AiW Guest: Ofonime Inyang. AiW note: This week, we bring you two reviews of Billy Kahora’s short story collection, The Cape Cod Bicycle Wars and Other Stories – originally published by Huza Press (Kigali) in 2019 and made available in the US… Read More ›
short stories
Our 2020 Festive Favourites: Season’s Reading from Africa in Words
After a difficult year for everyone, the holiday time is looking harder than before. A time to normally spend with family and relaxation has become one of stress and uncertainty. However, we hope that the holidays can still be a… Read More ›
Q&A: Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike interviews Abubakar Adam Ibrahim about his latest collection “Dreams and Assorted Nightmares” (2020)
AiW note: Dreams and Assorted Nightmares is Ibrahim’s third book and second story collection, newly released with Masobe Books. In the interview below, Umezurike and Ibrahim discuss the interconnecting fantastical short stories of the collection, their exploration of the “spaces… Read More ›
A Review of ‘Nairobi Noir’, a collection of short stories edited by Peter Kimani
AiW Guest: Maëline Le Lay. Initially published by Akashic Books, the New York publisher of Kenyan novelist and journalist Peter Kimani (author of the highly regarded Dance of the Jakaranda), this collection of short stories complements the rich collection of “noir”… Read More ›
In other Words… AiW news and July’s wrap
As we move through the changed circumstances, timelines and spaces of now, we catch up on our monthly round-up of ‘other words’ – news on AiW’s radar, collated from across our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Please be in touch with… Read More ›
Caine Prize 2020 – “There’s been a lot of kindness and even rediscovery of a sense of community”: Words on the Times with the shortlisted writers.
Ahead of the announcement of the AKO Caine Prize’s winner today at 5pm BST, we were able to catch up with Erica Sugo Anyadike, Chikodili Emelumadu, Jowhor Ile, Rémy Ngamije for their Words on the Times – an AiW Q&A set inspired… Read More ›
Caine Prize 2020: Fiction masquerading as nonfiction: A Review of Chikodili Emelumadu’s “What to do When Your Child Brings Home a Mami Wata”
AiW Note: AiW’s annual review series of what is now the AKO Caine Prize is back. We’ve been talking about prize culture for a long time at Africa in Words; Kate Wallis’s post on our joining the Caine Prize “blogathon” back in… Read More ›
“But Words Grow Up and Reverberate” (Arja Salafranca): Review of “Fool’s Gold: Selected Short Stories” from Modjaji Books
AiW Guest: Susanna Sacks. AiW note: This review is the third in a series of posts on the release of two new anniversary collections from feminist press Modjaji Books – the short story anthology published last year, Fool’s Gold, and… Read More ›
Love, Loss and Migrant Womanhood: A Review of “Better Never Than Late” by Chika Unigwe
AiW Guest: Zahra Banday. AiW note: We caught up with our Guest Reviewer, Zahra Banday, for some of her Words on the Times – an AiW series of Q&As, connecting artists, writers, thinkers and educators in our new experiences of… Read More ›
Call for Submissions: Wasafiri New Writing Prize (Deadline: 15 June)
One of the many impacts of COVID-19 has been on writers’ schedules and headspace. Wasafiri– a dynamic platform for mapping new landscapes in contemporary international writing – is acknowledging this by extending the deadline for their new writing prize. The… Read More ›
Event: Time of the Writer Festival, Durban, KwaZulu-Natal (16–21 March)
23rd Time of the Writer Festival University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Arts (CCA) 16 – 21 March 2020 The University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Arts (CCA), in partnership with eThekwini Municipality, will host the 23rd Time of the Writer… Read More ›
Review of “Dog Meat Samosa”: Short stories by Stanley Gazemba
In the first story in Stanley Gazemba’s collection Dog Meat Samosa (Regal House Publishing, 2019), Mukabwa is a subordinate member of staff, a disgruntled hospital cashier working in the morgue. As the narrator reveals, Mukabwa is nonetheless in a position… Read More ›
Call for Submissions: Afritondo Short Story Prize 2020 (Deadline: 23 December)
We are delighted to share this call for submissions for Afritondo’s inaugural short story prize! The team at Afritondo are looking for stories that explore the dynamics and boundaries of love. The story should be set wholly or partly in… Read More ›
Event: Zadie Smith in conversation (London, 02 October)
Zadie Smith, bestselling and award-winning author, will be discussing her brand new – and first – collection of short stories Grand Union with Diana Evans at The Royal Institution in London on 2nd October. ‘Moving exhilaratingly across genres and perspectives, from… Read More ›
Call for submissions: K & L Prize for African Literature 2020
The team at K & L Prize for African Literature 2020 are calling for short story entries from young African writers on the theme ‘Africanfuturism’. Africanfuturism, a term coined by Nigerian-American author Nnedi Okorafor, is a genre that often depicts… Read More ›
Call for submissions: Praxis Magazine Online (Open call)
Praxis Magazine Online is currently inviting submissions in four genres: POETRY, FICTION, NON-FICTION, and JOURNAL STORIES. Specific guidelines for each area appear below, along with the email address for submissions in each genre. Praxis Magazine encourages new and existing contributors to… Read More ›
Caine Prize 2019 Shortlist: A Review of Tochukwo Okafor’s “All Our Lives”
AiW Note: The Caine Prize has recently removed Tochukwu Emmanuel Okafor’s “All Our Lives” from the 2019 shortlist, following a decision that there had been “failure to attribute an original source.” Short Story Day Africa, who awarded its 2017 Prize… Read More ›
Caine Prize 2019 Shortlist: A Review of Meron Hadero’s “The Wall”
AiW’s annual Caine Prize review series is back with this, the second in our reviews of the five shortlisted stories for 2019. In the spirit of our broader and longer conversations about prize culture at Africa in Words – Kate Wallis… Read More ›
Caine Prize 2019 Shortlist: A Review of Ngwah-Mbo Nana Nkweti’s “It Takes A Village Some Say”
AiW’s annual Caine Prize review series is back. We’ve been talking about prize culture for a long time at Africa in Words; Kate Wallis started off this series in 2013. In the coming days we are featuring reviews of the stories… Read More ›
Event: Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi in conversation (London & Manchester)
Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi will be talking about her new collection of short stories, Manchester Happened, tonight in Waterstones, Piccadilly. Jennifer will also be in Manchester in June! Published by ONEWORLD on 23 May 2019, the book is a dazzling short… Read More ›