Funded: Opportunities for African Writers
Up to $1000, Prizes, Digital Publication, Sponsored Travel
This newsletter is published every Wednesday at 5pm WAT.
1. Oxbelly Fiction Writers Program (June 2025)
The Fiction Writers program of the Oxbelly Retreat brings together writers from around the world for a week of literary and creative exchange, held at Costa Navarino in historic Messina, Greece. The Fiction Writers program will support ten emerging fictional prose writers committed to elevating their craft, strengthening their literary voice, and contributing to intercultural dialogues around storytelling. Fellows will engage in workshops and craft sessions led by acclaimed writers and industry leaders.
Deadline: 22nd January 2025, 11:59pm EET. | Prize: All expenses retreat
Things to note:
The retreat is divided into the following programs: Screenwriting Program, Episodic Writers Program, Fiction Writers Program.
The program will hold from June 28th to July 6th in Costa Navarino, Messinia, Greece.
The sole criteria is literary quality. To this end, they welcome work that is original in its vision, is written in an engaging voice, uses evocative language, experiments with form, and that is confident in its craft regardless of subject matter.
Please submit work that is refined, polished, and that reflects your truest potential as a writer.
2. Call for Submissions: Flavors of Youth
Culture Custodian is currently accepting submissions for the maiden edition of its magazine, The Custodian, in which contributors will be contextualizing the different experiences of young Nigerians while taking account of the global perspective in Flavors of Youth. They are looking for deeply analytical and engaging essays, fiction, criticism, profiles, features, interviews, reading lists, art, and book reviews on the issue.
Date: 24th January 2025, 11:59pm | Prize: Unstated amount
Things to note:
Word Count: 1,500 to 2,500
Language should be inclusive and relatable, speaking directly to the experiences of young people while maintaining an approachable tone, and providing accurate and well-researched information.
Adhere to standard American grammar rules but allow creative language use where appropriate. Use an active voice and avoid jargon.
Use topic-specific contractions, and slang appropriate to the discourse.
For Headlines and Subheadings: Use Bold, Sans serif fonts (e.g. Bebas Neue, Impact). Body: Use clean, legible fonts (e.g. Garamond) for easy readability.
Keep headlines short and to the point, ideally under 10 words. Use puns, alliteration, and questions to grab attention.
Images: Use high-resolution, engaging images that reflect the vibrancy of youth culture. Feature a wide range of models to reflect different backgrounds, body types, and styles. Incorporate fun and eye-catching graphics, memes, and illustrations to enhance visual appeal.
Ensure all information is fact-checked and up-to-date. Respect privacy and avoid sensationalism. Always attribute sources and obtain necessary permissions for images and quotes. Represent a broad spectrum of voices and perspectives. Avoid stereotypes and ensure content is inclusive.
Submissions should be made to submissions@culturecustodian.com with the subject line: Flavors of Youth.
3. Dread Central is Accepting Black History Month Pitches
Dread Central is seeking pitches from Black genre fans as part of our annual Black History Month programming. They are specifically looking for Black writers at any experience level to share their perspectives on the Horror genre. “If you have an idea about a specific movie, subgenre, filmmakers, books, graphic novels, an issue with a trend, or even about your experience as a horror fan in a genre that doesn’t always treat us with respect then we want to hear from you.”—D.C
Deadline: 24th January 2025 | Pay: $100
Things to note:
If your idea specifically references Black History Month, please include that in the initial pitch so they know it has to run in February and not later in the year.
Please note that your article does not need to mention Black History Month to be considered.
You can write about any horror film/TV series you are passionate about. “Do you love an underseen international film that you want to recommend to readers? Did you connect with a character in a horror comedy? Do you have thoughts about a recent release? Or maybe you want to make a case that a “horror adjacent” movie is actually a horror movie. Or do you want to rip apart this “elevated horror” business for good?”—D.C
You can submit multiple pieces.
To pitch, click this link and scroll down to fill the form.
4. Submit to The Orange Blossom Review
The Orange Blossom Review is a journal of creative arts. They are currently seeking poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction and graphic literature for their next issue.
Deadline: 15th February 2025 | Pay: Unstated
Things to note:
Poetry: Submit up to three poems for consideration. Please combine poetry submissions into a single document.
Fiction: up to 5,000 words. Novel excerpts will be considered but should be accompanied by a brief synopsis.
Creative Nonfiction: up to 5,000 words.
Graphic Literature: Submit up to five images of graphic literature (such as excerpts from a graphic novel or short imaged-based stories, essays, or poems). Please include a brief artist’s statement in the “cover letter” section of Submittable.
5. The Island Prize for a Debut Novel from Africa
The Island Prize is administered by Jennings and the Holland House (UK) in collaboration with Karavan Press (South Africa). The prize “is one step towards bridging the gap between here and there, us and them. In fact, it is through prizes like these that authors across the continent can gain the confidence to tell stories as they wish.”—Karen Jennings
Deadline: 16th February 2024, 12am CAT | Prize: Total of £900
Things to note:
The Island Prize is open to African writers aged 18 and over, regardless of place of residence.
You must not be represented by a literary agent or currently under contract with a publisher. If you receive an offer of representation while your novel is under consideration, you must inform us immediately and withdraw.
Only fiction is eligible. No short story collections
There is no restriction as to specific genre.
The complete novel should be between 35,000 words and 100,000 words.
Entrants must not have previously published a novel; this includes self-published or eBook-only editions.
To clarify: Authors who have previously published novels are ineligible, although those with published works in non-fiction, short stories, or poetry are welcome to apply.
To ENTER: Send the following to theisland@hhousebooks.com:
The first three chapters or 10,000 words of the novel;
A covering statement giving the word count, name and address of the author, the title, and a brief, two-sentence description of the main subjects and themes of the novel;
A one-page synopsis setting out the basic story.
Entries should be in size 12 – Times New Roman, Garamond, Arial, Calibri are all fine.
Please ensure entries are double or 1.5 spaced.
All entries should be in Word doc or docx.
6. The Journal of African Youth Literature is Open to Submissions
JAYLIT publishes creative writing, poetry, prose (stories and narratives), plays, with a storyline in ANY language used in Africa, such as Swahili, Amharic, Yoruba, Zulu, Chichewa, English, French, etc. Submissions must be by, about, and/or for born-in-Africa youths. For the purposes of the Journal, ‘African’ is defined according to place of birth or heritage. It is not related to colour or race.
Deadline: 17th Feb 2024 | Compensation: Publication + entry for annual prize
Things to note:
All submissions must be the original creation of the individual submitting them, and they cannot have been previously published elsewhere.
– 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
Simultaneous submissions are accepted.
If your submission is not in English please include a short summary in English of what your submission is about when you send it.
Poetry:
For short poems, they want poems of up to 20 lines each. You can submit up to 5 short poems at once. For longer poems, they want 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.
Prose:
For short stories and personal essays (CNF), they want between 1,000-4,000 words. For shorter prose (flash fiction or flash CNF), they want between 250 and 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 of your submission. E.g. [Short Story – Sipho Adewale – Laugh Laugh Laugh].
Plays:
For short plays, they want up to 4,000 words. For longer plays, they want between 4,000 and 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. [Long Play – Sipho Adewale – Laugh Laugh Laugh].
Reviews:
Send reviews to ibrahim.ibrahim@jaylit.com. Word count should not exceed 2,000 words.
7. The Dawn Review: Call for Submissions
The Dawn Review is an international literary magazine which publishes written and visual work from emerging and established writers and artists. Dawn promotes the surprising, the genre-bending, and the overwhelmingly human. They are currently seeking prose and poetry submissions for their next issue.
Deadline: 15th Mar 2025 | Pay: Unstated
Things to note:
Please submit up to 10 pages of written work and/or up to 10 pieces of visual work per reading period.
There are no spacing or formatting requirements.
Please fill out this form to submit.
As long as you've submitted the form, your submission will go through—they don't send confirmation emails.
If you are unable to link your pieces using the form below, you may attach them in an email to thedawnreviewsubmissions@gmail.com, along with any feedback requests and a short third-person biography.
They will provide free feedback (~300 words) to the first 150 submissions upon request.
8. Toyin Falola Prize 2025
This Prize is created in honor of the Distinguished African scholar and foremost historian, Professor Toyin Falola. This year, it invites young African writers to craft narratives exploring the intricate intersections of Nature, Mother, Life, Earth, Technology, and Artificial Intelligence. Submissions should delve into the complexities, tensions, and points of unity within these relationships.
Deadline: 25th April 2025| Prize: $1,000
Things to note:
There is no limit to the number of words; however, submissions within the range of 1,500 – 4,500 words are preferred.
Writers are only allowed to submit one entry.
All entrants must be African.
All submissions must be the original work of the entrants, previously unpublished in any form, and not under consideration for publication or a prize somewhere else.
All submissions should be attached as a doc. file, named as the title of the submission (without the name of the entrant) and formatted in 1.5 line spacing, Book Antiqua font, size 12.
The body of the submission email should not contain the bio of the entrant, just the title of the submission, word count, genre, full name, and contact information. Bios of the entrants will be requested upon selection.
Submissions should be sent to prize@lunaris.com.ng with the subject “TOYIN FALOLA PRIZE SUBMISSION.”
No erotica.
9. JAKE is Open for Submissions
JAKE is an anti-literary magazine that goes against trends of what is considered ‘good’ and ‘bad’ in publishing. The magazine is currently seeking poetry and prose submissions. Submissions from BIPOC writers are encouraged. “JAKE wants all of the shade of the bigger, badder mags, and he wants your funniest, strangest, or boldest words. JAKE is here to play without rules.”—J
Deadline: 24th November 2025 | Pay: Unstated
Things to note:
Fiction: JAKE is looking for short stories of a literary or experimental stripe, regardless of the genre, between 2000-7000 words. 3500 is ideal. No novellas or short story collections.
Non-fiction: 2000-7000 words. 3500words is ideal.
Flash-fiction: send little stories of 1000 words or under, attached up to three at a time in the same doc.
Reprints are allowed.
Poetry: Up to three poems totally roughly 10 pages or less. Poetry longer than that scares JAKE, since he doesn’t actually know how to read.
No racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, xenophobic, or bigoted work.
No AI
10. Submit to Twin Bird Review
Established in 2023, Twin Bird Review is a biannual online literary publication for imaginative fiction, poetry, essays, art, and comics. They publish work that captures our imagination and offers new perspectives on the world around us. We love the metaphorical, the speculative, the fantastical, the whimsical, and the strange.
Deadline: Rolling | Pay: Unstated
Things to note:
Send only original and previously unpublished work.
Fiction, either flash fiction or short stories up to 3,000 words, submitted as a .doc or docx file.
Poetry, up to five poems per submission, 100 lines or less per poem, submitted in a single .doc or .docx file.
Essays, up to 3,000 words.
Comics and graphic stories, including comic strips, excerpts from graphic novels, single panel cartoons, or any other form of visual storytelling. Please include low- to mid-res JPGs for your initial submission (4 MB or less).
All submissions should be sent to twinbirdreview@gmail.com.
Please include “Submission + GENRE” in the subject line, i.e. – “Submission – Fiction.”
Please also include a cover letter in the body of your email with a brief biographical statement.
Prose of the Week
Idemili, The River Goddess by Ijeoma Ossi
Blood and Iron | Oma Ifekwem
The Igbos are known for their fierce pride. They accept their pride as part of their heritage, wearing it like the traditional leonine-designed cloth associated with elders of worth. It is this pride that held up 17-year-old Achunike’s quaking knees when they threatened to give way as he snuck off with the rising sun to join the Biafran army congregating in Enugu, the old coal city…
Poetry of the Week
Image by Patreek Katyal on Unsplash
Redless | Marvellous Igwe
Again, another rain. Again, another black
blooded night.
Come outside, sit with me. Let us play a game
where we pretend
this barren sky is ripe with beautiful stars…
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Ñana tὺmίyὲ (Well done —Kabiye, Northern Togo)