Q&As: Eli Goldman (Editor) – Publishing the Caine Prize shortlist 2023

By Africa in Words on 2 November , 2023 • ( 0 )

AiW note: This is the penultimate day in our continuing Words on… Q&A series this week, a range of interviews around the shortlist for UK-based short story award, the Caine Prize for African Writing, 2023. In the lead up to this year’s prize-giving – in a change of season for 2023, from early July to Monday 2nd October – we spoke with writers of stories that were shortlisted for the Prize, with judges who determined that list, and, following on from our coverage of the Prize last year, with publishers of the shortlisted stories.

A series of “twinned” Caine Prize shortlist 2023 Q&As have followed from there, highlighting interviewees’ involvement and experiences with the Prize this year, and, hopefully, opening up some of the links and connections that can happen in the “prizing” of literature in the process.

In this Q&A, we speak with Eli Goldman, editor at TorDotCom, publisher of two of the shortlisted stories this year — Woppa Diallo & Mame Bougouma Diene’s ‘A Soul of Small Places’, the story that went on to win the Prize; and “twinned” Caine Prize Q&A in the series today, writer Tlotlo Tsamaase’s ‘Peeling Time (Deluxe Edition)’.

AiW: Thanks very much, Eli, for talking with us, and helping to open up what are often less visible roles in the outcomes of a literary prize. At AiW, we feel these routes are particularly important in the broader ecosystems of the literary circulation and valuation of African writing, and are grateful to have your thoughts.

Could you tell us about your journey of/with the two 2023 Caine Prize shortlisted stories published by TorDotCom, the “story of the story”, so to speak? How did they come to you? What made you “see” them, and as Caine Prize stories? Why this, why now?

All credit goes to Sheree Renée Thomas, Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki, and Zelda Knight, the phenomenal editorial team behind the anthology Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction. Africa Risen was originally inspired by and conceived of as an unofficial third entry in Sheree’s foundational Dark Matter anthology series of African Diaspora SFF throughout history. The aim of Africa Risen was to showcase and celebrate the breadth, vibrancy, and reach of present-day African SFF, and to demonstrate that “Africa isn’t risen—it’s already here”. Mame Bougouma Diene and Woppa Diallo’s ‘A Soul of Small Places’ and Tlotlo Tsamaase’s ‘Peeling Time (Deluxe Edition)’ do all of the above and more.

Please tell us a bit more about your work more broadly with African writing and how things are on the ground for you now in the publishing industry.

Africa Risen is the work of so many talented people, from the editors to the contributors and everyone in between, and is one of the many brilliant works of SFF being published today by African authors. Since its inception in 2017 the African Speculative Fiction Society has overseen the NOMMO Awards for Best African Speculative Fiction for novels, novellas, short stories, and graphic novels, and each year’s longlist and shortlist are a great resource for people looking for new authors and stories to read. In the U.S. publishing sphere. we’ve had long-time genre stalwarts like Nnedi Okorafor and Tade Thompson be joined by whole new host of authors like Suyi Davies Okungbowa, Saara El-Arifi, Akwaeke Emezi, Ehigbor Okosun, Tobi Ogundiran, Yvette Lisa Ndlovu, Moses Ose Utomi, ‘Pemi Aguda, and so many more.

What would you say is the best investment you’ve made in your professional self / selves, and/or the most valued advice you’ve received about navigating your industry (or industries)?

I think it’s important for authors and publishing professionals alike to never stop reading and never stop advocating for yourself and your work. When it comes to rejection and setbacks, it’s important to take time to feel any disappointment, frustration, or anger, and it’s equally important afterward to try again and again and again.

Also, find the people who are your people and love and support each other with all your might. They are the ones who make being a part of this entire enterprise worth it.

Finally, how can our blog, books, and online communities best offer support for your work with African writing?

Buy and recommend Africa Risen to all your friends! Also be sure to check out and read all the fantastic African SFF that’s been and is continuing to be written.

In the “twin” AiW x Caine Prize Q&A with Eli’s today, we speak with Tlotlo Tsamaase about her shortlisted story, ‘Peeling Time (Deluxe Edition)’. Find it via the search link “Caine Prize” here, or back at our homepage.

In tomorrow’s twinned Q&As, we will hear from Woppa and Mame Bougouma, the joint authored 2023 winner, with their story, also published by TorDotCom, ‘A Soul of Small Places’, and a milestone for the Prize — and, bear in mind we spoke to the writers before the winner announcement — from Jendella Benson, one of the all-women judging panel, a Caine Prize first for 2023.

You can also find our 2023 posts in the series so far — with writer Yejide Kilanko & judge Kadija George Sesay, and with writer Yvonne Kusiima and publisher Ukamaka Olisakwe of Isele Magazine — via the same link above, or by searching for “Caine Prize”.

As ever, we’d welcome your thoughts on the shortlist, or anything else 2023 Caine Prize related (or just anything else, for that matter!) – comment on the post here, below, or contact us direct and let us know. This also year marks 10 years that AiW have covered the Caine Prize. Thank you for being here with us. You can deep dive into it all here – Q&As, reviews, and long-read thought pieces – and, again, at the AiW search link for “Caine Prize”.

Caine Prize website, “The Caine Prize Announces, 2023 Shortlisted Writers and Judges”:

…This year’s submissions encompassed a diverse range of talent from 28 different countries, including Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Egypt, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Fareda Banda, Chair of Judges, and a professor of Law at SOAS, University of London, expressed her thoughts on the shortlist: “Together we have read, discussed and wrestled an eligible submission list of 230 stories down to the final five. This has not been an easy task. The entries showed the depth and scope of writing on the continent and beyond.

“The stories spanned generations, genres and themes. They challenged, stimulated, shocked, surprised and delighted us in equal measure. The five shortlisted embrace speculative fiction and artivism (using art as a form of activism). Stories of gender-based violence and reproductive autonomy highlight the power of engaging and innovative/original writing. Love is embodied in stories of grandmothers passing on inter-generational wisdom. The sense of alienation engendered by teenage diasporic liminality sits alongside comedic outrage about the perceived status downgrade in moving from city to village. Each story will have its fans and advocates-we loved them all.”

Banda further noted the remarkable fact that four out of the six shortlisted finalists reside in Africa, with two from the diaspora. This year’s shortlist also boasts a joint submission and an all-women judging panel, marking significant milestones in the history of the Caine Prize.