The Winner of the Man Booker International Prize 2013 is...

Source: Photo Pin

...Lydia Davis. Lydia Davis has just been awarded the fifth Man Booker International Prize at an award ceremony at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

The judges - Professor Sir Christopher Ricks, Elif Batuman, Aminatta Forna, Yiyun Li and Tim Parks - recognised that crafting spare, philosophical and original works, however short, is not for the lazy at all but takes time, skill and effort.

The Prize, worth £60,000, is awarded for an achievement in fiction on the world stage and Davis's achievements are writ large despite often using startlingly few words (some of her longer stories only stretch to two or three pages).

Davis has written only one novel - The End of the Story (1995) - a title that both suggests the humour that runs through her work and that is comprehensively gainsaid by the award of the Man Booker International Prize.

For more information, see the Manbookerprize website.

2013 Caine Prize Shortlist Announced

Interesting news! Four out of five stories, that made this year’s shortlist for the annual Caine Prize for Writing, were written by Nigerians. This is unheard-of in the history of the Prize. The shortlisted stories are:

• Elnathan John (Nigeria) ‘Bayan Layi’ from Per Contra, Issue 25 (USA, 2012)
• Tope Folarin (Nigeria) ‘Miracle’ from Transition, Issue 109 (Bloomington, 2012)
• Pede Hollist (Sierra Leone) ‘Foreign Aid’ from Journal of Progressive Human Services, Vol. 23.3 (Philadelphia, 2012)
• Abubakar Adam Ibrahim (Nigeria) ‘The Whispering Trees’ from The Whispering Trees, published by Parrésia Publishers (Lagos, 2012)
• Chinelo Okparanta (Nigeria) ‘America’ from Granta, Issue 118 (London, 2012)

A review of Elnathan John’s Bayan Layi is up on the Nigerianstalk LitMag  website and on the KTravula blog. You can follow the aforementioned website for more reviews on all the other shortlisted stories.

Travel Photography Scholarship 2013: Greenland

Source: Photo Pin

Have you ever dreamed of travelling through Greenland, camera in hand, capturing all that the breathtaking country has to offer? Well get shooting, because the 2013 Travel Photography Scholarship could be sending you there!

This is your opportunity to explore Greenland while being mentored by National Geographic photographer, Jason Edwards.

The 10-day itinerary with Visit Greenland, Destination Arctic Circle and Air Greenland features the remote wildlife and landscapes of the rugged north (check out the full itinerary here).

Your best photos from the trip will be published on National Geographic Channel where they will be viewed by thousands of travellers worldwide, offering you a once-in-a-lifetime chance to get your foot in the door of one of the most revered exploration organisations in the world!

To apply, you must submit a series of photos (up to 5) that tell a story about a place you have visited and tell us about yourself and why you should be awarded this scholarship.

Visit the WorldNomads.com Scholarship page for more information and to apply. Applications close July 5, 2013.

The 5th Femrite Regional Residency for Women Writers

FEMRITE in partnership with Karavan – Sweden is calling for submissions for the 5th Residency for African Women Writers. The residency program will last be held from 18th - 30th November 2013.

The main aim of the residency is to give women space to concentrate on their writing.

The 2-week residency will give selected writers the opportunity to reflect on their writing, connect with one another, read each others’ manuscripts and give feedback, interact with established writers and build literary bridges across cultures of the continent.

The residency is also aimed at strengthening collaboration among women writers’ initiatives in Africa.

How to Apply?
    1) Send part of a novel / short Story collection as a word document (40 pages, typed in Times New Roman, font 12, 1.5 spacing).
   2) Send one complete short story (Minimum 3000 words) for the 5th Regional Residency publication.
   3) A brief bio (not more than 10 lines)
4) Deadline for submissions is 30th May 2013.

Who is Eligible?
All African women writers above 18 years of age, and living on the continent.

Successful applicants will be notified by 30th July 2013.

The residency package will include;
   * A return air ticket for those residing outside Uganda.
   * Accommodation for the period of the residency.
   * Meals during the residency period.

  No application fee is required.

For inquiries and submissions, please send emails to: info@femriteug.org
info@femriteug.org

Have You Read The 13th Issue On Africa?

Source:  Saraba Mag

Is it possible to represent what is truly Africa? Despite often limiting monolithic images and themes representing "the dark continent";  Keguro Macharia discusses Something Else Not Violence, Sefi Atta shares a chapter from her novel and Jeroen Evers shares photographs of Daily Life in Algeria.

Download the Africa Issue HERE.

You can also send in submissions for the Art Issue.
For Saraba 14, we hope the works of writers reveal the influence of Art in their work, and in their lives.
 Please (only) submit your work at www.saraba.submittable.com/submit
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: May 17, 2013

Submission Guidelines can be found on  http://www.sarabamag.com/the-africa-issue/

2013 Farafina Trust Creative Writing Workshop

Farafina Trust will be holding a creative writing workshop in Lagos,organized by award winning writer and creative director of Farafina Trust, Chimamanda Adichie, from August 6 to August 16 2013.

The workshop is sponsored by Nigerian Breweries Plc. Guest writers, including the Caine Prize-winning Kenyan writer, Binyavanga Wainaina will co-teach the workshop alongside Adichie.

The workshop will take the form of a class. Participants will be assigned a wide range of reading exercises, as well as daily writing exercises. The aim of the workshop is to improve the craft of Nigerian writers and to encourage published and unpublished writers by bringing different perspectives to the art of storytelling. Participation is limited only to those who apply and are accepted.

All material must be pasted or written in the body of the e-mail. Please Do NOT include any attachments in your e-mail. Applications with attachments will be automatically disqualified. Deadline for submission is JUNE 12, 2013. Only those accepted to the workshop will be notified by JULY 22, 2013. Accommodation in Lagos will be provided for all accepted applicants who are able to attend for the ten-day duration of the workshop. A literary evening of readings, open to the public, will be held at the end of the workshop on August 16, 2013.

To apply, send an e-mail to Udonandu2013@gmail.com

Your e-mail subject should read ‘Workshop Application.’

The body of the e-mail should contain the following:

1. Your Name

2. Your address

3. A few sentences about yourself

4. A writing sample of between 200 and 800 words.

The sample must be either fiction or non-fiction.

Americanah Book Tour - Lagos

Americanah by Chimamanda Adichie is now available in bookstores from 27th April, 2013. The AMERICANAH Lagos Tour will start with the book release at Terra Kulture, Victoria Island, on the 27th of April, 2013.

You can meet up with Chimamanda Adichie for the reading of Americanah at the following locations:

April 27 at Terra Kulture by 6pm.

May 1 at Patabah Books, Shop B18 Adeniran Ogunsanya Mall, Surulere, by 1pm

May 4 at Glendora, Ikeja City Mall, by 1pm

People who attend can share their experiences on the blog.

Have fun people.