Raphaëlle Red is a Berlin-raised French Togolese writer of fiction and experimental prose. Raphaëlle studied social sciences before transitioning to literature. Her debut novel, ADIKOU (Grasset, 2024 & Rowohlt, 2024) is a coming-of-age roadtrip that explores the complexities of Afrodiasporic heritage within a web of brutal, resistant and tender histories. Recipient of the Prix Premiere, awarded to the author and to the translator Patricia Klobuscizky. Shortlisted for the Prix des Cinq Continents and Prix Ahmadou Kourouma. ADIKOU will be out in UK translation in Fall 2026 with Arboretum Books. Adikou was selected as one of the 100 best books of 2024 by Die ZEIT and received widespread critical acclaim in France and Germany. Le Monde called it “an exceptionally promising debut,” while Libération highlighted its “unheard, supple, and self-evident language.” 

Raphaëlle Red’s non-fiction debut SAFE SPACE will be out in November 2026 with Seagull Books. 

Further writing in French, English and German has appeared in publications including Bella Triste, The Funambulist, L’Humanité, and gal-dem. In addition to her literary work, she has contributed to the academic field, with her research focusing on contemporary literature of the African diaspora. She has been awarded grants and residencies by the Berlin Senat für Kultur, the Maison des Artistes de Lomé, the Niedersachsen Foundation and the Centre National du Cinéma. 

Raphaëlle is currently a resident of Villa Kamogawa in Kyoto until August 2026, and will be at ArtOMI in New York in Fall 2026.