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Caine Prize for African Writing 2026 Jury Announced
The jury for the Caine Prize for African Writing 2026 has been announced, with Nigerian journalist, broadcaster, and documentary maker Bola Mosuro serving as chair. The other jurors are Ghanaian-American author and editor Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond, Sudanese curator and writer Orsod Malik, South African writer and academic Siphiwo Mahala, and Ugandan-British actress and playwright Sheila…
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Book Digest: Nicole Glover, Jide Salawu, Eugen Bacon, Alpha Kamara
Our regular Book Digest segment spotlights new books by Nicole Glover, Jide Salawu, Eugen Bacon, Cheryl S. Ntumy, Stephen Embleton, and Alpha Kamara. The Star Seekers by Nicole Glover Publisher: Harper VoyagerPublication Date: January 6, 2026Genre: FictionLanguage: EnglishWhere to find it: Nicole Glover Website, Harper Collins Nicole Glover Nicole Glover is the author of The…
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Literary Magazines: Callaloo, The Shallow Tales Review, Fiyah, JAY Lit
New editions of Callaloo, The Shallow Tales Review, Fiyah, and JAY Lit are available for your reading pleasure. Callaloo Callaloo is a quarterly literary journal that publishes creative work and critical studies by and about writers and visual artists of African descent worldwide. It is a highly acclaimed international showcase of arts and letters from…
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PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction 2026 Longlist Announced
Carrie R. Moore, Addie E. Citchen, and S.A. Cosby are on the longlist for the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction 2026, announced on Monday, February 2, 2026. The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, first awarded in 1981, is presented annually by the PEN/Faulkner Foundation to the authors of the year’s best works of fiction by living US…
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Migwi Mwangi wins Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize 2026
Migwi Mwangi was announced the winner of the Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize 2026 on Wednesday, January 28, 2026. Agnes Lynch Starrett (1893–1983) was an educator, author, and the first director of the University of Pittsburgh Press. A Pitt alumna and English professor, she compiled the university’s sesquicentennial history, Through One Hundred and Fifty Years…
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South African Writer And Poet Diana Ferrus Has Passed Away
South African writer and poet Diana Ferrus passed away in South Africa on Friday, January 30, 2026, at the age of 72. Born in Worcester, Western Cape, on August 29, 1953, Ferrus was of mixed Khoisan and slave ancestry. She matriculated from Esselen Park High School in 1972 and began studies at the University of…
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Opportunities for writers and poets for February 2026.
In our ongoing series, we share opportunities for those who wish to submit work in February 2026, whether it be poetry, prose, or other related arts. These callouts are divided into education (MFAs, Fellowships, residencies), opportunity hubs, journals, and prizes. Please do us a favour and mention to whoever you applied to that you got…
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Jesmyn Ward is Prix Montluc Résistance et Liberté 2026 Finalist
Jesmyn Ward’s novel is a finalist for the Prix Montluc Résistance et Liberté 2026. The announcement was made on Tuesday, January 27, 2026. Prix Montluc Résistance et Liberté honors an author—French or foreign—whose work questions modern methods of fighting oppression or represents an act of resistance itself. The prize, which includes a €5,000 award, was…
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Ciku Kimeria Launches Soma Nami’s Kenyan Writers’ Series
On Friday, January 30, 2026, Soma Nami Books in Nairobi will launch its new “Kenyan Writers’ Series” with novelist Ciku Kimeria. Announced in mid-January, the series is dedicated to celebrating Kenyan authors, stories, and voices. Through author conversations, panel discussions, book launches, and more, it will spotlight Kenyan writers, explore their work, and delve into…
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Rickey Fayne on PEN/Hemingway Award 2026 Longlist
Rickey Fayne’s novel The Devil Three Times is on the longlist for the 2026 PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel, announced on Tuesday, January 20, 2026. The PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel is awarded annually to a full-length novel or book of short stories by an American author who has not previously published a full-length book…
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Mahmood Mamdani Launches New Book To Full Houses in Nairobi
Mahmood Mamdani launched his latest book, Slow Poison: Idi Amin, Yoweri Museveni, and the Making of the Ugandan State, in Nairobi on January 23 and 24, 2026. The work challenges the simplistic narrative that Uganda’s troubles began solely with Idi Amin. Drawing on five decades of archival research, courtroom testimony, and firsthand interviews, Mamdani argues…
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British Science Fiction Association Awards 2025 Longlists Announced
The longlists for the British Science Fiction Association Awards 2025 were announced on Friday, January 23, 2026. Here are the writers of African descent nominees. The British Science Fiction Association Awards (BSFA) are presented annually by the British Science Fiction Association, based on a vote of members and—in recent years—members of the British national science…
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Tsitsi Dangarembga receives Sharjah Lifetime Achievement in Literature Award 2026
Tsitsi Dangarembga received the Sharjah Lifetime Achievement in Literature Award 2026 in Sharjah, UAE, on Wednesday, January 14, 2026. The Sharjah Festival of African Literature was hosted in the Emirates for the second time by the Sharjah Book Authority in partnership with the Book Buzz Foundation from January 14 – 18. It was the second…
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Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize 2026 Longlist Announced
The longlist for the Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize 2026 was announced in Swansea, Wales, on Thursday, January 22, 2026. The International Dylan Thomas Prize was established by Swansea University in 2006 to celebrate raw creative talent worldwide was set up in honour of the Welsh poet and writer who became widely popular in his…
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Narrative Landscape Press Acquires Rights to Brian Chikwava’s Shamiso
Narrative Landscape Press has acquired the English-language publishing rights for East and West Africa to Shamiso, the new novel by acclaimed Zimbabwean author Brian Chikwava. Zimbabwean writer Brian Chikwava first rose to international prominence in 2004 when he won the Caine Prize for African Writing for his short story Seventh Street Alchemy. As the first…
