Announcing the AfRo Writing Competition

Remember the call for submissions post for Africana Pocketbooks in July? (if you don't remember, you can click here). There's more good news where that came from. 

Africana Pocketbooks (Ghana) has launched a romance writing competition, dubbed the AfRo Writing competition (AfRo was coined from Africana Romance), with the objective of producing Ghanaian romance novels featuring locations, heroes, heroines and storylines that reflect contemporary Ghana.

The competition will run on Facebook through an interactive process where writers, readers and friends can contribute to the creative process.

If you're already polishing your manuscript in your head, then keep reading; it gets better:

COMPETITION DETAILS

• The competition runs from 1st September, 2011 – 1stDecember, 2011.
• There will be three stages of the competition.
• Stories entered in the competition must be completed by 1st December, 2011, as the winner will be expected to submit a full manuscript at the end of the competition.
• To enter the competition, leave comments or ‘like’ any entries, please join the Afro Romance Writing Competition Facebook group.

STAGE 1: Synopsis: 1 Sept. – 22 Sept., 2011

• Post a short synopsis of for your romance on AfRo’s Facebook page by using the "create doc" function. Synopsis shall not exceed 1000 words, and should cover the entire story including the end (no cliffhangers or teasers, please). Remember: Keep it simple.
• Entries will be subjected to peer reviews in an open, creative process taking place on Facebook.
• The process will be overseen and moderated by representatives of Africana Pocketbooks.
• On 22nd September, the editorial panel will select ten (10) synopses that will go through to Stage 2.
• All ten winners will get feedback on their synopses.

STAGE 2: Get writing: 30 September – 20 October, 2011

• The ten winners will enter Stage 2 of the competition by uploading the first chapters of their novel on AfRo’s Facebook page, using the "create doc" function. Chapters should not exceed 3000 words.
• Entries will be subjected to peer reviews in an open, creative process taking place on Facebook.
• The process will be overseen and moderated by representative of Africana Pocketbooks.
• On 20th October, the editorial panel will select five (5) winners who will go through to Stage 3 of the competition.
• All five winners will get feedback on their sample chapters.

STAGE 3: Get serious: 28 October – 18 November, 2011

• The five winners will enter Stage 3 of the competition by uploading the next three chapters of their novel on AfRo’s Facebook page. The chapters should be posted one at a time, one week apart, i.e.:
• Chapter two must be posted between 28th October and 3rdNovember
• Chapter three must be posted between 4th and 10thNovember
• Chapter four must be posted between 11th and 31stNovember

• Chapters should not exceed 3000 words each.
• The samples will be subjected to peer reviews in an open, creative process taking place on Facebook.
• The process will be overseen and moderated by representatives of Africana Pocketbooks.

The Winner of the AfRo competition will be announced on 1stDecember, 2011.

THE PRIZE

The overall winner will enter into an editorial process with Africana Pocketbooks and our editor, which will result in a contract including full editorial process, publishing and printing of at least 10,000 copies, and promotion in Ghana. The finished title will be scheduled for publication in 2012.

The two runners-up will get detailed feedback on their entries with the aim of making them eligible for future publication.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE COMPETITION

• Eligibility: The competition is open to Ghanaian writers, or writers resident in Ghana
• Story settings: Stories must be set in Ghana and feature Ghanaian locations, heroes and heroines.
• Guidelines: Submission must adhere to the Africana Romance (AfRo) writing guidelines.
• Stories must not have been submitted earlier to any other publishing houses

Good luck to all

FWoWA

Cassava Republic Press calling for submissions

Cassava Republic Press is a Nigerian-based publisher 'obsessed with changing the way the world thinks about African fiction'. The publish high quality, affordable fiction, non-fiction  and children’s books that inspire young readers to develop a love of books from an early age. Non-fiction focuses on socio-cultural and historical events.

They also organise writing workshops and school writers-in-residence programmes under their RAW (Reading And Writing) Initiative. Cassava Republic Press was listed as one of the top ten brands to look out for in 2009 by the design bible Monocle Magazine.

And the good news! They are accepting submissions. But there's a little catch. They accept submission only two times a year: January and August. Submissions received outside of these months will not be considered. So you have twenty-six days to polish your manuscripts and submit...or wait four months!

They accept submissions by email only. Any hard copy submissions will not be considered.

What to submit:

For fiction, send a 500-word synopsis with three sample chapters to editor@cassavarepublic.biz.

For non-fiction, include a cover letter in your email indicating the subject and your qualifications. 

Sample chapters must sent as a word attachment saved in the following way: date of submission(dd.mm.yy).surname.firstname.book title. [E.g: 02.09.09.Yinka.Allen.To PlayWithFire.doc]. Your name should appear only on the title page, and nowhere else in the manuscript.

The subject of the email should be: Cassava Submission: [Author’s name], [book title].

[E.g.: Cassava Submission: Yinka Ishmail, The Quiet Sisters]

All submissions are logged and read chronologically. 

Cassava Republic is based in Abuja, Nigeria. For more information, visit their website or 'like' them on Facebook or 'follow' then on Twitter @CassavaRepublic.

Don't say I didn't tell you!

Cheers

FWoWA