Royal Society of Literature

Royal Society of Literature
The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) is a learned society founded in 1820, by King George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent". A charity that represents the voice of literature in the UK, the RSL has about 600 Fellows, elected from among the best writers in any genre currently at work. Additionally, Honorary Fellows are chosen from those who have made a significant contribution to the advancement of literature, including publishers, agents, librarians, booksellers or producers. The society is a cultural tenant at London's Somerset House.
History
The Royal Society of Literature (RSL) was founded in 1820, with the patronage of George IV, to "reward literary merit and excite literary talent", and its first president was Thomas Burgess, Bishop of St David's (who was later translated as Bishop of Salisbury). As of 2018, the RSL's patron is Queen Camilla, who took over in the role from Elizabeth II.
At the heart of the RSL is its Fellowship, "which encompasses the most distinguished writers working today", with the RSL Council, Chair and President, who are responsible for its direction and management, being drawn from the Fellowship. As an independent charity, the RSL receives no regular public or government funding, relying on the support of its Members, Patrons, Fellows and friends to continue its work. The RSL has about 600 Fellows, elected from among the best writers in any genre currently at work. Additionally, Honorary Fellows are chosen from those who have made a significant contribution to the advancement of literature, including publishers, agents, librarians, booksellers or producers, or who have rendered special service to the RSL. Paid membership is open to all and offers a variety of benefits.
The society publishes an annual magazine, The Royal Society of Literature Review, and administers a number of literary prizes and awards, including the RSL Ondaatje Prize, the RSL Giles St Aubyn Awards for Non-Fiction, the RSL Encore Award for best second novel of the year and the V. S. Pritchett Memorial Prize for short stories.
In 2000, the RSL published a volume that provides a description and history of the society, written by one of its fellows, Isabel Quigly.
In 2020, the RSL celebrated its 200th anniversary with the announcement of RSL 200, "a five-year festival launched with a series of major new initiatives and 60 new appointments championing the great diversity of writing and writers in the UK". Initiatives included RSL Open (electing new Fellows from communities, backgrounds and experiences currently under-represented in UK literary culture), RSL International Writers (recognising the contribution of writers across the globe to literature in English) and Sky Arts RSL Writers Awards.
In 2021, the RSL launched "Literature Matters: Reading Together", a project aiming to make recreational reading accessible to young people across the UK.
Fellowship
The society maintains its current level of about 600 Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature: generally 14 new fellows are elected annually, who are accorded the privilege of using the post-nominal letters FRSL.
Past and present fellows include Samuel Taylor Coleridge, J. R. R. Tolkien, W. B. Yeats, Rudyard Kipling, Thomas Hardy, George Bernard Shaw, Arthur Koestler, Chinua Achebe, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, Robert Ardrey, Sybille Bedford, Muriel Spark, P. J. Kavanagh, and Sir Roger Scruton. Present Fellows include Margaret Atwood, Bernardine Evaristo, David Hare, Kazuo Ishiguro, Hilary Mantel, Andrew Motion, Paul Muldoon, Zadie Smith, Nadeem Aslam, Sarah Waters, Geoffrey Ashe and J. K. Rowling. A newly created fellow inscribes his or her name on the society's official roll using either Byron's pen, T. S. Eliot's fountain pen, which replaced Dickens's quill in 2013, or (as of 2018) George Eliot's pen, with pens belonging to Jean Rhys and Andrea Levy being additional choices from 2020.
From time to time, the RSL confers the honour and title of Companion of Literature to writers of particular note. Additionally, the RSL can bestow its award of the Benson Medal for lifetime service in the field of literature.
Membership
The RSL runs a membership programme offering a variety of events to members and the general public. Membership of the RSL is open to all.
The RSL also runs an outreach programme, currently for young people and those in prison.
Awards and prizes
The RSL administers two annual prizes, two awards, and two honours. Through its prize programmes, the RSL supports new and established contemporary writers.
The RSL Christopher Bland Prize — £10,000 for debut prose writers aged 50 or over.
The Encore Awards — £10,000 for best second novel of the year. The RSL took over the administration of this award in 2016.
The RSL Giles St Aubyn Awards for Non-Fiction – annual awards, currently one of £10,000 and one of £5,000 and one of £2,500, to authors engaged on their first commissioned works of non-fiction (replaced the Jerwood Award in 2017).
The RSL Ondaatje Prize – an annual award of £10,000 for a distinguished work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry, evoking the spirit of a place.
The V. S. Pritchett Memorial Prize – an annual prize of £1,000 for the best unpublished short story of the year.
The Benson Medal – awarded to those who have done sustained and outstanding service to literature.
Companion of Literature – the highest honour that the Society can bestow upon a writer.
Council and presidents
The Council of the Royal Society of Literature is central to the election of new fellows, and directs the RSL's activities through its monthly meetings. Council members serve for a fixed term of four years, with new members being elected by Council when members retire.
Patron
Queen Camilla
President
Bernardine Evaristo
Presidents Emeriti
Sir Michael Holroyd
Colin Thubron
Marina Warner
Chair of Council
Daljit Nagra
Vice-Chair of Council
Irenosen Okojie
Vice-Presidents
Lisa Appignanesi
Simon Armitage
Mary Beard
Anne Chisholm
Maureen Duffy
Maggie Gee
Victoria Glendinning
Jackie Kay
Blake Morrison
Grace Nichols
Philip Pullman
Elif Shafak
Kamila Shamsie
Colm Tóibín
Claire Tomalin
Jenny Uglow
Council
Colin Chisholm, Hon. Treasurer
Imtiaz Dharker
Louise Doughty
Inua Ellams
Tessa Hadley
Catherine Johnson
Helen Mort
Daljit Nagra
Susheila Nasta
Irenosen Okojie
Michèle Roberts
Roger Robinson
Ruth Scurr
Boyd Tonkin
List of presidents
1820–1832: Bishop Thomas Burgess
1832–1833: George Agar-Ellis, 1st Baron Dover
1834–1845: F. J. Robinson, 1st Viscount Goderich
1845–1849: Henry Hallam
1849–1851: Spencer Compton, 2nd Marquess of Northampton
1851–1856: George Howard, 7th Earl of Carlisle
1856–1876: The Rt Rev. Connop Thirlwall (Bishop of St David's until 1874)
1876–1884: The Prince Leopold (Duke of Albany from 1881)
1885–1893: Sir Patrick Colquhoun
1893–1920: Hardinge Giffard, 1st Earl of Halsbury
1921–1945: Robert Crewe-Milnes, 1st Marquess of Crewe
1946–1947: Victor Bulwer-Lytton, 2nd Earl of Lytton
1947–1982: Lord Butler of Saffron Walden
1982–1988: Sir Angus Wilson
1988–2003: Lord Jenkins of Hillhead
2003–2008: Sir Michael Holroyd
2008–2017: Colin Thubron
2017–2021: Marina Warner
2022–present: Bernardine Evaristo
Fellows
The Royal Society of Literature comprises more than 600 Fellows, who are entitled to use the post-nominal letters FRSL.
New fellows of the Royal Society of Literature are elected by its current fellows. To be nominated for fellowship, a writer must have published two works of literary merit, and nominations must be seconded by an RSL fellow. All nominations are presented to members of the Council of the Royal Society of Literature, who vote biannually to elect new fellows. Nominated candidates who have not been successful are reconsidered at every election for three years from the year in which they were proposed. Newly elected fellows are introduced at the Society's AGM and summer party. While the President reads a citation for each, they are invited to sign their names in the roll book which dates back to 1820, using either T. S. Eliot's fountain pen or Byron's pen. In 2013, Charles Dickens' quill was retired and replaced with Eliot's fountain pen, and in 2018 George Eliot's pen was offered as a choice, the first time in the RSL's history that a pen that belonged to a woman writer was an option.
In 2018, the RSL honoured the achievements of Britain's younger writers through the initiative "40 Under 40", which saw the election of 40 new fellows aged under 40.
In 2020, pens belonging to Andrea Levy and Jean Rhys were added to the choices offered to fellows for signing the RSL roll book.
The RSL's 2022–23 Open initiative aimed to recognise writers from backgrounds currently underrepresented in UK literary culture by electing 60 fellows over a two-year period from communities, backgrounds and experiences currently under-represented in UK literary culture, through drawing on a broad range of writers from "different parts of the UK, from different communities, different demographics", as Bernardine Evaristo noted.
Current fellows
The * before the name denotes an Honorary Fellow. The list is online at the RSL website.
RSL International Writers
The RSL International Writers programme is a new life-long honour and award recognizing the contribution of writers across the globe to literature in English, and the power of literature to transcend borders in bringing people together, the inaugural list of recipients being announced in 2021.
References
External links
The Royal Society of Literature website
RSL Review magazine
RSL literary prizes and awards
Current RSL Fellows
Roy Jenkins & The Royal Society of Literature – UK Parliament Living Heritage
1820 establishments in the United Kingdom
British literature
Learned societies of the United Kingdom
Organizations established in 1820
Organisations based in London with royal patronage