The upcoming edition of the Umuofia Arts and Books Festival continues its tradition of celebrating literary and artistic excellence in Southeastern Nigeria.
By Abioye Damilare Samson
The organisers of the Umuofia Arts and Books Festival have announced the call for submissions for the third edition of their annual anthology, as part of this year’s festival, scheduled to hold from July 31st to August 2nd, 2025. The upcoming edition continues the festival’s tradition of celebrating literary and artistic excellence in Southeastern Nigeria.
Named after the fictional village in Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, the Umuofia Arts and Books Festival has grown to become the foremost literary gathering in the region, creating space for readers, writers, and culture enthusiasts to explore the richness of Nigerian arts.
This year’s festival will feature a rich lineup of activities, including book discussions, book readings, drama performances, art exhibitions, music concerts, poetry performances, and a variety of other artistic experiences that reflect the evolving cultural landscape of Nigeria.
As part of the festival, organisers are calling for submissions to their 2025 anthology themed “Reflections”. Writers are invited to submit entries in poetry, fiction, and non-fiction, with a payment of ₦25,000 for each accepted piece or group of poems.
Submissions should be typewritten in Times New Roman, 12pt font. The maximum word count is 4,000 for fiction and essays, and a maximum of two poems for the poetry category. Although the original deadline for entries was May 30th, it has now been extended to June 10th, 2025. All entries should be sent to umuofiabookfestival@gmail.com, with the email subject containing the title and genre of the submission.