Ellen Wiles

Ellen Wiles is a novelist, lecturer, anthropologist, and curator.

Ellen’s fiction debut is THE INVISIBLE CROWD (HarperCollins, November 2017), a multi-voice novel about immigration, serendipity, prejudice, and kindness. It tells the story of Jude, a barrister; Yonas, her Eritrean client, who was smuggled into the UK; and a variety of people who meet Yonas as he escapes his traffickers and tries to seek asylum. The story was inspired by a legal case Ellen worked on as a barrister and voluntary work with refugees. The book was awarded a Victor Turner Prize and was a Guardian readers’ book of the year.

Her first book is SAFFRON SHADOWS (Columbia University Press, 2015): an exploration of  literary and cultural life in Myanmar (Burma) under a repressive censorship regime and beyond. It features new translations of fiction paired with interviews with authors from three generations, and evocative descriptions of the place and people.

Her next book is LIVE LITERATURE (Palgrave, 2021): a book about the growing phenomenon of live literary events from salons to festivals in the digitalizing 21^st century, how they change the way that participants think about books, and shape contemporary literary culture – and how we can better understand and communicate the value of live performance events, particularly in the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic. It includes ethnographic chapters about the Hay Festival and the Polari salon, and interviews with literary figures including Simon Armitage and Colm Tóibín alongside a variety of reader-audience members.

Alongside her live literature research and writing, Ellen curates literary events and cross-arts experiences. She is the founder of Ark, an experimental live literature project to create immersive short story performances in library spaces, supported by Arts Council England, and she has directed shows at the British Library among other spaces.

Ellen now works as a Creative Writing Lecturer at Exeter University. Before focusing on writing and research, she spent seven years practising as a barrister based in London, specializing in human rights. During that time she worked on legal projects in Myanmar, Thailand and Botswana as well as working in the British courts.

Ellen lives with her husband and two small children in Exeter. She is currently working on her second novel, for which she has been awarded a K Blundell Trust Award by the Society of Authors. 

Forthcoming publication: 

THE UNEXPECTED - HQ - November 2024

Kessie and Robin have been best friends since they were small. Now they’ve reached their mid-thirties, and biological clocks are ticking loudly. But Kessie is single, Robin’s partner is ambivalent about trying for a baby, and single parenting sounds almost impossible.

When one of them gets pregnant, the other finds herself helping out to an extent that neither had expected. How far is a supportive friend supposed to go? What do you do when you feel like a mother to a child who isn’t yours? Are there alternative ways to conceive of a family?

Praise for THE UNEXPECTED:

'Wiles writes with humour, tenderness and wisdom; The Unexpected is a welcome portrait of the beauty, the battle and the exhilarating reinvention of contemporary motherhood.’ Marianne Levy, author of DON’T FORGET TO SCREAM

‘An intelligent, thought-provoking, tender, and very real exploration of friendship, pregnancy, and the changing face of modern parenting.' Susannah Wise, author of THIS FRAGILE EARTH and OKAY THEN THAT’S GREAT

‘I didn't want this novel to end. Through radiant writing, Ellen Wiles offers a brutally honest portrait of motherhood in its joys and despairs, as experienced between two best women friends in the unconventional position of sharing a baby. But this is also a book about the meaning of life in all its layers because its narrators, Kessie and Robin, are both searching, upending our ideas about family in the process. It's about time someone wrote about this! Thank you, Ellen Wiles.’ Donna Freitas, author of THE NINE LIVES OF ROSE NAPOLITANO

‘Loved this clever and funny novel by Ellen Wiles on the complexities of friendship, motherhood and social change.’ Anna Mazzola, author of THE BOOK OF SECRETS

'Ellen Wiles shows us how legal forces can shape our most intimate lives. This novel reminds us that chosen families are as complicated, messy and thick with love as biological ones.' Rowan Hisayo Buchanan, author of THE SLEEP WATCHER, STARLING DAYS and HARMLESS LIKE YOU

Previous publications:

THE INVISIBLE CROWD - HQ - November 2017

One journey can change many lives…

Fleeing war-torn Eritrea, Yonas Kelati arrives in England with nothing but the clothes on his back, a phone number, and a glimmer of hope.

Hitching a ride on a country lane, Yonas meets Joe. On a train bound for London, he meets Quentin. On an unfamiliar street corner, he meets Emil. On a cold, dark doorstep, he meets Nina. Finally, in a courtroom, he meets Jude.

Yonas needs the help of these people, and more – and not all of them will be kind enough to give it. But meeting him will change each of them. And in turn, each of them will change his life forever.

This kaleidoscopic novel digs deep into our attitudes to immigration and the refugee crisis, while being a compelling and uplifting read.

Praise for THE INVISIBLE CROWD:

‘Pushes us to find our kinder selves’ Rowan Hisayo Buchanan, author of Harmless Like You

'A fierce, big-hearted novel' Joe Treasure, author of The Book of Air

'A deeply felt novel' Tim Finch, author of The House of Jounalists