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African Speculative Fiction Society, or ASFS is a nonprofit organization of professional speculative fiction writers, artists or editors who are African. The organization was founded in 2015, growing out of discussions on the African Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Group on Facebook. The organization has no overall leader, but a group of activists who carry out its work and discuss direction. The Nommo Award is administered by non-member Geoff Ryman.

The ASFS has about 150 professionally or semi-professionally published writer, comics illustrators or editors who are African as defined by the organization.]

SFWA Active members nominate and then vote for the winners of the Nommo Awards, for speculative fiction by Africans. The term speculative fiction includes science fiction, fantasy, fiction based on traditional beliefs, comics and horror stories and other forms of non-realistic writing.

Mission

The African Speculative Fiction Society exists to recognise and honour speculative fiction created by Africans. It encourages the reading ,publication and distribution of speculative fiction by Africans any where, but particularly by and for African audiences on the continent. The Nommo Awards honour and recognise particular works in four categories: novels, novellas, short stories and comics/graphic novels in order to encourage and promote speculative fiction by Africans.

Who is African?

The term African includes:


 * citizens of African countries,
 * people born on the continent and raised there for substantial periods of time,
 * citizens or people born on the continent who live abroad
 * people who have at least one African parent or
 * Africans without papers, and
 * some migrants to African countries*.

*'African country' is defined as any country or contested area on the Continent of Africa, ending at the Egyptian border, and including islands such as Zanzibar and Madagascar

Membership

The original 60 members, referred to as Charter Members, were known African authors who were invited to join when the organization was being set up. New writers who publish their second story are also proactively invited, though membership is open to anyone who asserts they are African and who has published two short stories, a novel, edited publications, worked as a filmaker or illustrated graphic novels. Membership now stands at roughly 150 members.

The Nommo Awards

These awards are nominated by members. Any work nominated joins 'the long list'. The most nominated works are shortlisted, about 5 or 6 in each category, and the members then select winners by voting.

The prize money for the Awards was donated for the first four years by businessman Tom Ilube. Thus the novel award is called the Ilube novel Award. The prize money for the Ilube Nommo is US$ 1000. The prize for best comic or graphic novel is also $US 1000. The best short story and and best novella categories are awarded US $500 each. In all, the prize winners share US$3000.

The existence of the Nommo Awards was formally announced at the November 2016 Ake Festival held each year in Abeokuta, Nigeria. An announcement was also made at the announced at that year's Arthur C Clarke Awards ceremony.

The first Nommo Awards ceremony, hosted by Tom Ilube and Nnedi Okorafor was also held at the November 2017 Ake Festival.

The second prize giving ceremony will also be held at the Ake Festival in Autumn 2018.

The database

The ASFS website is home to a database of all published works of speculative fiction by Africans, curated by Wole Talabi. The website has a form which allows editors, authors or readers to list new works by African speculative writers. The accuracy of the listings and their appropriateness is then edited by Wole Talalbi. In 2018 it listed nearly 800 works, roughly 100 of which were published in calendar year 2017.

Nommo Award nominees and winners 2017

THE ILUBE AWARD FOR BEST NOVEL

Azanian Bridges by Nick Wood

Azotus, the Kingdom by Shadreck Chikoti

Blackass by A Igoni Barrett

Rosewater by Tade Thompson

Taty Went West by Nikhil Singh

The winner of the 2017 Ilube Nommo Awards was Tade Thompson for Rosewater

NOVELLAS

Binti by Nnedi Okorafor

The Flying Man of Stone by Dilman Dila

Hell Freezes Over by Mame Bougouma Diene

The Last Pantheon by Tade Thompson and Nick Wood

Ta O’reva by Muthi Nhlema

The winner the Nommo Award for best Novella by an African was Nnedi Okorafor for 'Binti'.

SHORT STORIES

The Marriage Plot by Tendai Huchu

Ndakusuwa  by Blaize Kaye

Sundown by Innocent Immaculate Acan

Wednesday’s Story by Wole Talabi

Who Will Greet You at Home by Lesley Nneka Arimah

There was a joint winner for the Nommo Award for best speculative short story by an African: Tendai Huchu for 'The Marriage Plot' and 'Who Will Greet You at Home' by Lesley Nnked Arimah.

Tendai Huchu was noted in some African journals when he donated his prize money to the African based magazine Omenana.

COMICS/GRAPHIC NOVELS

Avonome  by Xavier Ighorodje (writer) and Stanley Obende (artist) published by the Comic Republic

The Corpse Exhibition by Chronic no. 3 Various writers and artists ed. Ntone Edjabe.

June 12 by Ibrahim Ganiyu and Chike Newman Nwankwo and Akinwade Ayodeji Akinola published by Vortex

Might of Guardian Prime  issue 1 Ozo Ezeogu (writer) and Jide Martin (artist), issues 2 -6    Toheeb Deen Ipaye (writer) and Jide Martin (artist) and issues 7-8  Wale Awelenje (writer) and Stanely Obende (artist)  published by the Comic Republic

And the winner of the Nommo Award for best comic/graphic novel was The Corpse Exhibition by Chronic 3 ed. Ntone Edjabe

Nommo Awards shortlist 2018

Winners to be announced Autumn 2018

THE ILUBE NOMMO AWARD FOR BEST SPECULATIVE FICTION NOVEL BY AN AFRICAN

Gavin Chait OUR MEMORY LIKE DUST

Masha du Toit THE REAL

Deon Meyer FEVER

Tochi Onyebuchi BEASTS MADE OF NIGHT

Deji Olokotun AFTER THE FLARE

Nnedi Okorafor AKATA WARRIOR

THE NOMMO AWARD FOR BEST SPECULATIVE FICTION NOVELLA BY AN AFRICAN

Nnedi Okorafor BINTI: HOME

Sofia Samatar FALLOW

Tade Thompson THE MURDERS OF MOLLY SOUTHBOURNE

THE NOMMO AWARD FOR BEST SPECULATIVE FICTION SHORT STORY BY AN AFRICAN

Nerine Dorman ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SEA

Sibongile Fisher A DOOR AJAR

Chinelo Onwualu READ BEFORE USE

Henrietta Rose-Innes SNAKE STORY

Wole Talabi THE REGRESSION TEST

First published by The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, available online at

THE NOMMO AWARDS FOR BEST GRAPHIC NOVEL/COMIC

ERU

Writers and artists Tobe Ezeogu, Ozo Ezeogu

www.thecomicrepublic.com

HERO KAKERE

Writer and artist”Tobe Ezeogu, Artist Kelechi Issac,

www.thecomicrepublic.com

IRETI BIDEMI

Michael Balogun and Adeleye Yusuf

www.thecomicrepublic.com

LAKE OF TEARS

Writer Kwabena Ofei

Artiist Setor Fiadzigbey

http://lakeoftearsghana.com/volumes/

GUARDIAN PRIME GENESIS

Written by Wale Awelenje

Art Jide Martin

www.thecomicrepublic.com

QUEST & THE SIGN OF THE SHINING BEAST

Writer Robert S Malan

Artist John Choctaw

References

(do the citations refs make this list automatically, or do I have to cut and past them in?)

SF website for announcement of existence of awards

https://www.sfsite.com/news/2016/08/24/nommo-awards-created/

Tor announcement at the Arthur C Clarke Awards in London.

Zimbabwe paper

Tendai Huchu makes news for sharing his prize money.

http://amabooksbyo.blogspot.co.uk/2017/11/tendai-huchu-shares-nommo-award-for.html

The Herald in 2016 for announcement

https://www.herald.co.zw/new-awards-for-african-authors/

announcement at the Arthur C Clarke Awards says tor

https://www.tor.com/2016/09/01/nommo-awards-african-speculative-fiction-society/

"History and Statistics". SFWA (sfwa.org). March 30, 2017. Retrieved 2007-03-30.

External sites

African Speculative Fiction Society www.africansfs.com

Facebook page

Twitter

African Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Group

Video of announcement of the ASFS at Ake Festival 2016

http://www.africansfs.com/nommos



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