experimental, rhythmic and full of identity and care. It’ll be an honour to help her shape what comes next.”

Meanwhile, poetry winner Zainab Imran will be mentored by Jay Bernard. Imran, who is British Pakistani, focuses on ethnic diaspora and the hidden stories of women in the colonial struggle. She currently runs the poetry collective Poets for Partition. Bernard said he chose her because “her poetic voice was instantly engaging”.

“The poems were assured and her curiosity about the form was clear,” he continued. “I also felt much affinity with her ideas about moving away from certain kinds of self-narrativisation that can often burden racialised writers, and look forward to exploring these ideas creatively, and in more depth.”

Finally, returning winner Jenna Al-Ansari will be mentored by Vinany Patel for screenwriting. The British Bahraini writer won the inaugural Screenshot competition in 2021 and is developing her winning entry “Duck & Cover” with Sister Pictures and South of the River. 

“I’m looking forward to working with Jenna because her story of coming to writing late resonated with me, but more than that I’m excited by the range and playfulness of her ideas,” Patel said. “She’s a talented, driven writer who’s on the cusp of great things – I can’t wait to see where her career will take her.”

Evaristo said: “It’s essential to create new initiatives to help make our culture more inclusive for those from under-represented and marginalised communities. I’m looking forward to discovering and mentoring the next generation of talented writers through this wonderful Sky Arts and RSL programme.”