The Caine Prize folks have announced their entry tally for this years shortlist and its a big number; 153 entries. Its a huge number if you consider that all these entries are from publishers in the African space. It is actually a record for the fifteen year old highly rated prize.
With the prizes in, its now the time for the judges, chaired by award-winning South African author Zoë Wicomb announced last year, to do the work of whittling down this number to five as is the tradition with this prize.
This year the new Weston Library in Oxford, UK will be the one to host the Caine Prize award ceremony as one of its first official functions in Blackwell Hall on Monday 6 July.
Alongside the announcement of the numbers of entries, the organisers of the prize has announced that the annual Caine Prize work shop will be hosted this year in Ghana. The workshop for those not in the know are usually for writers who have been shortlisted for the Caine Prize and other talented writers who have come to the Prize’s attention through the selection process.
So expect to see 12 writers from different African countries convene in Ghana, the home of the Afcon losing finalists, for ten days to read and discuss work in progress. They will be learn from two more experienced writers, who act as tutors or animateurs.
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