Author's haste to stop working (7)
I believe the answer is:
rushdie
'author's' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'haste to stop working' is the wordplay.
'haste' becomes 'rush' (synonyms).
'to stop working' becomes 'die' (I've seen this in another clue).
'rush'+'die'='RUSHDIE'
(Other definitions for rushdie that I've seen before include "See 23 Across. 23 and 22 Across: Author under Islamic sentence of death for blasphemy" , "Salman -, Midnight's Children author" , "Salman - - (lit.)" , "Salman --, novelist" , "Salman -, Br. author" .)