5 Nigerians make long list of SSDA Prize

Five Nigerians have made the long list of the Short Story Day Africa prize (SSDA) in a list of 21. They are, Innocent Ilo for his story ‘Limbo’, Okafor Tochukwu for ‘All Our Lives’, Michael Agugom for ‘Ibinabo’, Alithnayn Abdulkareem for ‘Fever’, and Adelola Ojutiku for ‘Taba’. This year, SSDA sought after innovative short fiction […]

Five Nigerians have made the long list of the Short Story Day Africa prize (SSDA) in a list of 21. They are, Innocent Ilo for his story ‘Limbo’, Okafor Tochukwu for ‘All Our Lives’, Michael Agugom for ‘Ibinabo’, Alithnayn Abdulkareem for ‘Fever’, and Adelola Ojutiku for ‘Taba’.

This year, SSDA sought after innovative short fiction exploring identity, especially themes surrounding gender identity and sexuality.

The list features stories from all over the continent and diaspora such as ‘All Our Lives’. This story follows nine young men trying to make it in Lagos; ‘Limbo’ takes a woman who works as a scarecrow on a journey of sexual discovery; ‘Borrowed by the Wind’ reflects on masculinity, accountability and violence in a South African context; a young Muslim woman questions the patriarchy and her own sexuality in ‘Fever’; while ‘The Piano Player’ is an interesting reversal of the African going to America trope. 

Other stories on the long list tackle notions of love, sexuality, the phenomenon of menstruation, otherness, and mental illness. 

The shortlist, first, second and third place, will be announced early next year. The collection of short stories is due for release in July 2018.

SSDA is a non-profit organisation that relies on the generosity of the African writing community for skills and funding. It brings together writers, readers, booksellers, publishers, teachers and school children from all over the globe to write, submit, read, workshop, discuss stories and foster the love of reading and writing African fiction.

The SSDA prize is worth $1, 000.