A three-panel symposium exploring the works of a range of African poets and their translators and
marking 25 years of the translation of Ngugi Wa Thiong’o’s Matigari. With Wangui wa Goro, André
Naffis-Sahely, Vusi Mchunu, Hany Rashwan, Dele Fatunla and award-winning poets Gabriel Okoundji
and Ribka Sibhatu. Additional readings and presentations by James Figueroa and Afrikult (Marcelle
Akita, Henry Brefo and Zaahida Mariam Nalumoso).

All Welcome

How do writers create characters that make stories come alive? Would you or a member of your
family make a good hero or heroine? A creative writing workshop for all the family.

Each year, the Caine Prize for African Writing maps new directions in contemporary African
writing. Join the five authors short-listed for the 2014 Prize – Diane Awerbuck, Efemia Chela, Tendai
Huchu, Billy Kahora and Okwiri Oduor – in conversation with Delia Jarrett-Macauley, award-winning
writer and judge for the 2007 Caine Prize.

We bring together a powerful group of African women poets who are using their voices to claim
their rightful place in literature. With Young Poet Laureate for London Warsan Shire, Belinda Zhawi,
Ribka Sibhatu and Chinwe Azubuike. Moderated by Jessica Horn, feminist writer and activist.

Drop in sessions for 4-7 & 8-12 year olds

Explore the rich and diverse cultures, peoples and places of Africa through these interactive story-telling workshops aimed at 4-7 and 8-12 year olds. Parents welcome too.

Workshops facilitated by Louisa Bello, Nigerian-British ESL teacher and writer.

Dr Marion Wallace, Curator of African Collections at the British Library, introduces the upcoming 2015 exhibition, ‘West Africa: Cultures of the Word’. Limited places: first come first served.

Between October 2015 and February 2016, the British Library will hold a major exhibition exploring the power of the word in West Africa. Through a rich mix of visual items, sound, film and objects, it will showcase West Africa’s complex and fascinating written heritage and oral literatures over the last three centuries. Dr Marion Wallace, the lead curator for the exhibition, will introduce the exhibition’s key concepts, and show images of some of its star items, in this informal session, open to audience comments and discussion.

Aimed at 13-19 year olds

What are the essential ingredients of a story? What are the main steps in making one? Come and
learn the basics and create a small piece of your own! Aimed at 13-19 year olds.

Workshops facilitated by Ade Solanke of Spora Stories.

How is new writing being developed on the continent? What are the hot spots of creativity and new
literary trends? With Bibi Bakare, co-founder and publishing director of Cassava Republic Press; Billy
Kahora, writer and managing editor of Kwani?; Ivor W. Hartmann, writer, editor, publisher and visual
artist; and Lucy Hannah, programme manager of Commonwealth Writers. Chaired by Ellah Allfrey,
editor and critic.

Launch of Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi’s KINTU, winner of the 2013 Kwani? Manuscript Project.
Chaired by Kate Haines, associate editor of Kwani Trust.

Marking the centenary of Nigeria’s amalgamation in 1914, this session launches Chuma Nwokolo’s
two latest books, How to Spell Naija and The Final Testament of a Minor God. Chaired by Dr Mpalive
Msiska, Reader in English & Humanities at Birkbeck College.

What space is there for the African gaze in contemporary travel literature? How are African and
Diaspora writers broadening perspectives on the continent and the rest of the world? With Noo
Saro-Wiwa, author of Looking for Transwonderland: Travels in Nigeria; Justin Edwards, co-editor
of Other Routes: 1500 Years of African & Asian Travel Writing; and Andy Akinwolere, broadcaster.
Moderated by Fatimah Kelleher, international social development consultant and writer.

Meet the 2014 Caine Prize shortlisted writers as they discuss their work with Tricia Wombell and
Jennifer Makumbi of the Black & African Reading Groups. The five stories are available to download
from caineprize.com – read them in advance and come with your questions.

A panel of experts discuss the business of publishing genre fiction in Africa. With Bibi Bakare of
Cassava Republic Press; Valerie Brandes of Jacaranda Books; Verna Wilkins of Tamarind Books and
Susan Yearwood, agent and founder of Susan Yearwood Literary Agency. Moderated by Margaret
Busby, editor, writer, critic and co-founder of Allison & Busby.

A panel of experts discuss the business of publishing genre fiction in Africa. With Bibi Bakare of
Cassava Republic Press; Valerie Brandes of Jacaranda Books; Verna Wilkins of Tamarind Books and
Susan Yearwood, agent and founder of Susan Yearwood Literary Agency. Moderated by Margaret
Busby, editor, writer, critic and co-founder of Allison & Busby

Launch of Okey Ndibe’s critically acclaimed novel, Foreign Gods, inc. Chaired by Richard Dowden,
director of The Royal African Society.

Session exploring the work of African Diaspora writers who move between the worlds of poetry,
drama and fiction, crossing over different literary genres and even delving into different art forms.
Featuring Inua Ellams, Nick Makoha, Ade Solanke and Bola Agbaje. Moderated by Sheila Ruiz,
programme manager of The Royal African Society.

A tribute to the father of contemporary African literature marking the launch of Chinua Achebe:
Tributes & Reflections with editors Nana Ayebia Clarke and James Currey. Chaired by Maya Jaggi,
cultural journalist and critic.

Book launch of Olabode Ogunlana’s The Rare Leaf: Yoruba Legends & Love Stories. Chaired by Ade
Solanke, writer and founder of Spora Stories.

How are African writers imagining their own futures and how do their stories relate to the
technological and scientific discoveries that are simultaneously taking place? With writers Ivor W.
Hartmann and Tade Thompson and a contribution from Jonathan Ledgard, director of Future Africa –
Afrotech Lab at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and author of Submergence.
Moderated by Emma Dabiri, PhD Researcher in the Sociology Department at Goldsmiths University.