Entries still open for Etisalat Prize for Literature
LAGOS, Nigeria, August 26, 2015
Writers from Africa have two days left to enter the Etisalat Prize for Literature 2015.
The Etisalat Prize for Literature is the first ever Pan African prize celebrating debut African writers of published fiction, said a statement.
Matthew Willsher, chief executive officer of Etisalat Nigeria said: "Etisalat Prize for Literature serves as a platform for the discovery of new creative writing talents out of the African continent."
Following the success of the second year, which was concluded early this year, the literary community is eagerly awaiting the third year, he said.
The judging panel for the this year's edition will be chaired by Professor Ato Quayson, a professor of English and inaugural director of the Centre for Diaspora Studies at the University of Toronto; completing the panel is Molara Wood, writer, blogger, journalist, critic and editor and Zukiswa Wanner, author of The Madams and Men of the South.
Etisalat carried out extensive research and consultation in deciding the choice of judges for this year, and also expressed the belief that the selected judges will bring their experience to bear on the Etisalat Prize for Literature, said Willsher.
The judges, he said, will have the responsibility to develop the longlist of nine novels as well as a shortlist of three novels before finally selecting a winner.
The submission of entries is ongoing, having opened on June 18 and will close on August 27.
The Etisalat prize has been designed to foster writing in Africa, bring exciting new African writers to the attention of a wider audience, and promote the reading culture.
The winner will receive a cash prize of £15,000 ($23,624) in addition to a fellowship at the prestigious University of East Anglia under the mentorship of the award-winning author, Professor Giles Foden.
The winner will also receive a sponsored three-city book tour, while the two other shortlisted writers will receive a sponsored two-city book tour to promote their books.
The Etisalat Prize for Literature also supports publishers by purchasing 1000 copies of the shortlisted books for distribution within the continent.
The prize accepts submitted works, which must be a writer's first work of fiction of over 30,000 words, and published within the last 24 months.
The Etisalat Prize will also launch the online-based flash fiction prize later in the year to engage the rising stars of fiction. - TradeArabia News Service
