Peter Buwalda appointed as writer‑in‑residence at Leiden University
Peter Buwalda will join Leiden University as the new writer-in-residence from autumn 2026. As the 2026 writer-in-residence, Buwalda will contribute to the new Writing minor offered by the bachelor’s programme in Dutch Language and Culture.
Peter Buwalda (1971) is a novelist and columnist, who made his debut in 2010 with Bonita Avenue, which sold 400,000 copies. His second novel, Otmars zonen (2019), also topped the bestseller lists and received international acclaim. Buwalda’s third novel, De jaknikker, was published in 2025 and was shortlisted for the 2026 Libris Literature Prize. Buwalda has written a weekly column for de Volkskrant since 2013, and has also written for Bunker Hill, De Gids, Hollands Maandblad and Vrij Nederland.
Bonita Avenue won the Academica Debut Prize, the Selexyz Debut Prize, the Tzum Prize and the Anton Wachter Prize for best debut novel. It was also shortlisted for the Libris Literature Prize, the NS Public Prize, the AKO Literature Prize and the Gouden Strop (a prize for the best crime novel in Dutch), and has been translated into 20 languages, including English, German, Spanish and French. Otmars zonen won the 2019 BookSpot Readers’ Prize and was nominated for the NS Public Prize. The French translation of the novel won the Prix Transfuge du meilleur roman européen in 2025.
Minor in writing
As the 2026 writer‑in‑residence, Buwalda will contribute to the new Writing minor offered by the bachelor’s in Dutch Language and Culture. He will play a key role in the Creative Writing course and will give guest lectures in courses such as Writing and AI and Writing for a General Audience.
Buwalda will work with students to explore the impact of the effort involved in reading and writing. Each of us has our own reading history, and everything we say about literature is shaped by the books we have encountered. But how many masterpieces still await us, unread? Who has the full picture? What role can translations play? And might the influence of critics be dangerously strong?
Albert Verwey Lecture
The writer’s residency includes a public lecture, the Albert Verwey Lecture, which Buwalda will give in November 2026. For more information, see the university’s writer’s residency page.
Writer’s residency
Leiden University has had a writer’s residency since 1985. This is a partnership between the university and the NRC newspaper.
Gerard Reve was the first writer in residence. He was followed by writers including Judith Herzberg, Frans Kellendonk, Adriaan van Dis, Joost Zwagerman, Anna Enquist, Renate Dorrestein, Arnon Grunberg, P.F. Thomése, Joke van Leeuwen, Tom Lanoye, Karin Amatmoekrim, Bibi Dumon Tak, Antjie Krog, Christiaan Weijts, Ronald Giphart, and, in 2025, Manon Uphoff.