We are delighted to announce the shortlist for the inaugural Élékéré Short Story Prize.
Earlier this year, we invited Black writers across Africa and the diaspora to send us unpublished short fiction responding to our inaugural theme, Inheritance. We received more than 200 submissions from writers in Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, the United States, Zimbabwe and elsewhere.
From those submissions, seven stories have been selected for the 2026 shortlist.
The 2026 Shortlist
Sweet Salt by Olúwatúnmiṣe Ọ̀tọ̀lórìn Akìgbógun (Nigeria)
The Tick by Gabriel Divinefavour Onyekachi (Nigeria)
Tomato Baby by Timothy Ugorji (Nigeria)
Name Equations by Oghenechovwe Ekpeki (Nigeria)
N/A, Check Next Visit by Haliru Ali Musa (Nigeria)
Image of A Man by Shirley Strickland (United States)
The Inheritance of Hands by Black Edward (Zimbabwe)
The seven stories approach Inheritance from different places and perspectives, considering what we receive, what we carry, what we resist, and what we choose to remake.
Olly Nze, Editor at Élékéré Press, said:
“This prize was launched to spotlight, celebrate, and empower the talent of Black and African writers. The result is a diverse shortlist of incredible writers from all around the globe and all walks of life. This shortlist not only demonstrates the incredibly varied spectrum of writing from the continent and around the world, but also exemplifies the ethos of Élékéré Press: challenging what it means to tell Black and African stories.”
The shortlist was selected by four reader judges, chaired by Arinze Ifeakandu, author of God’s Children Are Little Broken Things.
The winner of the 2026 Élékéré Short Story Prize will be announced on 2 November 2026 and will receive $500. The winning story will also be published here on the Élékéré Press website.
Until then, meet our seven shortlisted writers and the stories that brought them here.
