The African Poetry Book Fund, in partnership with Prairie Schooner and the University of Nebraska, promotes and advances the development and publication of the poetic arts through its book series, contests, workshops, and seminars and through its collaborations with publishers, festivals, booking agents, colleges, universities, conferences and all other entities that share an interest in the poetic arts of Africa.
We publish between three and five poetry books each year, including the winner of the Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poets, a chapbook box set of emerging African poets, and our New and Selected series.
Luschei Prize for African Poetry
The Luschei Prize for African Poetry is a post-publication award of US $1,000 to a book of poetry published by an African author.
An African writer is someone who was born in Africa, who is a national or resident of an African country, or whose parents are African.
We do not accept submissions electronically. Please visit our website for more information on how to submit.
Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poets
The Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poets awards USD $1,000 and publication by the University of Nebraska Press.
We accept electronic submissions of full-length manuscripts of poetry to the Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poets annually between September 15 and December 1.
An African writer is taken to mean someone who was born in Africa, who is a national or resident of an African country, or whose parents are African.
No past or present paid employees of the University of Nebraska Press or Amalion Press, or current faculty, students, or employees at the University of Nebraska, are eligible for the prizes.
No entry fee is required to submit to the contest.
Evaristo African Poetry Prize (formerly the Brunel International African Poetry Prize)
The Evaristo African Poetry Prize awards USD $1,500 to ten poems.
We accept electronic submissions to the Evaristo African Poetry Prize annually between October 1 and November 1.
An African writer is taken to mean someone who was born in Africa, who is a national or resident of an African country, or whose parents are African.
No past or present paid employees of the University of Nebraska Press or Amalion Press, or current faculty, students, or employees at the University of Nebraska, are eligible for the prizes.
No entry fee is required to submit to the contest.
General Submissions
We accept electronic unsolicited full-length poetry manuscript submissions from published and unpublished African poets during our open submissions periods. For submission guidelines, please visit: https://africanpoetrybf.unl.edu/publish-with-apbf/
To keep track of APBF calls for manuscript submission, please sign up for our newsletter here: https://bit.ly/35k9BNo
In partnership with Prairie Schooner and the University of Nebraska Press, we are pleased to receive submissions to the Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poets.
Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poets
The 2024 submission period for the Sillerman First Book Prize will open September 15 and remain open through December 1, 2024. We consider electronic submissions only; any hard copy submissions will be recycled unread.
The Prize:
The Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poetry is awarded annually to an African poet who has not yet published a collection of poetry. The winner receives USD $1000 and book publication through the University of Nebraska Press and Amalion Press in Senegal.
The Sillerman judging panel includes Kwame Dawes, Chris Abani, Matthew Shenoda, John Keene, Gabeba Baderoon, Phillippaa yaa de Villiers, Aracelis Girmay, and Mahtem Shiferraw.
A winner will be announced in June.
Eligibility:
The Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poets will only accept “first book” submissions from African writers who have not published a book-length poetry collection. This includes self-published books if they were sold online, in stores, or at readings. Writers who have edited and published an anthology or a similar collection of other writers’ work remain eligible.
An “African writer” is taken to mean someone who was born in Africa, who is a national or resident of an African country, or whose parents are African.
Only poetry submissions in English can be considered. Work translated from another language to English is accepted, but a percentage of the prize will be awarded to the translator.
No past or present paid employees of the University of Nebraska Press or Amalion Press, or current faculty, students, or employees at the University of Nebraska, are eligible for the prizes.
Manuscript:
No entry fee is required to submit to the contest.
Poetry manuscripts should be at least 50 pages long.
The author’s name should not appear on the manuscript. All entries will be read anonymously. Please include a cover page listing only the title of the manuscript (not the author’s name, address, telephone number, or email address). An acknowledgements page listing the publication history of individual poems may be included, if desired. No application forms are necessary. Eligible writers may submit more than one manuscript.
While we have no specific formatting rules, we suggest sending your manuscript in Times New Roman or Arial, 12 point font, single-spaced. We also prefer one poem per page, meaning a new poem does not begin on the same page on which another ends.
For more details on the Sillerman First Book Prize for African poets please visit our website here: https://africanpoetrybf.unl.edu/contest-prizes/sillerman-prize-for-african-poetry-winners/?csrt=15729064727336834555 or email psbookprize@unl.edu.
Looking for info about the Prairie Schooner Book Prize Series?
The 2025 Book Prize submission period is January 15 through March 15, 2025. Check back in January, or visit our website here: http://prairieschooner.unl.edu/book-prize for more info.
The APBF is a small nonprofit organization run almost entirely by volunteers and funded by individual donations and grants. This allows us to focus on our unique vision to publish and promote African poetry. To maintain the accessibility of our prizes and submission periods to poets across the globe, the APBF does not charge reading fees. All these things mean that we rely on the generosity of our community—every donation supports African poets and makes our work possible.
Donations to the APBF support a range of visionary projects, including poetry prizes, publications, local poetry libraries, and more.
Recurring gifts help us sustain the long-term continuity of our projects and ensure we can keep celebrating the transformative global voices that speak to you. If you would like to make a recurring gift, please visit this link.
Thank you for your support!