Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu
Encyclopedia
Nnedi OkoraforNnedi Okorafor (full name: Nnedimma Nkemdili Okorafor (also previously known as Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu) is a Nigerian-American writer of fantasy
, science fiction
and speculative fiction
.
n parents, she has regularly visited Nigeria since she was very young. Her novels and stories reflect both her West African heritage and her American life. Okorafor holds a Ph.D.
in English from the University of Illinois, Chicago. She is a professor of creative writing at Chicago State University and lives with her family in Illinois
.
/Penguin Books
), The Shadow Speaker
(Hyperion/Disney Book Group) and Zahrah the Windseeker
(Houghton Mifflin
). Zahrah is the winner of the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa
. It was also shortlisted
for the 2005 Carl Brandon Parallax and Kindred Awards and a finalist for the Garden State Teen Book Award and the Golden Duck Award. The Shadow Speaker
was a winner of the Carl Brandon Parallax Award, a Booksense Pick for Winter 2007/2008, a Tiptree Honor Book, a finalist for the Essence Magazine Literary Award, the Andre Norton Award and the Golden Duck Award and an NAACP Image Award nominee. Who Fears Death won the 2011 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, was a 2011 Tiptree Honor Book and was nominated for the 2010 Nebula Award
.
Okorafor's children's book Long Juju Man is the 2007–08 winner of the Macmillan Writer’s Prize for Africa. Her short stories have been published in anthologies and magazines, including Dark Matter II, Strange Horizons
, Moondance
magazine and Writers of the Future
Volume XVIII.
In 2009, she donated her archive to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) Collection of the Department of Rare Books and Special Collections at the Northern Illinois University
Library.
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
, science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
and speculative fiction
Speculative fiction
Speculative fiction is an umbrella term encompassing the more fantastical fiction genres, specifically science fiction, fantasy, horror, supernatural fiction, superhero fiction, utopian and dystopian fiction, apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction, and alternate history in literature as well as...
.
Background and personal life
The American-born daughter of Igbo NigeriaNigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n parents, she has regularly visited Nigeria since she was very young. Her novels and stories reflect both her West African heritage and her American life. Okorafor holds a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in English from the University of Illinois, Chicago. She is a professor of creative writing at Chicago State University and lives with her family in Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
.
Works and critical reception
Okorafor received a 2001 Hurston/Wright literary award for her story "Amphibious Green." She is the author of Who Fears Death (DAWDAW Books
DAW Books is an American science fiction and fantasy publisher, founded by Donald A. Wollheim following his departure from Ace Books in 1971. The company therefore claims to be "the first publishing company ever devoted exclusively to science fiction and fantasy." The first DAW Book published was...
/Penguin Books
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
), The Shadow Speaker
The Shadow Speaker
The Shadow Speaker , by Nnedi Okorafor, is a young adult, first-person novel that takes place in the year 2070. The Shadow Speaker was a Booksense Pick for Winter 2007/2008, a Tiptree Honor Book, a finalist for the Essence Magazine Literary Award, the Andre Norton Award and the Golden Duck Award...
(Hyperion/Disney Book Group) and Zahrah the Windseeker
Zahrah the Windseeker
Zahrah the Windseeker , written by Nnedi Okorafor, is one of a very small handful of young adult fantasy novels that incorporate the myths and folklore and culture of West Africa. It is the winner of the 2008 Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa...
(Houghton Mifflin
Houghton Mifflin
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is an educational and trade publisher in the United States. Headquartered in Boston's Back Bay, it publishes textbooks, instructional technology materials, assessments, reference works, and fiction and non-fiction for both young readers and adults.-History:The company was...
). Zahrah is the winner of the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa
Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa
Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa is a pan African writing prize for books of any type or genre. It was established by The Lumina Foundation in 2005 in honor of Africa’s first Nobel Laureate in literature, Wole Soyinka. The prize is awarded every other year, and the winner receives...
. It was also shortlisted
Short list
A short list or shortlist is a list of candidates for a job, prize, award, political position, etc., that has been reduced from a longer list of candidates . The length of short lists varies according to the context.-U.S...
for the 2005 Carl Brandon Parallax and Kindred Awards and a finalist for the Garden State Teen Book Award and the Golden Duck Award. The Shadow Speaker
The Shadow Speaker
The Shadow Speaker , by Nnedi Okorafor, is a young adult, first-person novel that takes place in the year 2070. The Shadow Speaker was a Booksense Pick for Winter 2007/2008, a Tiptree Honor Book, a finalist for the Essence Magazine Literary Award, the Andre Norton Award and the Golden Duck Award...
was a winner of the Carl Brandon Parallax Award, a Booksense Pick for Winter 2007/2008, a Tiptree Honor Book, a finalist for the Essence Magazine Literary Award, the Andre Norton Award and the Golden Duck Award and an NAACP Image Award nominee. Who Fears Death won the 2011 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel, was a 2011 Tiptree Honor Book and was nominated for the 2010 Nebula Award
Nebula Award
The Nebula Award is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America , for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the previous year...
.
Okorafor's children's book Long Juju Man is the 2007–08 winner of the Macmillan Writer’s Prize for Africa. Her short stories have been published in anthologies and magazines, including Dark Matter II, Strange Horizons
Strange Horizons
Strange Horizons is an online speculative fiction magazine. It also features speculative poetry in every issue....
, Moondance
Moondance magazine
Moondance Magazine is an online international women's literary, culture and art journal.The magazine began in 1996 as one of the first publications to appear online in the early days of the "World Wide Web", only three years after the first web developers from CERN in Geneva, Switzerland announced...
magazine and Writers of the Future
Writers of the Future
Writers of the Future is a science fiction and fantasy story contest that was originated by L. Ron Hubbard in the early 1980s. Hubbard...
Volume XVIII.
In 2009, she donated her archive to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) Collection of the Department of Rare Books and Special Collections at the Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University
Northern Illinois University is a state university and research institution located in DeKalb, Illinois, with satellite centers in Hoffman Estates, Naperville, Rockford, and Oregon. It was originally founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895 by Illinois Governor John P...
Library.
External links
- Nnedi Okorafor Home Page
- Publishers Weekly Profile: A Nigerian Sorceress Makes Her Way by Mikki Kendall
- New York Times Review of The Shadow Speaker by Donna Freitas
- Nebula Awards Guest Blog: Is Africa Ready for Science Fiction by Nnedi Okorafor
- Review of Zahrah the Windseeker by Gary K. WolfeGary K. WolfeGary K. Wolfe is a science fiction editor, critic and biographer. He is a winner of the World Fantasy Award, the Pilgrim Award, the Eaton Award, BSFA award and been nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Related Book. He has had a monthly review column in Locus since 1991...
- "Stephen King's Super-Duper Magical Negroes" by Okorafor-Mbachu
- "From the Lost Diary of TreeFrog7" (short story), Clarkesworld MagazineClarkesworld MagazineClarkesworld Magazine is an American online fantasy and science fiction magazine. The first issue was published October 1, 2006 and it has maintained a regular monthly schedule since, publishing fiction by authors such as Sarah Monette, Catherynne Valente, Elizabeth Bear, Caitlin R...
, May 2009 - Stories by Okorafor at AfricanWriter.com
- "If It Scares You, Write It: A Conversation with Nnedi Okorafor" (interview), Clarkesworld MagazineClarkesworld MagazineClarkesworld Magazine is an American online fantasy and science fiction magazine. The first issue was published October 1, 2006 and it has maintained a regular monthly schedule since, publishing fiction by authors such as Sarah Monette, Catherynne Valente, Elizabeth Bear, Caitlin R...
, December 2009 - 2010 Audio Interview on the Geek's Guide to the Galaxy Podcast