The 2026 Booker Prize Longlist Is Out, and It Rewards Writers Who Take Risks
Thirteen novels from seven countries, three debut authors, and two past winners — the 2026 "Booker Dozen" spans centuries of history and multiple genres.
The 2026 Booker Prize longlist was announced on July 28, 2026, naming 13 novels drawn from 163 eligible submissions. The list features two former prize winners, a three-time nominee, three debut novelists, and authors from seven countries.
The judging panel is chaired by Mary Beard, the Cambridge classicist, author, and broadcaster. She is joined by poet and educator Raymond Antrobus, musician and writer Jarvis Cocker, critic and editor Rebecca Liu, and Booker-shortlisted novelist Patricia Lockwood.
Beard described the selection as a list that "rewards risk" — a phrase that fits both the range of fiction chosen and the presence of debut authors alongside writers with multiple prize histories.
The Full Longlist
The 2026 Booker Dozen:
• The Shadow of the Object — Chloe Aridjis
• Switzy — Emma Cline
• Helen of Nowhere — Makenna Goodman (debut)
• The End of Everything — M. John Harrison
• The Disappearers — Marlon James
• Black Bag — Luke Kennard
• The Renovation — Kenan Orhan (debut)
• May We Feed the King — Rebecca Perry (debut)
• The Palm House — Gwendoline Riley
• The Things We Never Say — Elizabeth Strout
• John of John — Douglas Stuart
• All Them Dogs — Djamel White
• The Vivisectors — Missouri Williams
AT A GLANCE • Announced: July 28, 2026 • 13 novels selected from 163 submissions • Panel chaired by Mary Beard (classicist, author, broadcaster) • Two past winners longlisted: Douglas Stuart and Marlon James • Elizabeth Strout earns third Booker nomination • Three debut novelists included • Authors from 7 countries across 3 continents • Shortlist: September 22, 2026 | Winner: November 9, 2026 | Prize: £50,000 |
Two Past Winners Return
Douglas Stuart, who won the Booker Prize in 2020 for Shuggie Bain, is longlisted this year for John of John. Marlon James, who took the prize in 2015 for A Brief History of Seven Killings, returns with The Disappearers.
Both appear on a list with 10 authors who are longlisted for the Booker for the first time.
Elizabeth Strout's Third Nomination
Elizabeth Strout earns her third Booker nomination with The Things We Never Say. The author of Olive Kitteridge has been recognized by the prize on multiple occasions without yet winning it — a pattern that places her among a small group of writers with sustained prize visibility across separate books.
Three Debuts
Three of the 13 longlisted novels are debut works: Helen of Nowhere by Makenna Goodman, The Renovation by Kenan Orhan, and May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry. Their presence alongside two former winners marks one of the more varied career mixes the Booker longlist has seen.
A List With Geographic Range
The 13 authors come from seven countries across three continents, though the majority are based in the UK. The Booker Prize is open to any novel written in English and published in the UK or Ireland between October 1, 2025 and September 30, 2026.
What Comes Next
The shortlist will be announced September 22, 2026. The winner will be revealed at a ceremony in London on November 9, 2026. The winning author receives £50,000.
Three debut novelists sharing a longlist with two former winners is the real headline. Judging panels usually reward the track record or the manuscript. This one is doing both at once. WriteO News |
WHAT WRITERS CAN TAKE FROM THIS • Debut fiction can share a longlist with two former prize winners — three first novels made this list, so panels are not just rewarding established names • The Booker is open to any English-language novel published in the UK or Ireland between October 2025 and September 2026 — eligibility is broader than many writers assume • This panel explicitly named risk as a value — formal ambition and genre-crossing are not disadvantages at the longlist stage • Watch the shortlist announcement on September 22, 2026 to see which direction the panel narrows — that is when the clearer picture of what judges are rewarding emerges |
Structural ambition is the throughline of this list, multi-timeline narratives, genre-crossing plots, dense casts. If you are building something with that many moving parts, WriteO’s Plotting feature lets you map every thread and see the whole shape of the book before you are too deep in to track it.
Sources: The Booker Prizes official site | NPR, July 28, 2026 | Book Riot, July 28, 2026 | Locus Magazine | The Federal