Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki

Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki or Ekpeki Oghenechovwe Donald (born 19 January) is a Nigerian speculative fiction writer, editor and publisher who is the first African-born Black author to win a Nebula Award.[3][4] He's also received a British Fantasy Award, Otherwise Award, and two Nommo Awards along with being a multi-time finalist for a number of other honors including the Hugo Award.

Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki
Born19 January
Ughelli, Delta State, Nigeria.[1]
OccupationAuthor
NationalityNigerian
CitizenshipNigerian
EducationUniversity of Lagos, Lagos.[2]
Alma materUniversity of Lagos
GenreScience fiction, Fantasy and Horror
Years active2018 — Present
Notable worksIfe-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon
Website
odekpeki.com

Life

Ekpeki was born in Ughellii, Delta State, Nigeria.[1] He studied law at the University of Lagos.

Writing

Ekpeki, who deals with multiple serious health conditions, frequently writes about disability, class, inequality and other issues related to both colonization and decolonization.[4][1]

Ekpeki began publishing fiction in 2018, with one of his early stories "The Witching Hour" winning the Nommo Award.[5] His 2020 novella "Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon" was published in 2020 and won the Otherwise Award[6] along with being a finalist for the BSFA, Sturgeon, Nebula, and Nommo Awards.

In 2021 Ekpeki's climate fiction novelette "O2 Arena" was published in Galaxy's Edge magazine and received the Nebula Award, making him the first African-born Black author to be so honored.[3] The novelette was also a finalist for the Hugo Award and other awards. This Is Africa described the story as a "biopolitical dystopia in which oxygen has become a commodity, with all the possible class implications."[4]

His 2022 short story "Destiny Delayed," published in Asimov's Science Fiction, was a finalist for the 2022 Nebula Award.

Ekpeki's forthcoming book Between Dystopias: The Road to Afropantheology, co-written with Joshua Uchenna Omenga, will focus on the "study of African (and African-descended) religions, gods, and the bodies of knowledge associated with them.[7]

Ekpeki's fiction and non-fiction have also appeared in Omenana Magazine, Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores, Tor.com, Strange Horizons, Uncanny Magazine, NBC and other places. He is a member of the African Speculative Fiction Society, the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, the Horror Writers Association, and Codex Writers Group.

Editing

Ekpeki has edited a number of books and magazines, starting with the 2020 anthology Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction From Africa and the African Diaspora (which he co-edited with Zelda Knight). The anthology won the British Fantasy Award for Best Anthology[8] and was a finalist for the 2021 Locus Award[9] and the 2020 This Is Horror award.[10]

Ekpeki also edited The Year's Best African Speculative Fiction: Volume 1 and published the anthology in 2021 through his own Jembefola Press. In 2022, he edited and published Bridging Worlds: Global Conversations On Creating Pan-African Speculative Literature In a Pandemic. The anthology is currently a finalist for the Locus Award for Non-Fiction.[11]

In 2022 he co-edited the Tor Books anthology Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction alongside Sheree Renée Thomas and Knight.[1] The anthology is currently a finalist for the Locus Award for Best Anthology[11] and was a finalist for the 2023 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Fiction.[12]

He has also edited individual issues of Invictus Quarterly and Interstellar Flight Press.[1]

Ekpeki has been a multi-time finalist in the editing category for the Hugo and Locus Awards.

Awards and nominations
Year Nominated work CategoryAward ResultNotesRef.
2019 "The Witching Hour" Best short story Nommo Award Won [13]
2020 "Ife-Iyoku" Best short story Nommo Award Nominated [14][15]
2020 Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon Short fiction British Science Fiction Association Award Nominated [16]
2020 Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction From Africa and the African Diaspora Best Anthology This is Horror Nominated Notes [17]
2020 Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon Best Novella Nebula Award Nominated [18][19]
2020 Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon Otherwise Award Won [20][21]
2021 Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction From Africa and the African Diaspora Best Anthology Locus Award Nominated Top Ten [22]
2021 Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction From Africa and the African Diaspora Best Anthology British Fantasy Award Won [23][24]
2021 Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon Short fiction Theodore Sturgeon Award Nominated [25]
2022 "O2 Arena" Best Novelette Nebula Award Won [26]
2022 "O2 Arena" Best Novelette Hugo Award Nominated [27][28]
2022 Best Editor, Short Form Hugo Award Nominated 2nd place [29]

Bibliography

Short stories
  • Oghenechovwe Donald, Ekepki (2018). "The Witching Hour". Cosmic Roots and Eldritch Shores.
  • Oghenechovwe Donald, Ekpeki (2019). "Ife-Iyoku". Selene Quarterly Magazine, vol. 2, issue 2.
  • Oghenechovwe Donald, Ekpeki (2019). "The Mannequin Challenge". Omenana Magazine.[30]
  • Oghenechovwe Donald, Ekpeki (2020). "Attack on University of Lagos, Law Faculty". Slay: Stories of the Vampire Noire. Mocha Memoirs Press.
  • Oghenechovwe Donald, Ekpeki (2021). "O2 Arena". Galaxy's Edge, Issue 53.[31]
  • Oghenechovwe Donald, Ekpeki (2022). "Destiny Delayed". Asimov's Science Fiction, May–June 2022.

Novellas
  • Oghenechovwe Donald, Ekepki (2020). "Ife-Iyoku, the Tale of Imadeyunuagbon". Dominion: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction From Africa and the African Diaspora. Auriela Leo.

Anthologies

References
  1. Ekpeki, Oghenechovwe Donald (December 20, 2021). "Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki: Decolonizing the Mind". Locus Magazine. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
  2. Ekpeki, Oghenechovwe Donald (November 23, 2019). ""How Grandma's Stories Made Me A Writer"" (Interview). Interviewed by Kwaifa, Aliyu. Daily Trust. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  3. "First African-born Black Nebula Award winner faces death threats & hostile embassy to attend WorldCon" by Sumiko Saulson, San Francisco Bay View, October 13, 2022.
  4. "Historic Nebula winner Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki came for everything" by Onai Stanely Mushava, This Is Africa, June 2, 2022.
  5. "Africanjujuism, fantasy and the African culture" by By Franca Nwogu, The Sun, September 17, 2022.
  6. "Nigeria's Oghenechovwe Ekpeki Wins $1,000 International Writing Prize" by Soonest Nathaniel, Channels TV, September 8, 2021.
  7. "Africa Revisted: afropantheology and the Best African Speculative Fiction," Arc Manor Books, accessed 5/13/2023.
  8. locusmag (2021-09-27). "2021 British Fantasy Awards Winners". Locus Online. Archived from the original on 2022-02-02. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  9. locusmag (2021-06-26). "2021 Locus Awards Winners". Locus Online. Archived from the original on 2021-12-17. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  10. locusmag (2021-09-07). "2020 This Is Horror Awards Winners". Locus Online. Archived from the original on 2022-02-02. Retrieved 2022-02-02.
  11. "2023 Locus Awards Top Ten Finalists," Locus Magazine, April 28, 2023.
  12. "Africa Risen Receives NAACP Image Award Nomination for Outstanding Literary Work" by Molly Templeton, Tor.com, Jan 19, 2023.
  13. "The 2019 Nommo Award Winners - African Speculative Fiction Society". www.africansfs.com.
  14. "Nomination Result for 2020 Long list". Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  15. Mike Glyer (April 19, 2020). "2020 Nommo Nominations Longlist". File770. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  16. Murua, James (February 25, 2021). "African writers on British Science Fiction Awards 2020 shortlists".
  17. "2020 This Is Horror Award Nominees". 26 April 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  18. "Ekpeki Oghenechovwe Donald: Past nominations and wins". Nebula Awards. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  19. "Nebula Awards 2021". www.sfadb.com. Retrieved 3 May 2021.
  20. "2020 Otherwise Award". Otherwise Award. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  21. Mike Glyer (7 September 2021). "2020 Otherwise Award". File770. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  22. "2021 Locus Award Top Ten Finalist". May 2021. Retrieved August 3, 2021.
  23. "British Fantasy Awards 2021: winners announced". Retrieved June 21, 2022.
  24. "2021 British Fantasy Awards Winners". Locus Magazine. September 27, 2021. Retrieved January 17, 2022.
  25. Ogunyemi, Ernest (February 25, 2021). "Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki Shortlisted for Theodore Sturgeon Award 2021".
  26. "SFWA Announces the Winners of the 57th Annual Nebula Awards®" (Press release). Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. May 21, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  27. "2022 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. 7 April 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  28. "Announcing the 2022 Hugo Award Finalists". 7 April 2022. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
  29. "2022 Hugo, Lodestar and Astounding Awards" (PDF). The Hugo Awards. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  30. "The Mannequin Challenge - By Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki". omenana.com. 2020-08-30. Retrieved 2023-04-30.
  31. Ekpeki, Oghenechovwe Donald (2022-01-13). "O2 Arena". Apex Magazine. Retrieved 2023-04-30.
  32. "Bridging Worlds: Global Conversations On Creating Pan-African Speculative Literature In a Pandemic". Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki. 2022-09-10. Retrieved 2023-04-30.


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