The Graywolf Press African Fiction Prize is open for submissions through August 31:
They write:
The Graywolf Press African Fiction Prize is awarded for a first novel manuscript by an author primarily residing in Africa. Founded in 2017 to facilitate direct access to publishing in the United States for a new generation of African writers, the prize is awarded every other year. Winners receive publication by Graywolf Press and a $12,000 advance.
Submissions must be:
- full-length, previously unpublished novel manuscripts
- written either originally in English or a complete English translation
Enter your submission until August 31, 2021 via Submittable. For more details and the most up-to-date information, please visit www.graywolfpress.org/submissions/
Also open for submissions is the Barjeel Art Foundation’s new Mudun Short Story Prize:
They write:
The competition aims to produce stories and narratives that reflect the urban spirit of cities, neighbourhoods and structures in the region. Whether your story takes place in Aleppo, Beirut, Cairo, Rabat, or Sharjah, we want to experience the city as you do. By no means is this prompt a confinement to realism. Your story could spring into the realms of fantasy or even science fiction, but we would still need to see existing or past landmarks, streets, or buildings of the city of your choosing.
The prize judges include Razmig Bedirian, Faris Bseiso, Reem Khorshid and Sultan Al Qassemi.
Submissions must, among other requirements:
- be in Arabic or English
- be in .doc format with the file named with “title_city”
- include a Google Maps hyperlink of where your story takes place
- double-spaced, in a 12pt easy-to-read font
See their website for the full submission guidelines and more info about the prize and submit your story by August 31, 2021 via Submittable.
Finally, The Stinging Fly Magazine is calling for applications for their new Translator’s Bursary:
We are proud to launch a New Translator’s Bursary to coincide with our new Translator in Residence Programme. Submissions are welcome from new and emerging translators who have not yet published a full book in translation.
We are looking for submissions from translators wishing to translate a short story into English, from any language. The story should be by a living author – preferably one whose work has not yet been widely published in English. We particularly welcome stories from underrepresented voices, cultures and languages. As a guideline, the story should ideally run to no more than 4,000 words.
Please submit:
- the author’s name
- full original text of the story
- a sample translation of no more than 500 words
- biographical details about yourself and about the author
- your reasons for wishing to translate this particular author/story
The chosen story will be published on stingingfly.org later this year as part of our monthly fiction series. The bursary on offer is €1,000. This amount includes the fee payable for publishing the translation on our website.
Submit your story by August 20, 2021 via Submittable, where you can also find more info about the bursary and the selection process.
