Trinity graduate among authors shortlisted for Women’s Prize for Fiction

The 2026 winner will be revealed in June

Virginia Evans is among the female authors shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2026

The six authors in the running for this year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction have been revealed — and a Trinity College Dublin graduate is among the finalists.

The shortlist comprises Flashlight by Susan Choi, Dominion by Addie E. Citchens, The Mercy Step by Marcia Hutchinson, Kingfisher by Rozie Kelly, Heart the Lover by Lily King, and The Correspondent by Virginia Evans, who attended Trinity on an MFA for creative writing when she was 32 and unpublished.

“I moved my family over, and life has never been better. We all felt so settled,” Evans previously told the Irish Examiner. “I gained my agent from it.”  

The Women’s Prize for Fiction is described as the greatest annual celebration of female creativity in the world and the 2026 judging panel features Julia Gillard as chair, along with Mona Arshi, Salma El-Wardany, Cariad Lloyd, and Annie Macmanus.

“We are delighted to present a shortlist that doesn’t shy away from examining life’s challenges, but also brings many moments of joy,” Gillard said.

“As judges, we are first and foremost readers, and these novels intrigued and profoundly moved us. The plot lines kept us turning pages to find out what happens next, the characters found a place in our hearts and the stories stayed with us long after the last sentence. The incredible strength of the longlist challenged and delighted us, as we whittled down 16 books to this exceptional shortlist.” 

The longlist had featured two Irish authors, Wendy Erskine and Kit de Waal. Erskine made the longlist for her novel The Benefactors, and Kit de Waal secured her place for The Best of Everything, however both authors did not progress to the shortlist.

Longlisted authors Wendy Erskine and Kit de Waal.

The overall winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction will be revealed on June 11. The winning author will receive a £30,000 prize (€34,446) and a statuette known as the ‘Bessie’, created and donated by the late artist Grizel Niven. Last year's winner was The Safekeep by Yael van der Wouden.

The 2026 Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction shortlist was announced last month and features The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People’s History of Afghanistan by Lyse Doucet, Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health by Daisy Fancourt, Artists, Siblings, Visionaries: The Lives and Loves of Gwen and Augustus John by Judith Mackrell, Hotel Exile: Paris in the Shadow of War by Jane Rogoyska, Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy, and Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the 21st Century by Ece Temelkuran. 

Last year's non-fiction winner was The Story of a Heart by Rachel Clarke and the 2026 winner will also be announced on June 11.