Uni backs African writers

01 Feb 2011

A partnership between one of the country’s top centres for the study of creative writing and a leading African arts journal has born fruit with its first joint issue.

Three African writers will read their work at a special event at the University of Manchester on February 2 to celebrate the start of the partnership.

Creative writing lecturer and science fiction author Geoff Ryman, who has now joined the journal’s editorial board, will also talk about African graphic novels, now finding large audiences throughout the French speaking world.

The writer based at the University’s Centre for New Writing will join editor Chuma Nwokolo -for a reading of his poetry and Jennifer Makumbi and Tolu Ogunlesi who will read their short stories.

Ryman will oversee a new educational section of African Writing  - starting next issue-  which promotes a programme at two Nigerian Universities funded through the British Council over one year.

There will be contributions from fifteen African countries in the journal.

Ryman said: “Though Nigeria – and Africa - can boast some the world’s greatest writers, such as Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka and Ben Okri – as well as highly regarded younger writers - it still struggles to make its voice heard internationally.

“The cultural and literary scene in Nigeria is vibrant-  there’s so much talent out there and everywhere you go, people want to lend you the book they have been reading.

“But the problem is, many African writers struggle to get their voices heard outside their own circles.

“We need to allow the younger generation to come through and that’s partly about professionalisation of how writers go about promoting themselves which this project will address.”

The issue features fiction from prodiguous Libyan writer, Ibrahim al-Koni, and poetry from Moroccan Malika Assal and Tunisian Essia Skhiri.

It also contains an Arabophone review, by blogger Marcia Lynx Qualey, of North Afri¬can literature from Egypt, through Libya, Tunisia and Morocco, to Algeria.

Chuma Nwokolo said: “There is an explosion of young literary talent in Nigeria and other countries in Africa at the moment.

“There are many examples, but because of low levels of literacy and income, there are restricted opportunities to be published in Africa.

“Some of Africa’s powerful even benefit from ignorance and do all they can to stop people from being educated.

“Your primary readership has to be local. Africans need to group together to beat this: we need reading campaigns and better educational resources.

“It’s not a pipe dream: with the internet and mobile phones, opportunities to publish are now huge.”