The Arts-Muse Fair

  ~ Paul Liam  Love is a relatively less explored subject in Nigerian critical discourse, literary critics and scholars over the years seemed to have focused their analyses on the so-called ‘serious poetry’ of political lamentation and social criticism of the governance and leadership failure in the land. The focus on the socio-political milieu led to the fostering of a national poetic ethos vested in the existential exigencies, socio-economic strife and the repressive political climates in which the people found themselves. The preponderance of the national agenda of angst negated the core of the matter—the absence of love. Love is the nexus between life and death and the bedrock for the expression of humanity. A society devoid of love and empathy cannot manifest harmony that can be translated to the formation of a hegemonic national anchored on development and the prosperity of the common welfare of the people. Thus, the relegation of love to the margins of critical literary discour

The Vivian Ihaza [SEVHAGE] Teen Poetry Prize As part of the SEVHAGE Literary Prizes, this memorial poetry prize honours Vivian’s memory by empowering young writers, specifically teenagers aged 12 to 17 with a focus on Nigeria in its inaugural edition (2024). This annual poetry prize seeks to foster creativity, cultural appreciation, and self-expression among the next generation of poets. Through this initiative, SEVHAGE aims to give young voices a platform to share their stories and ideas with the world. Key Dates and Timelines • Submission Window : October 1st – November 20th, 2024 • Winners Announcement : By February 2025 • All winners will be contacted via email by February 2025, with an awards ceremony or virtual event to follow. Submission Guidelines To ensure fair participation and a wide reach, all entries must adhere to the following guidelines: Eligibility : The competition is open to Nigerian writers aged 17 and below. Submission Format : Attach a poem as an MS W

 by Paul Liam Nasiba Babale’s emergence on the poetry literary scene is not by accident, she has in the last decade remained a constant voice strutting the digital space with her whimsical poetry.  Before the publication of her debut collection, she had already established an impressionable reputation as an emerging poet of significant talent. She writes with the consciousness of a bard who is aware of the shuddering threats to humanity's collective future and prosperity. Born and raised in the ancient city of Kano, and trained as a medical lab scientist at the Bayero University, Kano, Babale is a literary administrator and brain behind the first Kano International Poetry Festival in northern Nigeria held in July 2024 at the BUK. The festival reinforced Kano’s leading role as the epicenter of world knowledge production and Hausa civilization.  Recently, in 2024, Konya Shamsurumi published Babale's debut collection of poetry, Pickled Moments to critical acclaim. The collection s

by Sirajo Abdulazeez Illo (Bá Sabouke) Nigerian poet, D. M. Aderibigbe, has been announced as a winner of the National Poetry Series 2024 for his manuscript titled The 82nd Division.  Among other honors, his debut book of poems How the End First Showed (University of Wisconsin Press, 2018) won the Brittingham Prize in Poetry. In a social media post, the poet expressed; "I'm happy to share that my manuscript, The 82nd Division, has been chosen as a winner of the 2024 National Poetry Series and will be published by Akashic Books next fall. I'm a big dreamer, but not even in my wildest dream did I think I would win an award as significant and prestigious as this." He added that, " All I ever want to do is write unapologetically about my Nigeria." D. M. Aderibigbe  is from Lagos, Nigeria. Currently, he is an assistant professor of Creative Writing at the University of Southern Mississippi.  He has received fellowships from the Sewanee Writers’ Confe

Masobe Books announced the acquisition of Nana Sule's debut book, Not So Terrible People, a collection of 11 stories about rebellious angels, jinns, and humans in their attempt to aid Shaitan in his scheme to be reborn as a human being. According to Masobe, “Each story in Nana Sule's debut collection is intricately linked and skillfully crafted. Grand themes, ideas and concepts are deftly explored, creating a prism effect where every story is like tilting the angle to catch a different wavelength, or perspective of life.” Nana Sule is a writer, journalist, and communications strategist with a deep passion for African literature. She co-hosts Conversations with Nana, a podcast promoting African poetry and storytelling. She is co-owner of The Third Space, a vibrant bookstore and workstation in Kano. Nana also curates literary events that foster creativity and community. Alongside her work, she volunteers as the communications lead for the Poetic Wednesdays Initiativ

The Hellebore Press has selected Nigerian poet, Michael Imossan, as one of the scholars for their Summer 2024 HUES Foundation Scholar program.  Michael Imossan is a poet, playwright and editor of Ibibio origin. He is the author of the award-winning chapbook For the Love of Country and Memory (poetrycolumnnd, 2022) as well as the pamphlet A Prelude to Caving (Konya Shamsrumi, 2023).  Imossan’s full length manuscript, Broken in Three places, was named semi-finalist for the Sillerman Prize for African Poetry, 2023 and his full length manuscript “All that Refuses to Die” was named winner of the Sillerman First Book Prize for African Poetry, 2024.  His chapbook, The Smell of Absence, was selected by Kwame Dawes & Chris Abani for inclusion in the New-Generation African Poets Chapbook Boxset. He is a recipient of the PEN International writers grant. The HUES Foundation is an educational non-profit organization that is committed to creative expression and innovation among BIPO

By Paul Liam Sandra Rofem Hitarh’s debut collection of poems, The Voice of Your Village, is a promising debut that problematizes the social injustice, and dystopian aura in the land. It is rooted in the socialist vision that views poetry as an instrument for engineering social change, a rather strange obsession for a military officer. Hitarh’s aesthetics align with the Nigerian poetry tradition known for its romanization of utopia, characterized by the quest for social justice, harmony, and economic prosperity. The poems reecho the wailing anguish of voiceless citizens caught in the mesh of strife and misgovernance.    The Voice of Your Village, published by Sevhage Publisher, Makurdi in 2024, contains forty-three poems and a foreword by the renowned poet and scholar, Ismail Bala. Bala describes the collection as “fresh and unique” for ditching the “American idiom” and shunning “...the seeming convention of confessionalism so rampant in recent Nigerian poetry. Bala’s appraisal undersc