Whiting Awards

Last updated
Whiting Awards
Awarded forExceptional emerging writing in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and drama
CountryUnited States
Presented byWhiting Foundation
Formerly calledWhiting Writers' Awards
Website https://www.whiting.org/writers/awards/current-winners

The Whiting Award is an American award presented annually to ten emerging writers in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and drama. The award is sponsored by the Mrs. Giles Whiting Foundation and has been presented since 1985. As of 2021, winners receive US$50,000. [1] [2]

Contents

The nominees are chosen through a juried process, and the final winners are selected by a committee of writers, scholars, and editors, selected each year by the Foundation. Writers cannot apply for the prize themselves, and the Foundation does not accept unsolicited nominations. [3]

Recipients

Whiting Award winners [4]
YearCategoryAuthorRef.
1985 Fiction Howard Norman
James Robison
Raymond Abbott
Stuart Dybek
Fiction & Non-fiction Wright Morris
Austin Wright
Poetry Douglas Crase
James Schuyler
Jorie Graham
Linda Gregg
1986 Drama August Wilson
Fiction Denis Johnson
Kent Haruf
Mona Simpson
Padgett Powell
Fiction &

Non-fiction

Darryl Pinckney
Poetry Frank Stewart
Hayden Carruth
John Ash
Ruth Stone
1987 Drama Reinaldo Povod
Fiction Alice McDermott
David Foster Wallace
Deborah Eisenberg
Joan Chase
Pam Durban
Non-fiction Gretel Ehrlich
Mindy Aloff
Poetry Mark Cox
Michael Ryan
1988 Fiction Bruce Duffy
Jonathan Franzen
Lydia Davis
Mary La Chapelle
William T. Vollmann
Non-fiction Geoffrey O'Brien
Gerald Early
Poetry Li-Young Lee
Michael Burkard
Sylvia Moss
1989 Drama Timberlake Wertenbaker
Fiction Ellen Akins
Marianne Wiggins
Fiction & Non-fiction Tobias Wolff
Non-fiction Ian Frazier
Lucy Sante
Natalie Kusz
Poetry C. D. Wright
Mary Karr
Russell Edson
1990 Drama Tony Kushner
Fiction Christopher Tilghman
Lawrence Naumoff
Mark Richard
Stephen Wright
Yannick Murphy
Non-fiction Amy Wilentz
Harriet Ritvo
Poetry Dennis Nurkse
Emily Hiestand
1991 Drama Scott McPherson
Fiction Allegra Goodman
Cynthia Kadohata
John Holman
Rebecca Goldstein
Rick Rofihe
Fiction & Non-fiction J Anton Shammas
Non-fiction Stanley Crouch
Poetry Franz Wright
Thylias Moss
1992 Drama José Rivera
Keith Reddin
Suzan-Lori Parks
Fiction Damien Wilkins
J.S. Marcus
R.S. Jones
Non-fiction Eva Hoffman
Non-fiction & Poetry Katha Pollitt
Poetry Jane Mead
Roger Fanning
1993 Drama Kevin Kling
Fiction Dagoberto Gilb
Janet Peery
Jeffrey Eugenides
Lisa Shea
Sigrid Nunez
Poetry Dionisio D. Martinez
Kathleen Peirce
Mark Levine
Nathaniel Mackey
1994 Fiction Kate Wheeler
Louis Edwards
Mary Hood
Fiction & Non-fiction Randall Kenan
Non-fiction Claudia Roth Pierpont
Kennedy Fraser
Rosemary Mahoney
Non-fiction &Poetry Wayne Koestenbaum
Mary Swander
Poetry Mark Doty
1995 Fiction Matthew Stadler
Melanie Sumner
Michael Cunningham
Reginald McKnight
Non-fiction & Poetry Lucy Grealy
Non-fiction André Aciman
Russ Rymer
Suzannah Lessard
Poetry James McMichael
Mary Ruefle
1996 Fiction A.J. Verdelle
Anderson Ferrell
Brian Kiteley
Cristina García
Judy Troy
Molly Gloss
Fiction & Non-fiction Chris Offutt
Patricia Storace
Poetry Brigit Pegeen Kelly
Elizabeth Spires
1997 Drama Erik Ehn
Fiction Melanie Rae Thon
Fiction & Non-fiction Josip Novakovich
Suketu Mehta
Non-fiction Ellen Meloy
Jo Ann Beard
Poetry Connie Deanovich
Forrest Gander
Jody Gladding
Mark Turpin
1998 Drama W. David Hancock
Fiction Michael Byers
Fiction & Non-fiction Ralph Lombreglia
Non-fiction Anthony Walton
D. J. Waldie
Poetry Charles Harper Webb
Daniel Hall
Greg Williamson
James Kimbrell
Nancy Eimers
1999 Drama Naomi Iizuka
Fiction Ben Marcus
Ehud Havazelet
Yxta Maya Murray
ZZ Packer
Non-fiction Gordon Grice
Margaret Talbot
Poetry Martha Zweig
Michael Haskell
Terrance Hayes
2000 Drama Kelly Stuart
Fiction Colson Whitehead
John McManus
Lily King
Robert Cohen
Samantha Gillison
Non-fiction Andrew X. Pham
Poetry & Fiction Albert Mobilio
Poetry Claude Wilkinson
James Thomas Stevens
2001 Drama Brighde Mullins
Fiction Akhil Sharma
Emily Carter
John Wray
Matthew Klam
Samrat Upadhyay
Non-fiction Judy Blunt
Kathleen Finneran
Poetry Jason Sommer
Joel Brouwer
2002 Drama Evan Smith
Melissa James Gibson
Fiction Danzy Senna
Jeffery Renard Allen
Justin Cronin
Kim Edwards
Michelle Huneven
Poetry David Gewanter
Elizabeth Arnold
Joshua Weiner
2003 Drama Sarah Ruhl
Fiction Agymah Kamau
Alexander Chee
Ann Pancake
Jess Row
Lewis Robinson
Courtney Angela Brkic
Non-fiction Christopher Cokinos
Trudy Dittmar
Poetry Major Jackson
2004 Drama Elana Greenfield
Tracey Scott Wilson
Fiction Daniel Alarcón
Kirsten Bakis
Victor LaValle
Non-fiction Allison Glock
John Jeremiah Sullivan
Poetry A. Van Jordan
Catherine Barnett
Dan Chiasson
2005 Drama Rinne Groff
Fiction Sarah Shun-lien Bynum
Nell Freudenberger
Seth Kantner
John Keene
Poetry
Thomas Sayers Ellis
Ilya Kaminsky
Dana Levin
Spencer Reece
Tracy K. Smith
2006 Drama Bruce Norris [5]
Stephen Adly Guirgis
Fiction Charles D’Ambrosio
Micheline Aharonian Marcom
Nina Marie Martínez
Patrick O’Keeffe
Yiyun Li
Poetry Sherwin Bitsui
Suji Kwock Kim
Tyehimba Jess
2007 Drama Sheila Callaghan
Tarell Alvin McCraney
Fiction Ben Fountain
Brad Kessler
Dalia Sofer
Non-fiction Carlo Rotella
Jack Turner
Peter Trachtenberg
Poetry Cate Marvin
Paul Guest
2008 Drama Dael Orlandersmith [6]
Fiction Benjamin Percy
Laleh Khadivi
Lysley Tenorio
Manuel Muñoz
Mischa Berlinski
Non-fiction Donovan Hohn
Poetry Douglas Kearney
Julie Sheehan
Rick Hilles
2009 Drama Rajiv Joseph [7]
Fiction Adam Johnson
Nami Mun
Salvatore Scibona
Vu Tran
Non-fiction Hugh Raffles
Michael Meyer
Poetry Jay Hopler
Jericho Brown
Joan Kane
2010 Drama David Adjmi [8]
Fiction Lydia Peelle
Michael Dahlie
Rattawut Lapcharoensap
Non-fiction Amy Leach
Elif Batuman
Saïd Sayrafiezadeh
Poetry Jane Springer
L.B. Thompson
Matt Donovan
2011 Drama Amy Herzog [9]
Fiction Daniel Orozco
Ryan Call
Scott Blackwood
Teddy Wayne
Non-fiction Paul Clemens
Poetry Don Mee Choi
Eduardo C. Corral
Kerri Webster
Shane McCrae
2012 Drama Danai Gurira [10]
Meg Miroshnik
Mona Mansour
Samuel D. Hunter
Fiction Alan Heathcock
Anthony Marra
Hanna Pylväinen
Non-fiction Sharifa Rhodes-Pitts
Poetry Atsuro Riley
Ciaran Berry
2013 Drama Virginia Grise [11]
Fiction Amanda Coplin
C.E. Morgan
Hannah Dela Cruz Abrams
Jennifer duBois
Stephanie Powell Watts
Non-fictionClifford Thompson
Hannah Dela Cruz Abrams
Morgan Meis
Poetry Ishion Hutchinson
Rowan Ricardo Phillips
2014 No Award Presented
2015 Drama Lucas Hnath [12]
Anne Washburn
Fiction Leopoldine Core
Dan Josefson
Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi
Non-fiction Elena Passarello
Poetry Anthony Carelli
Aracelis Girmay
Jenny Johnson
Roger Reeves
2016 Drama Madeleine George [13] [14]
Fiction Mitchell S. Jackson
Alice Sola Kim
Catherine Lacey
Non-fiction Brian Blanchfield
J. D. Daniels
Poetry LaTasha N. Nevada Diggs
Safiya Sinclair
Layli Long Soldier
Ocean Vuong [15]
2017 Drama Clare Barron [16] [17]
Clarence Coo
James Ijames
Fiction Jen Beagin
Kaitlyn Greenidge
Lisa Halliday
Tony Tulathimutte
Non-fiction Francisco Cantú
Poetry Simone White
Phillip B. Williams
2018 Drama Nathan Alan Davis [18]
Hansol Jung
Antoinette Nwandu
Fiction Brontez Purnell
Patrick Cottrell
Non-fiction Anne Boyer
Esmé Weijun Wang
Weike Wang
Poetry Anne Boyer
Rickey Laurentiis
Tommy Pico
2019 Drama Lauren Yee [19] [20]
Michael R. Jackson
Fiction Hernan Diaz (writer)
Merritt Tierce
Nafissa Thompson-Spires
Non-fiction Nadia Owusu
Terese Marie Mailhot
Poetry Kayleb Rae Candrilli
Tyree Daye
Vanessa Angélica Villarreal
2020 Drama Will Arbery [21] [22]
Fiction Andrea Lawlor
Genevieve Sly Crane
Ling Ma
Non-fiction Jaquira Díaz
Jia Tolentino
Poetry Aria Aber
Diannely Antigua
Genya Turovskaya
Jake Skeets
2021 Drama Jordan E. Cooper [23] [24]
Donnetta Lavinia Grays
Sylvia Khoury
Fiction Steven Dunn
Tope Folarin
Non-fiction Sarah Stewart Johnson
Poetry Joshua Bennett
Marwa Helal
Ladan Osman
Xan Phillips
2022 Fiction Claire Boyles [25]
Rita Bullwinkel
Megha Majumdar
Nana Nkweti
Non-fiction Anaïs Duplan
Alexis Pauline Gumbs
Jesse McCarthy
Poetry Ina Cariño
Anthony Cody
Claire Schwartz
2023 DramaMia Chung [26] [27]
Fiction Marcia Douglas
Sidik Fofana
Caribbean Fragoza
R. Kikuo Johnson
Non-fictionLinda Kinstler
Stephania Taladrid
Poetry Tommye Blount
Ama Codjoe
Poetry & DramaMilo Wippermann [28]
2024 Fiction Aaliyah Bilal [29]
Yoon Choi
Gothataone Moeng
Ada Zhang
Drama Shayok Misha Chowdhury
Frances Ya-Chu Cowhig
Non-fiction & Drama Javier Zamora
Poetry Elisa Gonzalez
Taylor Johnson
Charif Shanahan

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References

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