Brunel University African Poetry Prize

Under the auspices of the Fund, one of its key facets will be the establishment of an additional prize for poetry, the Brunel University African Poetry Prize, awarded for a selection of poems by an African poet. The Brunel University African Poetry Prize is a major new poetry prize of £3000 aimed at the development, celebration and promotion of poetry from Africa. The prize is sponsored by Brunel University and partnered by Commonwealth Writers, the Africa Centre UK, and the African Poetry Book Fund USA. British-Nigerian writer, Bernardine Evaristo, has initiated the prize. Prairie Schooner, one of the leading literary journals in the USA, having published continuously for eighty-five years, has committed to publishing some of the work of the winning poets of the Brunel University African Poetry Prize. Wasafiri, the leading British journal of international writing, will also publish the winner. Similar arrangements will be pursued with other major literary journals in the United Kingdom and the US.

In collaboration with the African Poetry Book Fund, the Brunel University African Poetry Prize will develop a series poetry workshops and courses in Africa in its efforts to provide technical support for poets writing in Africa.

There will be a distinguished panel of judges including the poet Kwame Dawes and the academic Mpalive Msiska. There will also be an advisory committee. All to be announced.

Eligibility

The prize is for ten poems exactly in order to encourage serious poets. Therefore ten poems exactly have to be submitted in order to be eligible for this prize. These poems may, however, have been published. Only poets who have not yet had a full-length poetry book published are eligible. (Poets who have self-published poetry books or had chapbooks and pamphlets published are allowed to submit for this prize.)

Only poetry written in English is eligible. Translated poetry is accepted but a percentage of the prize will be awarded to the translator.

The prize is open to poets who were born in Africa, or who are nationals of an African country, or whose parents are African.

Submission Period

The prize opens for entries on 1st September 2012 to 30th November 2012. and the winner will be announced at the end of April 2013.

**PLEASE DO NOT SUBMIT POEMS UNTIL THE PRIZE OPENS FOR ENTRIES.**

Contact.

For more updates and additional information go to http://www.africanpoetryprize.org/ or contact Bernardine Evaristo at Bernardine.Evaristo@brunel.ac.uk.