Mohammed Hasan Alwan

Mohammed Hasan Alwan, a Saudi novelist, is the Chief Executive Officer of the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission affiliated with the Ministry of Culture in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. His appointment decision was issued by the Minister of Culture in 2020. Alwan is the third Saudi novelist to win the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, (Booker). This was in 2017, after novelists Abdo Khal in 2010 and Raja'a Alem in 2011.

He was chosen in Beirut in 2010 among the top thirty-nine young Arab writers, and his novels were shortlisted for the Booker Prize two times. Alwan wrote four novels, the first of which was published in 2002. He also published about 312 articles over six years in the Saudi newspapers al-Sharq and al-Watan.

Mohammed Hasan Alwan was born in ‏Riyadh City‏ in 1979. He earned his Marketing and International Business Administration Doctorate Degree from Carleton University in Canada. He embarked on his novelistic journey in 2002, publishing his debut novel, Saqf Al-Kifayah (Ceiling of Sufficiency,) which received significant acclaim within the Saudi literary scene. He then published his second novel, "Sofia," in 2004. After several years, Alwan published his third novel, Tawq al-Tahara (Collar of Purity,) in 2007 and his fourth, al-Qundus (The Beaver) in 2011, which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2013. In 2016, he published his historical novel, Mawt Saghir (Little Death,) which won the Booker Prize in 2017.

Mohammed Hasan Alwan wrote articles and short stories for several local and international newspapers. He is the author of the book al-Rahil: Nazariyatuhu wa al-'awamil al-mu'athirah fihi (Departure: Theories and Key Factors,) published in 2014. Moreover, his work was published in the British Guardian and the American New York Times. In 2009, Alwan participated in the first seminar held by the International Prize for Arabic Fiction, "Ibdaa' Workshop." His novel, al-Qundus (The Beaver) was translated into French, earning the Arab World Institute in Paris prize for the best Arabic novel translated into French in 2015.

Mohamad Hasan Alwan was a writing techniques trainer in Booker's seminar "Ibdaa' Workshop" in 2016. After publishing his fifth novel, Mawt Saghir (Little Death,) it was nominated and shortlisted for the Booker Prize. It won the prize later in 2017, to be the third Saudi novel awarded the prize in less than seven years. Mawt Saghir (Little Death) is a fictional biography of the life of the Sufi philosopher Muhyiddin Bin Arabi, who was born in Andalusia and died in Damascus.

In 2019, Mohammed Alwan was appointed as the head of the literature, publishing, and translation sector under the patronage of the Ministry of Culture. Subsequently, He was appointed the CEO of the Literature, Publishing, and Translation Commission, established among eleven new cultural authorities. Alwan was entrusted with the responsibility of managing and developing the sector and improving the laws related to it. Additionally, he was responsible for enhancing the investment aspects of the sector and supporting prodigies in it, along with all of its affiliates and specialists, to create fresh content that keeps pace with the changes that the Kingdom is heading toward in all its sectors.