Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa
1 appearances
-
Edition 1 (2006) Winner
Sefi Atta
セフィ・アッタ
Sefi Atta
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1964-01-19 （Lagos, Nigeria）
- Nationality
- Nigeria, United States
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- Lagos, Nigeria → England, United Kingdom → Birmingham, United Kingdom → Los Angeles, United States
Career
- Occupations
- novelist, short-story writer, playwright, screenwriter
- Active Years
- 2002-
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queen's College, Lagos | — | — | — | — | Nigeria |
| Millfield School | — | — | — | — | United Kingdom |
| University of Birmingham | — | — | B.A. | 〜1985 | United Kingdom |
| Antioch University Los Angeles | — | Creative Writing Program | MFA | — | United States |
Queen's College, Lagos
Country:
Nigeria
Secondary education in Nigeria (girls' school)
Millfield School
Country:
United Kingdom
Secondary education in England (boarding school)
University of Birmingham
Degree:
B.A.
Period:
〜1985
Year of Graduation:
1985
Country:
United Kingdom
Received B.A. (major not specified)
Antioch University Los Angeles
Creative Writing Program
Degree:
MFA
Year of Graduation:
2001
Country:
United States
Earned an MFA in Creative Writing
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa | Everything Good Will Come | — | Wole Soyinka Prize organizers | winner |
| 2009 | Noma Award for Publishing in Africa | — | — | Noma Award organizers | winner |
| 2005 | PEN International David T.K. Wong Prize | — | — | PEN International | 1st prize |
| 2006 | Caine Prize for African Writing | — | — | Caine Prize organizers | shortlist |
| 2002 | Macmillan Writers Prize For Africa | — | — | Macmillan | shortlist |
| 2002 | BBC African Performance | The Engagement (radio play) | — | BBC | 2nd prize |
| 2004 | BBC African Performance | — | — | BBC | 2nd prize |
| 2002 | Zoetrope Short Fiction Contest | — | — | Zoetrope | 3rd prize |
| 2003 | Red Hen Press Short Story Award | — | — | Red Hen Press | 1st prize |
| 2003 | Glimmer Train's Very Short Fiction Award | — | — | Glimmer Train | finalist |
| 2009 | American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition | — | — | American Zoetrope | quarter-finalist |
| 2019 | WeScreenPlay Diverse Voices Lab | — | — | WeScreenPlay | finalist |
| 2019 | The American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition | — | — | American Zoetrope | finalist |
| 2021 | The National Playwrights Conference | — | — | National Playwrights Conference | semifinalist |
Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa
2006
Work:
Everything Good Will Come
Organization:
Wole Soyinka Prize organizers
Result:
winner
Noma Award for Publishing in Africa
2009
Organization:
Noma Award organizers
Result:
winner
PEN International David T.K. Wong Prize
2005
Organization:
PEN International
Result:
1st prize
Caine Prize for African Writing
2006
Organization:
Caine Prize organizers
Result:
shortlist
Macmillan Writers Prize For Africa
2002
Organization:
Macmillan
Result:
shortlist
BBC African Performance
2002
Work:
The Engagement (radio play)
Organization:
BBC
Result:
2nd prize
BBC African Performance
2004
Organization:
BBC
Result:
2nd prize
Zoetrope Short Fiction Contest
2002
Organization:
Zoetrope
Result:
3rd prize
Red Hen Press Short Story Award
2003
Organization:
Red Hen Press
Result:
1st prize
Glimmer Train's Very Short Fiction Award
2003
Organization:
Glimmer Train
Result:
finalist
American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition
2009
Organization:
American Zoetrope
Result:
quarter-finalist
WeScreenPlay Diverse Voices Lab
2019
Organization:
WeScreenPlay
Result:
finalist
The American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition
2019
Organization:
American Zoetrope
Result:
finalist
The National Playwrights Conference
2021
Organization:
National Playwrights Conference
Result:
semifinalist
Awards & Nominations
Noma Award for Publishing in Africa
1 appearances
-
Edition 31 (2009) Winner
Works
Major Works
Everything Good Will Come
2005 Novel (Bildungsroman / social novel)Set in urban Nigeria, the novel traces a woman's coming-of-age amid family expectations and social change, portraying political and personal transformations.
female coming-of-agefamilypolitics and society
Swallow
2010 Novel (social novel / immigration themes)Follows a young Nigerian woman confronting economic hardship and immigration issues; focuses on choices and their consequences.
migrationeconomic hardshipfemale independence
Adaptations
- [Film] Swallow (Netflix film) / Kunle Afolayan (2021)
A Bit of Difference
2013 Novel (international relations / cultural themes)Through a protagonist moving between Nigeria and the UK, the novel explores identity, cultural clashes, friendship and romance.
identitycultural differencefriendship
The Bead Collector
2019 Novel (with suspense elements)A multi-perspective story where family secrets and past events impact the present, unfolding with elements of suspense.
family secretspast and presentmemory
The Bad Immigrant
2022 NovelA novel centered on immigration experiences and conflicts of identity.
migrationidentity
Good-for-Nothing Girl
2024 Young Adult novelA young-adult coming-of-age story (detailed summary not provided).
coming-of-ageself-discovery
News from Home
2010 Short-story collectionA collection of short stories dealing with Lagos and migration experiences.
homemigrationfamily
Bibliography
- Everything Good Will Come (2005)
- Swallow (2010)
- A Bit of Difference (2013)
- The Bead Collector (2019)
- The Bad Immigrant (2022)
- Good-for-Nothing Girl (2024)
- News from Home (short stories, 2010)
- Indigene (short stories, 2025)
- Drama Queen (children's book, 2018)
- Sefi Atta; Selected Plays (play collection, 2019)
Adaptations
- Swallow (novel) → Netflix film (2021)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- realist styleblend of character psychology and social context
- Recurring Motifs
- Lagos cityscapefemale independence and growthfamily relationships and intergenerational conflict
Legacy
Sefi Atta is a Nigerian-born internationally recognized writer known for portraying Nigerian society and migration experience from women's perspectives. She has received several international awards and her works have been translated, staged and adapted for film.
In Popular Culture
- Netflix film adaptation (Swallow, 2021)
Trivia
- Her father was Abdul-Aziz Atta, a senior federal civil servant who died in 1972.
- Spouse is Dr. Gboyega Ransome-Kuti.
- They have one child, Temi.
- Her radio plays have been broadcast by the BBC.
- She founded a production company 'Atta Girl' to support charitable causes.
- Her novel Swallow was adapted into a Netflix film; she co-wrote the screenplay with Kunle Afolayan.