shigidi

World Fantasy And British Fantasy Award Nominations, Worldcon Pictures and An August Roundup

~ WTalabi ~ Leave a comment

Hey y’all.

August has come and gone and left us in the future. So much happened in the month. So here’s a roundup.

I went to Madrid and Granada, and Glasgow and Malaga. A pretty great (and hot!) mostly-Spanish summer with a bit of Scotland sandwiched in there because, well, Worldcon.

So about Worldcon. I already shared my Worldcon schedule ahead of time and I am grateful for for everyone I met at the convention. Its only my second in-person convention ever and it was great. I cannot capture how many wonderful moments there were, how many great conversations, how many hugs, how much good wine and whiskey and food. Thank you everyone who shared a moment with me. At interviews. On panels. At dinners. During readings. In the dealers room. During Awards. At Barcon. On the tours. At the parties. On the streets of Glasgow. Thank you. So much happened and I was constantly running from place to place but I have such good memories (and not enough pictures but I have shared some below)

And if you follow me on social media, you probably know that just as Worldcon was ending, I found out that SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON was nominated for the World Fantasy Award.

I was speechless. The World Fantasy Award is one of those major SFF awards that I have always been aware of but never truly thought I would be considered for. Its an honor to be recognized. Previous winners include such African SFF luminaries like Nnedi Okorafor and Sofia Samatar and it would be something special to win and find myself in that kind of company. Its a wonderful shortlist, full of deserving books and for now, I am thoroughly enjoying being a World Fantasy Award nominee and…

A British Fantasy Award nominee as well!

Because just a few days after SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON won the Nommo award and was nominated for the World Fantasy award, I also got the news that it was also shortlisted for the British Fantasy Award for best novel!

This makes it nine major awards nominations for SHIGIDI – The Crawford, Nebula, Locus, BSFA, Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize, Nommo (won!), Igntye, World Fantasy and British Fantasy awards. Wow. Nine!

It’s truly stunning and beyond my expectations. I don’t know what to say except thank you to every reader, writer, reviewer, blogger, voter, society member, and juror who has supported this book so far. Thank you, truly. I just hope these award recognitions get more people to read the novel. And congratulations to all my fellow nominees.

Just as wonderful as all this success for my novel, is my joy at seeing that MOTHERSOUND: THE SAUÚTIVERSE ANTHOLOGY was also shortlisted for the British Fantasy Award for Best Anthology. Its a fine shortlist and I’m so glad for the entire Sauúti collective. While the title of editing duties fell to me, we worked together as one body to build this world and put this book together and the nomination is for all of us and our wonderful contributors. So congratulations collective members Cheryl Ntumy, Stephen Embleton, Adelehin Ijasan, Kalejaye Akintoba, Dare Segun Falowo, Jude Umeh, Xan van Rooyen, Eye Kay Nwaogu, Fabrice Guerrier, and contributors Oghenechovwe Ekpeki Donald and Somto Ihezue, Tobias S Buckell and TL Huchu. Also, big thanks to Android Press for bringing this book to the world. Sauúti to the world!

In other news, The amazing and wonderful author Lauren Beukes gave a great interview on the BBC show Listed Londoner where she gave SHIGIDI a shoutout! Listen to it, its a great interview with the most Lauren-anecdotes ever. And go get her novel Bridge! It was one of my favorites from last year.

What I’m reading:

A SONG OF LEGENDS LOST by MH Ayinde and it’s great so far – epic, moving and well written. I am also dipping in and out of DEEP DREAM: SCIENCE FICTION EXPLORING THE FUTURE OF ART edited Indrapramit Das which I have a story in. The opening story by Vajra Chandrasekara is mind-blowing stuff. And the other stories I have read so far have been great too. I’m honored to be in such a cool and important anthology. I also just started reading HOW BEAUTIFUL WE WERE by Imbolo Mbue which is a very different thing but also very good and moving. 

What I’m watching:

Joko Anwar’s Nightmares and Daydreams – A supernatural horror anthology television series on Netflix by film-critic-turned-director Joko Anwar featuring 7 interconnected stories set in Jakarta. I really like the first two episodes and the overall vibe of the show. And having lived in South East Asia for 10 years, I appreciate how authentic, well thought out, clever and honest every setting and emotional beat of the show comes across. The visual style is also impressive. I’m starting to see some structural cracks in the connectivity across episodes but nothing fatal. I’m looking forward to finishing the show.

More News:

I’m back by popular demand. Haha! After a bit of a hiatus, I will be returning to teach a Lolwe Academy Class on speculative fiction.

I first taught this class back in 2022 and I enjoyed it immensely. It also sold out fairly quickly and I know people have been waiting for the next installment but I was so busy with the day job and writing/promoting books, with helping to create Sauúti, and moving to a new country last year that I just couldn’t do it. This year though, I’m determined to make it happen and I have more to share. If you are interested – sign up here! And tell a friend.

And last but not least… at last year’s Worldcon, I gave a presentation on African Speculative Fiction which was well recieved and after I got many requests for a published version which people who missed the session could read. It was published in early August, just in time for the next Worldcon, in Clarkesworld Magazine. “Motherland Dreaming: Notes on African Speculative Fiction from Past to Present” – Motherland Dreaming: Notes on African Speculative Fiction from Past to Present by Wole Talabi : Clarkesworld Magazine – Science Fiction & Fantasy

It is appropriately in an issue with a Nnedi Okorafor interview. And this version of the material includes updated, bonus material referencing my Ignyte and BSFA nominated analysis of African speculative fiction data in the SFWA blog from 2022.
image

Check it out.

That’s it for now y’all.

Drink And Drop The Cup: My Nommo Award Acceptance Speech, Or Something Like It.

~ WTalabi ~ Leave a comment

Hey y’all,

Its been a busy few weeks.

I was in Glasgow, Scotland attending the World Science Fiction Convention (aka Worldcon) during which I met lots of old and new friends, made panel appearances, interviewed one of the guests of honor Nnedi Okorafor, got lots of books, signed books, did a reading and attended the Nommo and Hugo award ceremonies – the former in which I was the presenter for the short story award (congratulations Gabrielle Emem Harry!) and my novel SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON was a nominee. You might have also heard the news – it won!

Big congratulations to Stephen Embleton, whose Sauútiverse story “Undulation” from MOTHERSOUND, which I edited, won for best novella.

You may have also heard that I permanently recused myself from all future Nommo awards consideration in going forward. But perhaps you haven’t heard why.

If I were more organized, I’d have prepared a speech to read at the event, which I could have scheduled as a post to go live when the award was announced. For maximum impact and visibility, as they say. But I’m not. Instead what I had during my speech was a list of points and a general sense of things from which I kind of just winged a speech. So here now is a version of the speech I gave at the acceptance ceremony – more or less. Reconstructed from memory mostly and including a few clarifications.

Here we go:

Drink and Drop The Cup

Wow.

Thank you Tom Ilube, CBE and the ASFS membership who voted for this story. I am truly honored to accept this award, but the first thing I want to do is to point out that we are all winners tonight because literature is not a competitive sport. If not we’d be in Paris, at the Olympics, not in Glasgow. Every one of us who reads or writes stories wins something in the expansion of our minds and hearts. And I read so many wonderful stories last year. So, thank you. And congratulations everyone, especially my fellow nominees Eloghosa, Stephen, Ukamaka, Chikodili, and Suyi. You wrote spectacular books, and the African speculative literary community recognized you for that. I am blessed to be among you. So, if this isn’t a competition then what does this award mean? I guess it means I have the spotlight for a few moments and so I’d like to use it to do two things:

1. thank some special people. 

2. announce something.

First, the thanking.

I want to thank my editor and publisher Betsy Wollheim at DAW books, without whom SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON would probably not exist. She took a chance on me, and I hope it has paid off (or at least, the payoff is in progress). Major thanks too to my agent Bieke Van Aggelen and Martijn Lindeblom, who helped shepherd the book along. I must also thank my UK editors Gillian Redfearn and Brendan Durkin at Gollancz who picked the novel up from Betsy and published the book in the UK and internationally. Your enthusiasm for this book was wonderful. And thank you Othuke Ominiabohs of Masobe Books who brought it home to Nigeria and West Africa. I troway salute. And finally, a big thank you to my wife Rocio, who supports me, nourishes my soul and read the book before anyone else. Without her, I couldn’t do what I do. Muchas gracias, mi corazón. To my parents Kola and Sola, who left this world too soon, thank you for giving me the gifts of curiosity and words and for teaching me all that I know: you are my story, and all my stories are for you.

Next, I’ve been thinking about the future of the Nommo awards and the ASFS in general and what its meant to do in terms of building community and spotlighting important, valuable work. And one of the most important things about community is uplifting other people, so what I am going to do is what we something describe in Nigeria as “drink and drop the cup” – which is a reference to drinking from a community water resource like a well where a cup is kept nearby for anyone who wants to access the water to take a small amount, drink and leave the cup for the next person who needs it. One of the worst things you can do is drink and take the cup away with you or hold on to it for too long while others thirst. I have won the Nommo award for best short story with “The Regression Test” in 2018, won for best novella in 2020 for “Incompleteness Theories” and now with this, I’ve won for best novel in 2024. That’s 3 wins in the prose categories. I’m very grateful for those wins but I’m not going to be one of those people that holds on too long, consistently winning the same award over and over when there are so many other deserving people. I’ve had enough to drink from this well. Now I want to make space for others to win. To drink from the community well. So from today onwards, no matter what I do, no matter what I write, I am permanently withdrawing from consideration from the Nommo awards. There are many other African authors doing great work within and from outside the continent and I want to give space for you all to recognize, spotlight and uplift them as well. This will also enable me to help more behind the scenes in supporting the ASFS and Nommo awards specifically as I have always believed that no one involved in administering the award in any capacity should be eligible for them and that has limited my ability to volunteer in the past. Now I can go behind the curtain and work to give others the spotlight. I look forward to continuing one of the things I enjoy doing most – highlighting great African speculative fiction and promoting it as best I can.  

Thank you all so much and I hope the words continue to be kind to us all.  

Subscribe!

My Glasgow Worldcon Schedule

~ WTalabi ~ Leave a comment

Hey y’all,

In just over a week, along with a host of readers, writers, publishers, fans and industry people, I will be attending WorldCon in Glasgow, Scotland. My second ever Worldcon after last year’s in Chengdu. It’ll be my first time in Scotland, despite living in the UK for over 3 years (Shame!) and my first book-related event in Europe since the release of SHIGIDI. It should be a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to meeting as many people as I possibly can, being on panels, doing interviews, readings, attending events and just generally conning around. If you see me, feel free to say hello. I’m usually friendly and will be to happy to sign books or anything really. I’ll also be at the bar as much as possible (Barcon!) so feel free to catch me there too!

Here’s my schedule so far:

Tuesday, August 6, 2024:

  • Book Signing at Forbidden Planet bookstore: Come along to Forbidden Planet Glasgow on Aug 6th at 5pm – 7pm to meet me, have a chat and get your books signed! The venue is Forbidden Planet Glasgow, 122-126 Sauchiehall Street, G2 3DH Glasgow, United Kingdom. You can sign up for the event here on Facebook and/or tell a friend! https://www.facebook.com/events/1261678701663037

Thursday August 8, 2024:

  • Interview Recording for Eating The Fantastic Podcast with Scott Edelman, at 11am (this one is just us, so no audience)
  • Panel – Engineering Solutions to People Problems with A. T. Greenblatt, Ann Gry, Ava Kelly Robert Sneddon at the Academy M1, 2:30pm

Friday, August 9, 2024:

  • Interview with Guest of Honour Nnedi Okorafor. I will interview the wonderful Dr. Nnedi Okorafor about her work and far-reaching influence in the Lomond Auditorium at 1:00pm. This one has been marked as a highlight of the con.
  • Panel – Villain Romances and Why We Love Them with Ehigbor Okosun, Holly Black, N.E. Davenport, and Sarah Rees Brennan in the Forth at 4:00pm

Saturday, August 10, 2024:

  • Panel – Through an African Lens with Lauren Beukes, T.L. Huchu, Yvette Lisa Ndlovu in the Carron room, at 2:30pm
  • The Nommo Awards Ceremony (I’m a nominee in the best novel category this year) at the Lomond Auditorium, 5:30pm
  • Gollancz’s Worldcon Afterparty at 7.30pm. My UK publisher is throwing a party, best believe I’ll be there!

Sunday, August 11, 2024:

  • Panel – Gods and Faith in Fantasy with Ehud Maimon, Cheryl Morgan, and Meg MacDonald in the Forth room at 11:30am.
  • Reading – in the Argyll room, I’ll do a live reading from my new book Convergence Problems and a short Q&A with any attendees. Hope to see you there.

I will also periodically be at some of the Luna Press events (there is a book launch for Nikhil Singh!) and around the their table, or at the Gollancz table in the dealers room to sign books for anyone who buys one. Plus I will be at the opening ceremony and the Hugo awards ceremony (to cheer on the nominees!) and if anyone wants to invite me to any other events, I’ll be happy to come along.

That’s it for now. I really hope you can make it to at least one of these events if you’re there. See you in Glasgow.

Updates, Podcasts, News And Assorted Nonsenses

~ WTalabi ~ Leave a comment

Hey y’all!

Its been a while eh?

I’m hard at work on my next novel so most of my attention will be there for a while but I’m still doing a few other things here and there. Here’s an update!

Story stuff:

I’ve had one short story published this year – “How To Win The G’idiidigbo Challenge: A Practical Guide.” Its a story about familial ties and combat and sound magic, set in the Sauútiverse. And it was published in 99 Fleeting Fantasies (edited by the excellent Jennifer Brozek) in February this year. It features 99 flash fiction stories by awesome authors I love like Cat Rambo, Charles Stross, Premee Mohamed, Seanan McGuire, and many more.

I also have two short stories coming later this year. One called “Encore” – a sequel to the sci-fi story “Debut”. Its about an AI-artist set 3 million years in the future and is one of my favorite stories I have ever written. It will appear in Deep Dream: Science Fiction Exploring the Future of Art, edited by Indrapramit Das, from MIT Press in October 2024.

Also in October, I have a horror-fantasy story coming from Subterranean Press called “Unquiet On The Eastern Front” which takes place across Africa during World War II as a British soldier comes face to face with the horrors of colonization, war, his own family legacy, and a stalking, terrifying creature. 

I also did an interview with the wonderful Kat Howard for Subterranean which you can read here.

Subscribe to Subterranean for updates!

Out and about:

I dropped by Dymocks bookstores in Brisbane and in Perth, got to sign copies of my book and talk with lovely booksellers and readers. That’s always a joy.

Also, I’ve done quite a few podcasts. Here’s a fun little list of all the ones I’ve been on recently.

Listen to them on Spotify or Apple podcasts or in the links above directly.

Awards and assorted nonsenses:

I ran 12km for the HBF Run For A Reason in Perth, helping to raise funds for the Perth Children’s hospital through Rumble, my boxing gym. It was great and I finished in a really good time – 1hr and 6mins. Which is about 9 mins faster than I expected to, given my knee issues.

I’m a finalist for the Locus awards in the best 1st novel category! And its also excellent to see MOTHERSOUND: The Sauútiverse anthology which I edited is a finalist in the best anthology category too. Thank you, everyone who voted.

I also found out that my novel SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON was on the longlist for the Wilbur Smith adventure writing prize, cited as a “mesmerizing novel”. I never even expected it! And I am still not sure how I got on the longlist but I am very happy to see it. Shigidi and Nneoma’s globetrotting, era-spanning, supernatural adventure was a joy to write and I’m so glad for every reader that has come along for the ride.

Oh! And I’ll be at the Nebula online conference hosting an Office Hour and I’ll be on two panels which I am really looking forward to:

Go here and here for more details:

That’s all for now. More updates coming soon!

CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS Release Day

~ WTalabi ~ 4 Comments

And we are live!

My second collection of stories, CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS hits US shelves today.

The stories in CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS have taken shape over the course of about a decade, essentially all of my professional writing career, and I feel they showcase the fundamental traits that have driven me to write and to keep writing. Curiosity about the way the world works, about the nature of consciousness, about what what motivates us as humans, about the stories we tell ourselves, about our future, where we are going and what could go wrong on the way there. I am lucky to have grown, developed my own authorial voice along with the stories, ideas and characters in this book. The sixteen stories in CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS are mostly set in Nigeria (where I was born and lived until my early twenties) or feature Nigerian characters. But they reflect my own experience living around the world (I’ve lived on every continent except South America) and use a Nigerian lens to examine universal human concerns, primarily related to the rapidly changing role of technology and belief in our lives, as we search for meaning, for knowledge, for justice; constantly converging to our future selves.

The novella “Ganger” is a science fictional retelling of a Yoruba legend, in the context a city run by AI and a young woman who wants to break free. There are stories about accidents on Mars, Niger-Delta villages coming to terms with the end of fossil fuels, about sentient AI making art, and even post apocalyptic stories about love after the end of the world.

For me these stories are an exploration of ways the world can change, and who is affected, and how. When re-imagining the world, thinking about the potential of some wondrous new scientific discovery or technology, some new social structure or what the world would be like if some mythical power truly existed, it’s almost impossible not to see all the problems that could arise. Things will go wrong. There will be difficulties. Adjustments will have to be made. Challenges will come with any version of reality we imagine, no matter how optimistic. In other words, convergence problems will be experienced, just like those we sometimes encounter in mathematical constructs. Hence the title, CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS.

Convergence problems (mathematically and literarily speaking) can be annoying, but they aren’t always bad. They can even be fun to explore and think about sometimes, at least in the sense which I use them here—imagining unexpected challenges that can arise as our world changes, and in some cases, how those challenges may be resolved.

Many of these stories in CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS introduce fun and exciting concepts but some of the stories are dark too. They deal with some of the nastier aspects of being human and they interrogate challenges to identity, independence, sense of self. But perhaps the most important thing I’ve learned about convergence problems over the years, is this: no matter how troublesome they are, they can always be resolved.

One way or the other.

The ideas and characters in this book in many ways feel like parts of me, of my own mind being exposed. And it brings me great joy to share the worlds imagined in this book with you. 

Enjoy,

Wole


—————–

Praise for CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS:

Join the CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS book tour.

UK Release Day for SHIGIDI

~ WTalabi ~ Leave a comment

Today marks the UK print release of my novel SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON.

I used to live in the UK (in London, Birmingham and then Oxford) and the novel largely takes place in Lagos and London, so in a sense… its coming home. To one of its homes at least.

I’m excited to know that this book will be in bookshops and libraries around the city I used to live in and where I first conceived the idea for it, a city in which the very first scene is set.

The UK and London in particular are intricately woven into the fabric of the book and so for all my family, friends, colleagues, acquaintances and readers in London, I hope you enjoy having the book in your hands.

Reviewers in the UK so far have been kind.

Readers have been even more so.

Thank you all.

Its available at:

Enjoy the story.

The Shigidi Playlist

~ WTalabi ~ 2 Comments

We are less than a week away from the print release of my debut novel SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON in the UK – On Feb 8.

I’m stunned at how well this book has done in the US and internationally and I am hopeful it does well in the UK too (its already been longlisted for the British Science Fiction Association – BSFA – awards, so that’s a positive sign!)

for my UK people you can get the book here.

Those who know me know that at some point I wanted to be a movie director. That dream is on hold but when I write I still visualize things like movie scenes, including a soundtrack. So, should be no surprise that I made a playlist for the novel. Some of the songs are mentioned in the book. Some are songs I wrote a specific scene to. And some are songs I imagine playing during some of the action.

Its got afrobeats, power metal, pop, rock, Malaysian rap, R&B and more. I hope the playlist is as fun as readers and reviewers seem to think the book is.

I shared this playlist before but only just realized I never gave a track list. So here it is:

  1. London Town by Mr Eazi & Giggs
  2. Lady by Fela Kuti
  3. Vespertine (My Crimson Bride) by Kamelot
  4. Baby Riddim by Fave
  5. Charm by Rema
  6. False Idols by The Weeknd, Lil Baby & Suzanna Son
  7. Kpalanga by Mr Eazi
  8. Livin’ On A Prayer by Bon Jovi
  9. Woman by Doja Cat
  10. Há Luxo by DJ Pausas, Monsta, Os Moikanos & Anyfa
  11. CIAO by Joe Flizzow, MK K-Clique & Jay Park
  12. Static by Kamelot
  13. With You by Juls, Eugy Official, Maleek Berry & Stonebwoy
  14. Langit by Yuna
  15. Ojuju by Troniq Music & Oxlade
  16. Seasons – Mastiksoul Island Mix by Shaggy, OMI & Mastiksoul
  17. Procession by Nightwish
  18. Lil Ze by Jevon
  19. Izolo by DJ Maphorisa, Tyler ICU, Visca, Madumane & Mpura, Daliwonga
  20. Sax Dance by Tumisho & DJ Manzo Sa
  21. The Fire Within by Within Temptation
  22. Oga by Falz, Bontle Smith & Sayfar
  23. Not Me by Lamsi
  24. Big Flexa by Costa Titch, C’buda M, Alfa Kat, Banaba Des, Sdida & Man T
  25. Tick Tock by Eugy Official

Enjoy! (If you’ve read it come back to this post and ask nicely in the comments, and I’ll you tell which song goes with what scene)

Take care!

SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON out now!

~ WTalabi ~ Leave a comment

And we are live!

My debut novel, SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON hits US shelves (and screens + streams everywhere else) today! Its literally a dream come true and I hope you all enjoy meeting Shigidi and Nneoma as they take on gods, monsters, magicians on a supernatural heist.

The audiobook is narrated by the awesome Ben Arogundade whose incredibly rich voice brings the novel to life powerfully. It also helps that Ben kinda sorta looks a bit like what I imagine Shigidi to be.

I also made a video about some of the history behind the real-life brass head of Obalufon for those that are curious.

And those who know me know that at some point I wanted to be a movie director. That dream is on hold but when I write I still visualize things like movie scenes, including a soundtrack. So, should be no surprise that I made a playlist for my novel. Some of the songs are mentioned in the book. Some are songs I wrote a specific scene to. And some are songs I imagine playing during some of the action.

Its got afrobeats, power metal, pop, rock, Malaysian rap, R&B and more. I hope the playlist is as fun as early readers and reviewers seem to think the book is. So, enjoy! (If you’ve read it come back to this post and ask nicely in the comments, and I’ll tell which song goes with what scene)

Speaking of those early reviewers, I’ll leave you with some quotes about the book.

Funny at times, deeply moving at others. Sharply, vividly written throughout. An interesting structure. An exploration of both character and societal themes. There’s a lot to like in Shigidi and The Brass Head of Obalufon.

– Fantasy Literature

This remarkable debut rocked my world.

– T. L. Huchu, author of The Library of the Dead

Readers are in for a rollicking thrill ride.

– Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

…terrifically entertaining…

– Locus

As soon as I read the opening-taut, rollicking, rooted in physicality and emotion – I was charmed.

– Alex Jennings, author of The Ballad of Perilous Graves

This is what I wanted American Gods to be. Shigidi and the Brass Head of Obalufon is heady, heisty, and thrilling.

Izzy, Off the Beaten Path Bookstore

An innovative addition to the godpunk roster-if you loved David Mogo, you’ll love this!

– Suyi Davies Okungbowa, author of the Nameless Republic trilogy

“Perfect for fans of the Ocean’s film franchise and Scott Lynch’s The Lies of Locke Lamora (2006), this book will have readers holding their breath…”

– Booklist

This is godpunk, done with style. And I’m absolutely here for it!

– P. Djeli Clark, Nebula Award-winning author of Master of Djinn

Fast and sharp as talons… If you thought Killmonger was right or loved American Gods and Akata Witch, this one is very much for you.

– Lauren Beukes, author of The Shining Girls and Bridge

Shigidi surpasses expectations… 

– Temi Oh, author of Do You Dream of Terra-Two