Just shortly after unveiling the £15,000 winner of the 2017 edition of Etisalat Prize for Literature, the telecommunications giant has announced the commencement of submission of entries into the 2018 edition. It’s been revealed that the submissions would run from the 3rd of July to the 18th of September 2017.
While the Chief Executive Officer of Etisalat Nigeria, Matthew Willsher, addressed the press, he said the company was delighted to flag off the fifth year of the Etisalat Prize for Literature, which had become a leading platform for the discovery and promotion of African literary talent. He also added that the new panel of judges including Harry Garuba (chair), Doreen Baingana and Siphiwo Mahala was a team of experienced writers, academics, literary critics and editors, devoted to upholding the legacy and reputation of the prize. Furthermore, he said the judging panel would initially select a long list of nine titles. After the second round of screening, a shortlist of three finalists, ahead of the 2018 grand finale/award ceremony would be announced.
It’s customary that books submitted must have been published in the previous 24 months from the date of the call for entries. Such books should contain no fewer than 30,000 words and must be the author’s first published fiction book. The author must be an African citizen, but may reside anywhere in the world. The beauty of this is that all entries must be submitted by incorporated publishing houses that have existed for six years or more with registered ISBN or the equivalent, and the publishers must have published a minimum of three authors. A publisher may enter a maximum of three titles. Seven copies of each title entered must accompany the application form, along with an acceptance of the publicity terms of the Etisalat Prize http://prize.etisalat.com.ng/terms.php .
The winner receives £15,000, an engraved Montblanc Meisterstück pen, and an Etisalat-sponsored fellowship at the University of East Anglia, where he or she will be mentored by Professor Giles Foden, author of The Last King of Scotland’. The winner and the two runners-up also participate in a multi-city book tour sponsored by Etisalat. Etisalat purchases 1,000 copies of each of the shortlisted titles for distribution to schools, libraries and book clubs across the African continent. Alongside the Prize for Literature is the Flash Fiction Award, an online-based competition open to all African writers of unpublished short stories of no more than 300 words. The winner of the Flash Fiction Award receives £1,000 and a high-end device, while the two runners-up for the Flash Fiction Award receive £500 each in addition to high-end devices.
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