Irish-Trained Writer Claims Women's Prize for Fiction
An American writer who uprooted her young family and sold her home to study at Trinity College's Oscar Wilde Centre has carried off the Women's Prize for Fiction, a testament to the enduring power of Ireland's literary tradition to nurture and embolden new voices.
A Dublin Education, A Global Stage
Virginia Evans, who completed her creative writing master's under the guidance of Irish writers Kevin Power, Claire Keegan, Carlo Gébler and the centre's director Eoin McNamee, won the prestigious award for her bestselling debut novel, The Correspondent. The book is now set for a film adaptation, starring and produced by Jane Fonda.
The prize was announced at the Women's Prize Summer Party in Bedford Square Gardens, London. The 2026 Women's Prize for Non Fiction went to BBC correspondent Lyse Doucet for The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People's History of Afghanistan.
The Correspondent follows 73-year-old Sybil Van Antwerp through letters to family and friends. Sybil is stubborn, cantankerous and opinionated, always steadfast in her belief in the power of the written word. Yet as time grows short, the need for a few post-scripts to the life she has led becomes apparent. It is a book about great joys, small tragedies and unexpected second chances.
'Let Them Be Hurt'
Evans has spoken about the crucial mentorship she received at the Oscar Wilde Centre.