Creative writing for an audience of children and teens will feature prominently as the Association of Nigerian Authors gathers in Gusau, Zamfara State for their 27th Annual Convention and Awards October 30 to November 2.
Three awards are on offer for children’s literature. They are the ANA/Atiku Abubakar Prize, the ANA/Fun Time Prize as well as the ANA/Lantern Prize. Competition will hold in only two categories, as the judges think “quality too low for award and honourable mention” in the other categories.
In contention is who wins the N100,000 prize money and diadem for the ANA/Atiku Abubakar Prize for Children’s Literature. Finalists are Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo with Fire From the Mountain and Chinyeremma Nwakanma with Nneka, The Hunchback. It is a contest of the old brigade versus the new star.
Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo, a professor of English at the University of Lagos, is an old hand at the game and a regular at recent awards circuits. Her book is told in the traditional story format. She was co-winner with the grand dame of children’s literature in Nigeria, Mabel Segun, of the $50, 000 NLNG Prize for Children’s Literature in 2007.
Chinyeremma Nwakanma, artist (graphic and fashion design), writer and Teen Church pastor, brings to bear a touch of innovation and modernity. Her Nneka, The Hunchback is a very creative retelling of an Igbo classic with fresh perspectives and angles. More importantly, this advertising executive (Chinyerenma Augusta Nwakanma is Executive Director of Blueflower Limited, an IMC agency) brings to bear a deft hand with colourful illustrations that place the book alongside any modern Ladybird classic. She then brings African folktales into the modern age with the addition of an author read-along CD that has been a hit with young readers. Children thus have a choice of three ways to access the book: text, visual and audio. It is clearly a tough choice for the judges, yet the future points to multimedia renditions.
The ANA/Fun Time Prize for Children’s Literature offers N150, 000 and similarly features two finalists. They are Ifeanyi Ajaegbo with Tears in Heaven and Uche Peter Umez with The Christmas Gift.
Unfortunately there are no takers for the two prizes on offer for writing aimed at teens. The judges found “insufficient and substandard entries” for the ANA/Mazariyya Teen Author Prize for Poetry, offering N50, 000 and the ANA/NECO Teen Author Prize (Prose) with a prize tag of N100, 000.
Other prizes on offer, according to a release by ANA General Secretary are the ANA/NDDC Flora Nwapa Prize for Women Writing, with a prize of N100, 000. ‘Only one entry merits being shortlisted”, ANA states. “It will be announced at the convention”.
There is the ANA/Jacaranda Prize for Prose with N50, 000 prize. Finalists are Anthony Isoh with Mugu Hunters and Abimbola Adunni Adelakun with Under the Brown Roofs.
The ANA/Chevron Prose Prize on Environmental Issues offers N100, 000. A winner will be announced at the Convention. Vincent Egbuson with Love My Planet and Abdulhameed Mahmood with A Step of No Return are in contention for the ANA/NDDC Ken Saro-Wiwa Prize for Prose. The prize money is N100, 000.
Three poets make the final shortlist for the ANA/NDDC Gabriel Okara Prize for Poetry, which also offers N100, 000. They are Hyginus Ekwuazi, Dawn into Moonlight, All Around Me Dawning; Seyi Adigun’s Songs of Irrigation and Musa Idris Okpanachi with The Eaters of The Living.

For the ANA/JAMES ENE HENSHAW PRIZE FOR PLAYWRITING (N150, 000) finalists are Ayekooto by Niyi Ogunyemi and The Visits by Solomon Iguanre. ANA/NDDC J.P. CLARK PRIZE FOR DRAMA (N100, 000) has three finalists: John Iwuh with The Village Lamb, Ahmed Yerimah with The Wives and Chris Anyokwu with Ufuoma.
$1000 is on offer for the ANA/Cadbury Prize for Poetry. Finalists are Hyginus Ekwuazi with Dawn into Moonlight, All Around Me Dawning, Musa Idris, The Eaters of the Living and Tanure Ojaide, The Tale of the Harmattan.
After the NLNG’s The Nigeria Prize for Literature, writers head to the Sahel October 30 for the 27th convention of the Association of Nigerian Authors. Journalists will join to compete for the ANA/Anyiam Osigwe Literary Journalist of the Year prize. Finalists are Evelyn Osagie of The Nation, Sumalia Umaisha of New Nigerian and Yemi Adebisi of Daily Independent.
Former Senate President Ken Nnamani also endowed an ANA Prize. Two finalists will compete for the ANA/Ken Nnamani Prize for Igbo Literature with a prize of N150, 000. They are Emmanuel C. Ugokwe with Iwe Nwanne Adighi Eru N’okpukpu and Okwudili Njelite’s Onyemaeme.