Ama Ata Aidoo and Margaret Snyder

The 2022 Aidoo-Snyder Book Prize is now open for submissions. This year’s prize is calling for original creative works written by a woman (or women) that prioritize African women’s experiences. The winner will receive a $500 prize that is awarded by the Women’s Caucus of the African Studies Association.

The Aidoo-Snyder Book Prize is named in honor of Ama Ata Aidoo, the celebrated Ghanaian novelist and short-story writer, and Margaret Snyder the founding Director of UNIFEM.

Deadline: July 1

Submissions Guidelines

  • Electronic submissions may be sent from publishers or authors to each member of the committee using this application form.
  • Self-published books are not eligible.
  • Entries may only be submitted for consideration once.
  • The prize is open to authors who have published books in English and English translation in the two years preceding the award year.
  • The books must be written by women who prioritize African women’s experiences and significantly deal with Africa (including Cape Verde, and the Islands off the West Coast of Africa; Madagascar; and the Indian Ocean Islands of the East African Coast).

The winner will be notified in mid-September and included in the program for the African Studies Association annual meeting in November 2022.

Each year, the prize alternates between the best scholarly book and the best creative work. Last year, the prize was given to a scholarly book, and the joint winners were Nigerian academic Oluwakemi Balogun and Cameroonian academic Jacqueline-Bethel Tchouta Mougoué. [Read here if you missed it.]

This year’s committee members are Tomi Adeaga (chair), Gabeba Baderoon, Louisa Egbunike, Joya Uraizee, and Jumoke Verissimo. Previous winners of the creative writing category include Jumoke Verissimo’s A Small Silence, Lesley Nneka Arimah’s What it Means When a Man Falls From the Sky, Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing, Reneilwe Malatji’s, Love Interrupted, and Aminatta Forna’s, Ancestor Stones.

You can learn more about the prize and the Women’s Caucus of the African Studies Association here.

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Post image via Wikipedia and Africa Writes.