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Zora Legacy Awards 2025 winners announced
The winners of the Zora Legacy Awards 2025, formerly the Hurston/Wright Foundation Legacy Awards, were announced on Friday, October 17, 2025. The Zora Legacy Awards are a rebrand of the Hurston/Wright Legacy Awards, organised by the Hurston/Wright Foundation, named after US African American literary icons Zora Neale Hurston and Richard Wright. Honouring the best in…
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Prix Voix d’Afriques 2025 finalists announced
The finalists of Prix Voix d’Afriques 2025 were announced by the jury chair, Mohamed Mbougar Sarr, on Saturday, October 18, 2025. Voix d’Afriques (English: Voices of Africa) is a literary prize intended to bring out young French-language authors from the African continent. Initiated by JC Lattès, RFI, and the Cité Internationale des Arts in 2020,…
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Ibadan Book and Arts Festival 2025 starts October 24
The Ibadan Book and Arts Festival 2025, with the theme “The Past as Prologue to the Future,” will be held in the Nigerian town from October 24 – 25, 2025. The new Ibadan Book and Arts Festival (IbaFest) is a celebration of African literature, creativity, and cultural dialogue. Rooted in the historic city of Ibadan,…
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Morland Writing Scholarships 2025 shortlist announced.
The Morland Writing Scholarships 2025 shortlists were announced in London, UK, today, Friday, October 17, 2025. The Morland Writing Scholarships for African Writers, popularly referred to as the Morland Writing Scholarship, is an opportunity to allow writers to finish a manuscript. In the past, the scholarship has been accorded to writers from across the continent,…
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Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards 2025 shortlists announced.
The shortlists for Namibia’s Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards 2025 were announced in Windhoek on Friday, October 17, 2025. The Bank Windhoek Doek Literary Awards were introduced to the African literary community in 2021 by Doek. Contributors to the Doek Magazine were entered in the categories of fiction, poetry, nonfiction, and visual art for this…
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Prix Médicis 2025 Deuxièmes Sélections revealed
Nathacha Appanah and Natasha Brown are on the Prix Médicis 2025 Deuxièmes Sélections announced in Paris, France, on Thursday, October 16, 2025. In 1958, French citizens Gala Barbisan and Jean-Pierre Giraudoux founded Prix Médicis to recognise a novel, a story, a collection of short stories by an author who does not yet have notoriety corresponding…
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US National Book Awards 2025 finalists announced
Bryan Washington and Omar El Akkad are among the US National Book Awards 2025 finalists announced in New York on Tuesday, October 7, 2025. The US National Book Awards are literary awards from the Northern American nation’s National Book Foundation, established in 1936. They are conferred on fiction, nonfiction, poetry, translated literature, and young people’s…
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Kweli International Literary Festival 2025 starts October 18
The Kweli International Literary Festival 2025 will be held in New York City, USA, from October 18 – November 18, 2025. Kweli was founded under the direction of editor Laura Pegram to nurture emerging US Black, Indigenous, People of Colour (BIPOC) writers who “sing the truth” in 2009. It invests in the artistic and professional…
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Book Digest: Olufemi Terry, Eugen Bacon, Itamar Vieira Junior, Sylvester Okwunodu Ogbechie
Our regular Book Digest segment spotlights new books by Olufemi Terry, Itamar Vieira Junior, Eugen Bacon, and Sylvester Okwunodu Ogbechie. Wilderness of Mirrors by Olufemi Terry Publisher: Restless BooksDate: September 9, 2025 Genre: Fiction Language: English Where to find it: Restless Books Olufemi Terry Olufemi Terry is a Sierra Leone-born writer, essayist, and journalist living…
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Kistrech International Poetry Festival 2025 starts October 17
The Kistrech International Poetry Festival 2025, with the theme “Poetry and Performance,” will be held in Kisii, Kenya, from October 17 – 23, 2025. The Kistrech International Poetry Festival was founded to promote poetry and cultural exchange between local and foreign artists by Dr Christopher Okemwa in 2013. The annual festival features spoken-word, rap, song,…
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The Center for Fiction First Novel Prize 2025 shortlist announced
Rickey Fayne, Justin Haynes, and Alejandro Heredia are on the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize 2025 shortlist, announced on Tuesday, September 30, 2025. The Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize is an annual award presented by The Center for Fiction, a non-profit organization in New York, USA, since 2006. It recognizes the year’s best…
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Les Auteurs de Martinique’s Festilivres 2025 now on
Les Auteurs de Martinique’s Festilivres 2025, with the theme “LAM writes for you,” kicked off in the Caribbean island on October 6 and will continue until October 25. Les Auteurs de Martinique (Authors of Martinique) (LAM) was founded by “S.A.J.,” namely: Sabine Andrivon-Milton, Arlette Pujar, and Jala in 2017. It evolved into an association to…
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South African author and academic Zoe Wicomb has passed away
South African author, translator, and academic Zoe Wicomb passed away in Glasgow, Scotland, on Monday, October 13, 2025. Zoë Wicomb was born in Namaqualand, Northern Cape, in 1948, and grew up during the height of apartheid, a time that deeply influenced her writing and lifelong inquiry into the complexities of belonging and selfhood. After completing…
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T.S. Eliot Prize 2025 shortlist announced
Nick Makoha, Catherine-Esther Cowie, and Isabelle Baafi are on the T.S. Eliot Prize 2025 shortlist, announced on Monday, October 5, 2025. The T. S. Eliot Prize is awarded annually to the writer of the best new poetry collection published in the UK and Ireland. Founded to celebrate the UK Poetry Book Society’s 40th birthday and…
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TY Buratai Literary Initiative Young Adult Literature Prize 2025 finalists announced
The regional winners of the TY Buratai Literary Initiative Young Adult Literature Prize 2025 were announced in Abuja on Wednesday, October 1, 2025. The TY Buratai Literary Initiative Young Adult Literature Prize is an annual literary competition that recognizes and celebrates outstanding young adult writers in Nigeria, promoting creative writing, encouraging literary excellence, and providing…
