Ending Soon: Opportunities for African Writers
Up to $2,650, Book deals, Contests, Digital publication etc
This newsletter is published every Wednesday at 5pm WAT.
If you or someone you referred have received an acceptance for any of the opportunities listed on African Writer Weekly, please share your win to encourage the work we do!
1. Submit to Agbowo
For Agbowo’s 10th anniversary issue, they are inviting writers “to submit works scuffling with the potent tensions emerging from these reflections—the dialogue between past and hereafter, the pull between hope and dread, the contrast of joy in small lives against inflated national terror, and the vital work of reclaiming decolonial narratives. We are interested in seeing how your narrative, prayer, limerick, litany, or lyric essays bring these convoluted conversations to the fore.”—A
Deadline: 31st May 2025 | Pay: from N20,000
Things to note:
Read the Editor’s note and get a better sense of what they want.
Poems should be a maximum of 3 poems attached as Microsoft Word (Please format it as you want it to be published). Each poem should be titled and every new poem should begin on a new page.
For Fiction, while you are welcome to send flash fiction, they usually publish stories with the 1500 – 5000 word range. Stories should be attached as Microsoft Word documents.
For Non-fiction, they are on a particular lookout for essays with roots wholly or partly lodged within the context of Africa, either through subjects under focus or case studies.
Include a cover letter and a biography ranging between 100 and 200 words
Essays must be written in the English language. Broken English is also acceptable.
Word count is 750-3500 words
For One-Act Plays, running times must be between 10 and 30 minutes and have a maximum of 7 cast. Include a cover letter with a summary of the play, the name and location of the playwright, the running time, performance history (if it has been performed before), and awards (if it has won any awards). They accept previously plays.
For all submissions, font should be Times New Roman font with a 1.5 spacing.
Also, attach a portrait picture, a short bio of fewer than 100 words, and your social media handles.
They accept only unpublished work.
To submit, please click your desired category: Poetry, Fiction, Non-fiction, One-Act Plays.
2. Shallow Tales Review: Open for Submissions
The Shallow Tales Review accepts fiction, creative non-fiction, book reviews, poems, one-act plays, cultural and social essays, art photographs, and translations that touch on the sensibilities of the African.
Deadline: 31st May 2025 | Pay: none
Things to note:
Literary criticisms must concern texts that are of modern and African temperament. By “modern,” we refer to books published at most 5 years before.
For essays, they expect themes to be tackled logically and as clearly as possible.
They DO NOT publish horror, sci-fi, travellogues or any sociological piece without the slightest literary tilt. They could, however, break the rules for exceptionally great pieces that reflect the African/human condition.
Entries should be sent in by mail to:
poetry.tstr@gmail.com
essays.tstr@gmail.com (Essays & Creative Nonfiction)
theshallowtalesreview@gmail.com (Fiction/Plays/Art & Photography)Use “TSTR Submissions” in the subject line.
Files should be saved with the title of the work, and in the case of a body of poems, with the first poem in the file.
Word count: 1500-4000 words, in .doc or .docx format.
Poetry submissions: not be more than forty (40) lines, per poem. They accept a maximum of three poetry entries at a time.
Entries must be sent single-spaced in 12 point, Times New Roman font.
Only previously unpublished works would be reviewed and considered.
Reprints are NOT allowed.
In the body of the mail, include a short cover letter describing the genre of the work, word count (for prose), number of poems included (for poetry), short author bio, and any other relevant information relating to the piece.
Do not add any identifying information in the document with the entry.Send this to an awesome writer ❤️.
3. Submit to Journal of African Youth Literature
JAY Lit publishes literature written by, about, and/or for born-in-Africa youths. Our definition of ‘African’ is not related to colour, race or ethnicity, but rather place of origin and heritage. They publish creative writing, poetry, prose (stories and narratives), plays, visual stories such as photo essays, and comic and graphic artwork with a storyline in ANY language used in Africa.
Deadline: 31st May 2025 | Pay: None
Things to note:
All submissions must be the original creation of the individual submitting them, and they cannot have been previously published elsewhere.
To help in making a decision on non-English texts, please include a short summary in English of what your submission is about when you send it.
Please note that while the content they publish is mostly by youth aged 15 to 35, they also publish older individuals whose work is made for this age bracket.
Before submitting, please go through at least one issue to get a clear idea of what they are looking for. Previous issues are available here.
Please send only one of each kind of submission per submission period, i.e. poetry or a short story, not both.
Poetry:
For short poems, send up to 20 lines each. You can submit up to 5 short poems at once.
For longer poems, send 21-50 lines. Please submit only one long poem at a time.
Please send your submission to poetry.submissions@jaylit.com. In the subject line, indicate if your submission is a long poem or short poem(s), put your name and the title of your submission. If you’re submitting a packet of poems, put the number of poems in the subject line instead. E.g. [Long poem – Sipho Adewale – Laugh Laugh Laugh], or [Short Poems – Sipho Adewale – 6 poems]
Prose
For short stories and personal essays (CNF), 1,000 — 4,000 words.
For shorter prose (flash fiction or flash CNF), 250 — 1,000 words.
Please send your submission to prose.submissions@jaylit.com. In the subject line, indicate if your submission is a short story, a personal essay, a flash fiction, or a flash CNF, put your name and the title
Send critical essays and reviews to ibrahim.ibrahim@jaylit.com. Word count should not exceed 2,000 words.
Plays
For short plays, up to 4,000 words.
For longer plays, 4,000 — 20,000 words.
Please send your submission to prose.submissions@jaylit.com. In the subject line, indicate if your submission is a short play or a long play, put your name and the title of your submission. E.g. [Short Play – Sipho Adewale – Laugh Laugh Laugh]
Formatting
Use 12-point Times New Roman
Double-space your work with justified alignment
British and American English are accepted, but please be consistent
Add page numbers at the bottom of each page
Send documents in MS Word format
Remove your name and every identification detail from the document
In the body of your email, paste a cover letter that includes your name, title of your work, and a short bio.
4. Biblioasis: Call for Poetry Manuscript Submissions
Biblioasis is a literary press based in Windsor, Ontario, committed to publishing the best poetry, fiction and non-fiction in beautifully crafted editions. They are inviting poetry manuscripts for their 2025 reading period.
Deadline: 31st May 2025 | Pay: Book deal
Things to note:
They can only consider unpublished work. Individual poems in the manuscript may have appeared in journals or anthologies, but the collection as a whole must not have appeared in either print or digital editions.
Manuscripts should range between 48 and 100 pages in length.
Manuscripts must be entirely human-created. They do not accept work that was written, developed, or assisted in any capacity by artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as ChatGPT.
Only one submission per writer will be reviewed. Multiple submissions will be deleted unread.
Only electronic submissions will be accepted. To submit, please email your manuscript as an attachment to submissions@biblioasis.com. PDF, .doc, .docx, and .rtf files are accepted.
They will send confirmation that your submission has been received. Please send your manuscript only once: revised and updated versions will not be read, so make sure you’re happy with your text before sending.
Please include a cover letter outlining your previous publications and relevant experience. Include your cover letter as the first page of your manuscript.
Simultaneous submissions are fine! If your manuscript is accepted by another publisher, kindly reply to your submission email to let them know the good news so that they can withdraw it from consideration.
5. Quramo Writer’s Prize 2025
The QWP 2025 is inviting unpublished Nigerian and African writers to submit a fiction prose manuscript. The Prize is awarded to a fiction prose manuscript by an African writer published in English, whether they reside in Africa or elsewhere. Each entry must be an original, unpublished work.
Deadline: 31st May 2025 | Prize: Unstated cash prize and book deal
Things to note:
The fiction prose manuscript must be the original, unpublished work of the entrant. Published work is not eligible for the prize.
Short story collections, plays, and poetry are not eligible.
Manuscripts must contain a minimum of 30,000 words.
All entrants must be 16 years of age and above.
All entries must be submitted through the this form in the following format:
Times New Roman font type, Font Size 12
MS Word format
Left justified, double line spacing
Page numbers on each page
All submissions must be sent in with the following information:
A one-page synopsis (click link for some guidance on how to write a winning synopsis)
A short personal biography of 100 words max. (in third person POV)
Social media profiles (Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn)
Full (legal) name
Physical address
Email address
Phone number
Manuscripts submitted to the QWP must not have been entered into any other competitions running concurrently. Prior entries for the QWP are also ineligible.
Identifying information (name, address, etc.) should not be included on the pages of the manuscript.
All longlisted entrants must be available to participate in a publicity campaign from the date of announcement of the longlist leading up to the unveiling of the winner of the prize.
Quramo Publishing shall have a right of first refusal for the second book by the winner. This means that Quramo Publishing alone reserves the right to publish the second title by the same author, herein known as the QWP winner.
The winner undertakes to participate and work with editors at Quramo Publishing on the execution of the publication.
6. Submit Poetry to Adi Magazine
Adi is a feminist literary journal of global politics. They have published African writers like Tarfa Benson, Sisonke Msimang, and Sarah Lubala. They are currently poetry about alternative political visions for a world in desperate need of them. “We want examples from outside of the mainstream, stories about practices, ideas, and movements that were/are suppressed by economic, socio-cultural, religious, or imperial (colonial) powers.”—Adi
Deadline: 31st May 2025. | Pay: $150
Things to note:
Read more on the theme for submissions here.
UP TO 5 POEMS, NO MORE THAN 10 PAGES.
Submit only previously unpublished poems only.
They accept simultaneous submissions; please withdraw individual pieces if they are accepted elsewhere.
7. Submit to The Bombay Literary Magazine
The Bombay Literary Magazine‘s mission is to promote writers through their fine work. They are also interested in nonfiction that looks at literature from a “writerly” perspective. They are currently seeking essays, translations visual narratives and graphic fiction. They are currently open for submissions for Issue 61 (August 2025)
Deadline: 31st May 2025 | Pay: $60
Things to note:
Send currently unpublished work. Personal blogs, social media posts, college magazines, newspapers, graffiti, milk carton copy, etc. all count as prior publications.
They have a cap of 400 submissions in each category. Once maxed out, they can no longer accept submissions in that category.
Translations: We welcome translated poetry (3-5 poems) and translated short fiction in English. Each is considered a separate category. Please include a full citation for the original source. If you like, you may also include a translator’s note (here’s a good example of one). If accepted for publication, we will need to verify you have the translation rights the text (see FAQs).
Self-Translations: They treat self-translated works as original works in English. In other words, please submit self-translations as original poetry or original fiction contributions.
Graphic Fiction: adult-oriented graphic fiction. Radical is good. Experimental is normal raised right. Edgy, retro-edgy, antidisestablishmentarian, missionary: itsallgood, maacha. The length of the piece is up to you.
Essays: nonfiction, between 2K-5K words, with a focus on writing and literature. The “essay” has always been an assay, as Brian Dillon pointed out; they welcome noble failures.
8. Call for Submissions: Poems of Peace
This year marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War. To mark the occasion, Poems for Persons of Interest is looking for poems of peace (broadly construed) for their Summer Peace Issue, which comes out on August 6th (the anniversary of the atom bombing of Hiroshima by the United States).
Deadline: 1st June 2025, 1:59 pm EDT | Pay: unstated
Things to note:
Send a word doc or pdf with one or more poems to poemsforpoi@gmail.com.
Submissions are free for writers residing in Africa
Poems must be the original work of the submitter, unpublished except on personal social media
Poems must be NO MORE than 50 lines
We are not considering prose poems for this call
Each poem should be submitted in a separate file
Name your file the title of the poem. DO NOT include your name or other identifying information in the file name or the document
Include a short bio (no more than 50 words) in the body of your email.
Simultaneous submissions are fine. Just let them know asap if your work is accepted elsewhere.
9. Submit Poetry to The Shore
The Shore is an online poetry publication seeking cutting, strange, and daring work from new and established poets alike. They want poems that explore the worlds of things and ideas, that recognize the liminality, the shifting of everything around us and our ability to name a thing whole.
Deadline: 1st June 2025 | Pay: unstated amount
Things to note:
Email 3-5 poems in a single document in .doc or .docx format to theshorepoetry@gmail.com
Subject line: “Last Name_First Name THE SHORE submission” with a cover letter and third-person bio included in the body of the email.
They accept simultaneous submissions as long as you notify them if the piece is accepted elsewhere, but they do not accept reprints. Upon acceptance, please withdraw your poems from other consideration.
Please only submit once per reading period.
10. Dream Foundry Emerging Writers Contest
The Dream Foundry Contest for Emerging Writers is an annual no submission fees contest with cash prizes! Every year the contest coordinator selects ten finalists from a pool of submissions from writers around the world. In addition to their cash prizes, winners get featured at Flights of Foundry, an annual convention where professionals from all over the industry come to discuss all things related to the speculative arts.
Deadline: 2nd June 2025 | Prize: Total of $2,650
Things to note:
This contest is for writers who are relatively new to paid or incoming-earning publication of speculative short fiction in English. To be eligible for this contest, all five rules below must be true of you:
You have published a total of less than 4,000 words of paid or income-earning speculative fiction in English.
You have earned a total of less than USD 320 from those words.
You have never been nominated for any award listed here as a major award in speculative fiction.
You are not a previous winner of the Dream Foundry writing contest.
No AI, machine learning, or large language model tools were used in the story except for checking spelling and grammar.
Please note that you are on the honour system for judging your own eligibility. However, they may disqualify any entrants in order to uphold the spirit of this contest’s goals; such determinations of eligibility are decided by the Dream Foundry and are not open to debate or argument.
Submit one complete and finalized story of up to 10,000 words via t
All entries are final. No revisions are accepted.
No multiple submissions (do not send more than one story.)
Your submission must be previously unpublished at the time of submission, but simultaneous submissions (submitting the story to us while also submitting elsewhere) is allowed.
All entries must be original prose works in English. Plagiarism, poetry, song lyrics, or stories that utilize characters or settings from another person’s works will not be considered.
The manuscript should be in standard manuscript format and should be titled and numbered on every page, but the author’s name MUST BE DELETED from the manuscript file to facilitate fair judging.
Prose of the Week
True Happiness | Efua Traoré
Pastor Justice always vexes me small-small, but I forgive him because he be man of God.
For example, yesterday I went to church again after a very long time because Mama say God is the only way out. Well, to speak truth, that was not the real reason I went. The real reason is that Mama knocked my head so hard that I saw sparks of bright light around me even though we no see electricity in our house since the eight months that we owe the bill. And she say if she no see me in church she will whip my ass with a long, hard koboko until the devil jumps out of me. And I know Mama very well, since thirteen years now. If she say something, she mean it.
If you’d like your published prose featured in ‘Prose of The Week’ send an email to editor.afww@gmail.com.
Poetry of the Week
Photo by Thiago Vale on Unsplash
A Short Tale of Love | Habi O
Omidan and Arabambi lived down the street
the stubborn girl and the stupid boy
She was beginning to enjoy his expletive jokes
Giggling long after he had finished cracking them.
Like Ajike must tell Anifowose
of his seed growing within her…
If you’d like your published poetry featured in ‘Poetry of The Week’ send an email to editor.afww@gmail.com.
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Guul ayaan kuu rajaynayaa! (I wish you success —Somali, Somalia)