Phil Stamper-Halpin Receives Honorary Doctorate for His Outstanding Contributions to Literature, Publishing, & Reading Pleasure
Last month, Phil Stamper-Halpin, Director, Author Development, attended a celebratory ceremony at Kingston University in London where he was awarded an honorary doctorate! Phil’s ties with the university run deep, as it is where he earned his M.A. in Publishing with Creative Writing, and today, Phil is an award-winning, bestselling author of queer Young Adult fiction. Paired with his ambitious career at Penguin Random House, we had a few questions for Phil about his path to becoming a published author, how his writing career informs his everyday work at PRH, and importantly, how to find balance in his respective professions.
Read on below to learn what he has to say! Best of all, follow along with Phil on his trip to London in the video below.
How did you learn you would be awarded an honorary doctorate from Kingston University and what were your feelings upon hearing so?
Phil is awarded his honorary doctorate.
About a decade ago, I got my M.A. in Publishing with Creative Writing from Kingston University near London. I’ve come back on multiple occasions to speak to the publishing cohort there, and I’ve kept in touch ever since. In 2022, my debut novel THE GRAVITY OF US was chosen to be the school’s “Big Read” pick, which is a FYE-inspired program where all incoming students from Kingston University (and two other local unis) read the same book. Throughout the school year, students attended a series of discussions and lectures to discuss the book and create a shared experience.
Even though my ties with the university run deep, I was completely shocked when a beloved professor reached out to inform me that I’d been chosen to receive an honorary doctorate. I’d learned about it just upon coming back from a series of talks I did at my undergraduate university, the University of Dayton. In that moment, it felt so wonderful to be celebrated and honored by both of my universities for my work and achievements.
Tell us about your path to becoming an author and what you drove you there.
I started writing novels with the goal of becoming a published author in 2012. I was newly out of college and working in the non-profit PR world. Though I loved writing for a living, I found the work to be draining. I escaped into books, falling hard for the young adult dystopian trend, and after reading dozens of Hunger Games-esque books, I wanted to try and write my own.
I did, and it was not good! But I fell in love with the process of writing, querying, and publishing so much that I pursued my master’s degree in hopes of getting a job in the industry. Along the way, I started reading (and then writing) more queer YA. Ultimately, I found my niche writing hopeful stories about overly ambitious queer teens.
It took more than five years, 90+ agent rejections, and 80+ editor rejections, but I eventually got my first book deal with Bloomsbury in 2017. PRH does the audio editions of all my young adult novels, so feel free to take a listen to some of their wonderful productions in the PRH Audio app!
Today, you’re a bestselling and award-winning author writing queer books for kids and teens. How do you consider your audience when you work out ideas for a new book?
Coming May 06, 2025!
My debut novel came out in 2020, and since then I’ve published a total of six books (four YA and two MG) while also maintaining my career in Author Development at PRH. I’ve scaled back quite a bit since my daughter was born, but now I get the opportunity to write Little Golden Book biographies for queer icons. My first, BILLY PORTER: A Little Golden Book Biography, publishes in May!
As a result, I write for a lot of different audiences, but I do try to think about what stories need to be told. In November 2016, I felt a lot of despair in the queer community, especially from kids and teens—so I wrote THE GRAVITY OF US, a story full of adventure, activism, and queer joy. My debut middle grade novel, SMALL TOWN PRIDE, speaks directly to the queer kids living in rural towns like the one I grew up in, but again, gives them hope for acceptance.
As the Director of Author Development, could you tell us more about what you do at PRH?
Of course! I oversee the company’s programs and services that help provide information and resources to all authors. My work includes the PRH Author Portal, the Author Newsletter, our Author University e-learning program, and more. Due to my connection to the author community in my role at PRH and as an author myself, I am also proudly a part of the Intellectual Freedom Task Force.
How does your professional life as an author inform your role at PRH and vice versa?
My life as an author has been hugely impactful on my priorities at PRH. As someone who’s gone through every stage of the publishing process, I know what authors are anxious about, and what topics they need more information on. I’m able to build out the tools and resources authors—especially debut authors—need to thrive in this landscape.
At the same time, my work at PRH has made me more effective at working with my marketing and publicity teams. I know what’s appropriate to ask for and when, and I also have a broader understanding of the entire publishing landscape.
In that way, each of my careers enhance the other, which has been hugely beneficial for me.
What advice would you give to folks in the publishing industry who are currently pursuing a writing career of their own or hope to one day?
My biggest piece of advice would be to find a way to keep both sides of your publishing brain—the writer side, and the publisher side—separate. When you’re balancing two careers in the same industry, it tends to tap from the same well, which means it’s very easy to burn out. You’ll have to create very clear boundaries around what you do, from how you promote your writing online to how you show up to work every day. It’s a balance I’m still trying to nail down!
View Phil’s “come along with me” video journey to London to get his honorary doctorate: