Born in Guyana in 1921, and studying at Queen's College, Georgetown, Guyana, Wilson Harris became a government surveyor, before taking up a career as lecturer and writer. The knowledge of the savannas and rain forests he gained during his time as a surveyor formed the setting of many of his books, the Guyanese landscape dominating his fiction.

Wilson Harris' writing style often departs from accepted norms, and he is known for his broad vision and the abstract complexity of his mystical style. He first wrote poetry, but since has become a well-known novelist and essayist.

Wilson Harris also writes non-fiction and critical essays and has been awarded honorary doctorates by several universities, including the Univeristy of the West Indies (1984) and the University of Liège (2001). He has twice been winner of the Guyana Prize for Literature.