Amarte Literature Prize nominations

Nominaties Amarte Literatuurprijs

No fewer than three books by festival authors were nominated for the Amarte Literature Prize. Were you there when they performed at the Writers Unlimited Festival in January 2026?

Three authors from the 2026 festival edition were in the running for the prize, with their books nominated for the Amarte Literature Prize: Jante Wortel, Xillan Macrooy and Benzokarim.

Jante Wortel took part in the festival in Het ongemak van een lichaam, one of the programmes during Saturday Night Unlimited. Her appearance was inspired by the book of the same name, which she published with Corinne Heyrman in January 2026. In it, they share their experiences of writing about an eating disorder, allowing themselves to be honest about it and addressing the taboo surrounding it. Corinne was also due to take part but was unable to attend due to illness. Jante received her Amarte nomination for her second novel, Ik, de ander (2025), in which she gradually draws you into the quicksand of a toxic relationship.

Xillan Macrooy had already performed at the 2024 and 2025 festival editions. A talented storyteller and captivating performer of his own songs, he took part in the Writers Unlimited 30th anniversary show Playing with Fire at Amare. At the 2026 festival, he once again surprised audiences with powerful performances. This time as the author of his first novel, Mensen als zonnen en mensen als manen, which was nominated for the Amarte Literature Prize, as well as a singer. He performed to a full house at Cultuuranker Bibliotheek Nieuw Waldeck and was a guest author during the festival recording of Van Dis Ongefilterd with Adriaan van Dis. Mensen als zonnen en mensen als manen tells the story of growing up as a Black queer boy in Suriname and explores how ideas about masculinity can shape an individual life.

Benzokarim was honoured at the Writers Unlimited Festival 2026 for his poetry collection Ons gaan allemaal, which was also nominated for the Amarte Literature Prize, with the prestigious Jan Campert Poetry Prize, awarded annually since 1948. He received the prize, accompanied by a tribute from Babs Gons, during the Saturday afternoon programme Uitreiking Haagse Literatuurprijzen. That same afternoon, Benzokarim hosted the Open Mic at Theater aan het Spui, organised by the young Hague-based poetry collective FFÛH. As a young poet from The Hague, he had performed at several Writers Unlimited editions since 2020. He now lives in Rotterdam, where he served as City Poet in 2025 and 2026.

The jury of the 2026 Amarte Literature Prize selected fifteen titles for the second edition of the prize. The longlist reflects a broad range of literary genres and voices, highlighting the power, individuality and urgency at the heart of the Amarte Literature Prize. The shortlist was announced in April 2026, with the winner announced at the awards ceremony in May 2026.