A Fiesta Set to Connect the Dots

Yinka Olatunbosun

The seventh edition of the much anticipated Quramo Festival of Words (QFEST) will start from October 4 to 8 at Eko Hotels and Suites, Victoria Island, Lagos. The five-day literary arts feast has a line-up of events for attendees, including workshops, panel discussions, the word slam contest, and stage plays. There will also be ‘Siamsa’ evening, which is an Irish interactive folklore similar to Nigeria’s popular ‘Tales by Moonlight’. The high point of the event will be the announcement of the 2023 Quramo Writer’s Prize (QWP) winner, who will receive a cash prize and a publishing deal with Quramo Publishing.

Mrs. Gbemi Shasore, the convener of QFEST and co-founder of Quramo Publishing, announced this at a press briefing recently, where she reaffirmed her commitment to improving the literary society by encouraging people to read and write as well as equipping creatives for the expansion of the creative industries while fostering visibility for literary works that mirror real Nigerian and African experiences.

According to Shasore, the theme “Connecting the Dots” is a subject that brings opportunities for creatives and stakeholders in film, literature, theatre, and publishing, among other players in the creative and media spaces, to interact, identify, and explore likely collaborations across the board.

Reflecting on QWP and the number of entries received this year, she said, “We got over a thousand submissions; the number of entries has not dwindled, but the quality has. I attribute that to our educational system; not enough is done in our educational system. Our educational system needs revamping because, year in and year out, it’s getting difficult; it’s like digging for gold to find a good manuscript we can give to our independent judges.”

She also observed that manuscripts are dwindling in number each year. On how the books fare in the market, she said, “Most books have their own market. That is why this year’s theme is very key. ‘Connecting the dots’ which is about distributing those books is something we have to address and what we are addressing at this conference. The primary intention for those winners is to boost their confidence and morale. And let everybody know that everybody has a story to tell and we are here to tell the story at Quramo. Distribution within Nigeria is not easy much less within Africa.”

Just like its past editions, participants of this year’s QFEST are expected to learn from inspiring personalities such as Femi Odugbemi, Yahaya Maikori, and Adedotun Eyinade (co-founder of Rovingheights). Others are Anwuli Ojogwu (co-founder of the Society of Book and Magazine Editors of Nigeria), Prof. Karen King-Aribisala (author and lecturer at the University of Lagos), James Murua (Kenya literary blogger) and Peter Ryan, the Irish Ambassador to Nigeria among others. 

Also present at the briefing were Aduke Gomez, representative of the Irish Consulate; Lolade Alaka, festival director; and the judges: Lechi Eke, Dr. Eghosa Imasuen, and Anote Ajelorou.