The Royal Society of Literature has some 500 Fellows. They include novelists, short-story writers, poets, playwrights, biographers, historians, travel writers, literary critics and scriptwriters. All write in the English language and most are British, but overseas authors are also well represented. Among our current Fellows are Tom Stoppard, Seamus Heaney, Beryl Bainbridge, Philip Pullman, Margaret Drabble, Ben Okri, Carol Ann Duffy, Vikram Seth, Michael Frayn, Doris Lessing, Zadie Smith and Wole Soyinka.
The requirements for Fellowship are that candidates should have published at least two books and been nominated by two or more existing Fellows. Elections, in which the Society’s President, Vice-Presidents and Council vote, take place twice a year. On average fifteen new Fellows are chosen each year, from over 70 nominees. In addition, the Council may award Honorary Fellowships in recognition of outstanding service to literature or the Society.
- Lawrence Sail
- Giles St Aubyn LVO
- William St Clair FBA
- Norman St John-Stevas (Lord St John of Fawsley)
- Fiona Sampson
- J.J. Scarisbrick
- Ann Schlee
- Michael Schmidt
- The Rev Professor M.A. Screech FBA
- Roger Scruton FBA
- Peter Scupham
- Simon Sebag-Montefiore
- Elisa Segrave
- Richard Sennett
- Vikram Seth CBE
- Miranda Seymour
- Sir Peter Shaffer CBE
- Nicholas Shakespeare
- Jo Shapcott
- Norman Sherry
- Alan Sillitoe
- Posy Simmonds MBE
- Helen Simpson
- Andrew Sinclair
- Clive Sinclair
- Iain Sinclair
- Robert Skidelsky (Lord Skidelsky of Tilton FRHistS)
- Ali Smith
- Godfrey Smith
- Lacey Baldwin Smith FRHistS
- Zadie Smith
- Mary Soames (Lady Soames DBE)
- Ahdaf Soueif
- Frances Spalding CBE
- Francis Spufford
- Hilary Spurling CBE
- John Spurling
- Tom Stacey
- Jon Stallworthy FBA
- Martin Stannard
- C.K. Stead ONZ CBE
- George Steiner FBA
- Rory Stewart
- Stanley Stewart
- Sir Tom Stoppard OM CBE C Lit
- Sir Roy Strong FSA
- Kate Summerscale
- Virginia Surtees
- John Sutherland
- Graham Swift
- George Szirtes