Derek Owusu

Derek Owusu is an award-winning writer and poet from North London.

He has written for the BBC, ITV, Granta, Esquire, GQ and Tate Britain.

His first novel, That Reminds Me, and the first work of fiction to be published by Stormzy’s Merky Books imprint, won the Desmond Elliott Prize for best debut novel published in the UK and Ireland.

His second novel, Losing the Plot, was published in 2022. His third novel, Borderline Fiction, was published in 2025 and was shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize. His 5th novel, The Recovery House, will be published in 2026 by Merky Books.

In 2023 he was selected as one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists.

He holds an MA in creative writing from Brunel University.