By Nkanyezi Tshabalala.
Pan Macmillan South Africa is thrilled to announce that two of its acclaimed authors, Craig Higginson and Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu, have been selected for the highly coveted Hawthornden Foundation residency.
This prestigious opportunity, offered to writers of all genres, will allow the authors to spend a month in the serene surroundings of the historic Hawthornden Castle in Scotland and within the vibrant literary community of Ditmas Park in Brooklyn, New York, where they will enjoy uninterrupted time to focus on their craft.
The residency, established to foster creativity and literary excellence, is a remarkable honour for both authors, recognising their contribution to contemporary literature. Hawthornden Foundation has long been a retreat for celebrated writers, and the selection of these authors underscores their talent and the importance of their work.
“We are incredibly proud of Craig and Siphiwe and excited to see what this unique experience brings to their future writing,” says Terry Morris, Pan Macmillan South Africa MD. “The Hawthornden Foundation residency offers an invaluable opportunity to deepen their creative journeys, and we look forward to the exciting works that will emerge from this time of reflection and focus.”
Craig Higginson is a novelist, playwright and theatre director based in Johannesburg. He has captivated readers with works that include The Ghost of Sam Webster (Picador Africa, 2023), winner of the 2024 Fiction Prize from the National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences, and prize-winning and celebrated novels The Book of Gifts (2020), The White Room (2018), The Dream House (2015), Last Summer (2013), and The Landscape Painter (2011).
Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu is the author of The Creation of Half-Broken People (Picador Africa, 2024), and the bestselling The Theory of Flight (2018), winner of the 2019 Sunday Times Fiction Prize, and currently a setwork in South Africa. Its follow-ups include The History of Man (2020), and The Quality of Mercy (2022). Her work is published in South Africa and the US and can be read in Arabic and Italian translation. Ndlovu is also a filmmaker and academic.
Their respective residences take place in early 2025.
The Hawthornden Foundation is a private charitable foundation supporting contemporary writers and the literary arts. Established by Drue Heinz, the noted philanthropist and patron of the arts, the Foundation is named after Hawthornden Castle in Midlothian, Scotland, where an international residential residency programme provides month-long retreats for creative writers from all disciplines to work in peaceful surroundings. Hawthornden also supports a second residential programme at Casa Ecco, on Lake Como in Italy, the site of “Conversazioni”, private conferences attended by many celebrated writers and others in the arts, and a retreat for invited authors to complete a literary work in progress. This year, Hawthornden Foundation will open a new non-residential retreat – Hawthornden Brooklyn, New York. In addition, the Foundation sponsors the annual Hawthornden Prize, one of Britain’s oldest and foremost literary awards, and provides grant support to other literary programmes. Visit Hawthornden.org.