The Isele Prizes were founded to celebrate the best of short stories, poetry, and essays by writers published in the Ukamaka Olisakwe founded Isele Magazine in 2022.
They are split into three categories of – short stories, poetry, and essays, and each category is judged by a panel of two judges. Winners in the first edition were Esther Ifesinachi Okonkwo, Uchechukwu Peter Umezurike, and Nora Nneka.
For 2023, the Isele team picked from 160 works in fiction, poetry, and essays without in-house judges agreeing that the works on these lists captured their mission: to provide a platform for works that hold a mirror to our society.
Those in the longlists were announced on February 21 before the shortlists were revealed yesterday. They are;
The Isele Short Story Prize
*Pink Flower, Jennifer Dickinson
*The Returnee, Michelle Enehiwealu Iruobe
*Weaving, Yvonne Kusiima
*Potluck Jollof, Nnamdi Anyadu
*The Tenderness of Iron, Ishola Abdulwasiu Ayodele
*The Returnee, Michelle Enehiwealu Iruobe
*Weaving, Yvonne Kusiima
*Potluck Jollof, Nnamdi Anyadu
*The Tenderness of Iron, Ishola Abdulwasiu Ayodele
The Isele Poetry Prize
*In The Parking Lot, Alec Solomita
*Four Poems, Echezonachukwu Nduka
*Three Poems, Ber Anena
*Two Poems, Ashia Ajani
*At Night I Sing My Heads to Sleep, Matt Hart
The Isele Nonfiction Prize
*Fall/Between Words, Kharys Laue
*My Street Food Lady, Zary Fekete
*Lagos City Girls Never Pay For Pasta, Adaorah Oduah
*The Slipping Away, Chinonso Nzeh
*Short Essay on Music, Adedayo Agarau
The winner will be announced on April 26.
