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Of African Literature And International Recognition


'The PIN magazine, Expound, WRR Poetry, My Mind Snaps, etc, which may be seen as local blogs/magazines/organizations, are more reputable than some of the foreign publications that we know worship.'  - Kukogho Iruesiri Samson

This got me thinking. What's so special about being published by foreign magazines, blogs, journals, etc? 
Why are we African writers like this?
Why do we find it unexciting to feature our works on our local magazines, blogs and journals?
How will we have big literary bodies in Africa when we crawl overseas for recognition and endorsement? 
Isn't this a mental colonization? It isn't? What then could it be?

Personally, I don't find foreign submissions, recognition and endorsements exciting. Would rather send my works to local e-magazines, blogs, websites and my blog.

Nigerian literature will remain colonized by the 'west' if we keep demeaning our local literary initiatives. 

We should learn to support our local literary blogs, journals and magazine. How would they grow if we don't boost them with those amazing contents we send to the 'west'?

Another issue that churns my innards is the practice of ranking writers based on their international features/recognition. This is wrong. It makes the local counterparts (yet to feature on international magazines) to feel inadequate/inferior.

We must desist from ranking local writers based on their ‘exposure’. We don't need a white man's endorsement to be relevant. 

We DO NOT!

Winning international writing awards is no yardstick to measure literary success and accomplishment. It doesn't make you any better that your locally published peers.

I digress. Winning writing awards is no yardstick to measure literary success and accomplishment. 

Lets come together... Horn our ART and make African writers, locally based, relevant.

Next month, providence willing, Prose & Poetry Hood will be launched. 

Prose & Poetry Hood - an online platform created for Nigerian writers and story lovers, where they can share and read everything literature; these include but not limited to:
1.     Poetry
2.     Prose
3.     Fiction
4.     Non-fiction
5.     Drama
6.     Photography
7.     Articles/Essays
8.     Creative writing tutorials
9.     Listen to and download spoken word poetry

With these, our goal is to encourage reading/writing culture of African youths and also have their works published with ease.
Prose & Poetry Hood is also a book reading/publishing platform for anyone looking to publishing any written content. It is a platform where young authors can easily publish and sell their stories.

We are in the business of creating beautiful books for brilliant authors.
We have a range of publishing options designed to suit various client budget and preferences, each coming with additional perks like free book reviews, interviews, advertising/promotion, and other value added services that will save you a small fortune.
For us, publishing is a journey for two – publisher and author, walking hand-in-hand:
1.     Manuscript reviewing
2.     Publishing advice/options
3.     Budget discussions
4.     Assisting with marketing strategy
5.     Editing your manuscript (three-level editing)
6.     Publishing the book (cover design, printing)
7.    Publicity – reviews, interviews, announcement, advertising

Signing a contract with us gives you the total package – from editing your book, publishing it and providing to book/author promotional services in one fee.
We include e-publishing as a free option for every book published.
We also offer opportunity to all categories of writers, especially the young unpublished ones who just need a platform to express their creativity


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