May 13, 2022, 11:28am
Swansea University’s Dylan Thomas Prize, awarded every year to a writer aged 39 or younger, is one of the most prestigious awards for young writers. This year, the honor (and £20,000 purse) goes to Patricia Lockwood for her debut novel, No One Is Talking About This.
The 2022 judges were Namita Gokhale, Luke Kennard, Alan Bilton, and Irenosen Okojie. Of Patricia Lockwood’s work, Chair of Judges Namita Gokhale, said: “No One Is Talking About This is a vital reflection on online culture today. A deeply timely winner, Patricia Lockwood is the voice of a generation of new writers who grew up under the constant pressures of real-time news and social media.”
Although she was unable to attend the ceremony, the winner shared these memorable words:
“I’m sitting here in my London hotel room on codeine, and I’m over the moon—actually, a little more codeine and I could probably convince myself that Dylan Thomas were here with me. I can’t wait to see the prize itself—I don’t know if it’s a pyramid or a crystal ball or a reproduction of the great man’s head. Whatever it is, I’m looking forward to setting off security systems with it at the airport.”
[h/t The Guardian]