Sefi Atta

Sefi Atta
Born	January 1964 (age 61) Lagos, Nigeria
Nationality	Nigerian American
Education	Queen's College, Lagos; Millfield School; Birmingham University; Antioch University Los Angeles
Occupations	novelist short-story writer playwright screenwriter
Notable work	Everything Good Will Come
Spouse	Gboyega Ransome-Kuti
Website	www.sefiatta.com

Sefi Atta (born 19 January 1964) is a Nigerian-American novelist, short-story writer, playwright and screenwriter. ^[1] Her books have been translated into many languages, her radio plays have been broadcast by the BBC, and her stage plays have been performed internationally. Awards she has received include the 2006 Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa and the 2009 Noma Award for Publishing in Africa. ^{[2] [3]}

Biography

Atta was born in Lagos, Nigeria, in January 1964, to a family of five children. ^[4] Her father Abdul-Aziz Atta was the Secretary to Federal Government and Head of the Civil Service until his death in 1972, and she was raised by her mother Iyabo Atta. ^[5]

She attended Queen's College, Lagos, and Millfield School in England. ^[6] In 1985, she graduated with a B.A. degree from Birmingham University. She qualified as a chartered accountant in England and as CPA in the United States, where she migrated in 1994. ^[7] She earned an MFA in creative writing from Antioch University Los Angeles in 2001. ^[7]

She is married to Gboyega Ransome-Kuti, a medical doctor, and son of Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, and they have one child, named Temi. ^[7]

Career

Atta graduated from the creative writing program at Antioch University in Los Angeles. ^[8] Her short stories have appeared in literary journals such as The Los Angeles Review , Mississippi Review and World Literature Today . ^[9] She has also written essays, ^[10] and her articles on Lagos and Nigeria have appeared in publications such as Time and Libération . ^[11] Her books have been translated into several languages. Her first novel, Everything Good Will Come , won the inaugural Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa in 2006. ^{[12] [13]} She is a contributor to the 2019 anthology New Daughters of Africa , edited by Margaret Busby. ^[14]

Atta's Lagos-based production company Atta Girl supports Care to Read, a programme she initiated to earn funds for legitimate charities through staged readings. ^[15]

Bibliography

Novels

• 2005: Everything Good Will Come , US: Interlink Books, ISBN   978-1566565707. UK: Myriad Editions, ISBN   978-1-912408-52-8
• 2010: Swallow, Interlink Books, ISBN   978-1566568333
• 2013: A Bit of Difference, Interlink Books, ISBN   978-1566568920
• 2019: The Bead Collector, US: Interlink Books, ISBN   978-1623719852. UK: Myriad Editions, ISBN   978-1-912408-34-4
• 2022: The Bad Immigrant, Interlink Books, ISBN   978-1623719050

Short-story collections

• 2010: News from Home, Interlink Books, ISBN   978-1566568036

Children's books

• 2018: Drama Queen, Mango Books, Nigeria, ISBN   978-978-967-959-1

Play collections

• 2019: Sefi Atta; Selected Plays, Interlink Books, ISBN   978-1623719791

Stage play premieres

• 2005: The Engagement, MUSON Centre, Lagos
• 2011: The Cost of Living, Lagos Heritage Festival
• 2011: Hagel auf Zamfara, Theatre Krefeld, Germany
• 2012: The Naming Ceremony, New World Nigeria, Theatre Royal Stratford East, London
• 2012: An Ordinary Legacy, The MUSON Festival, MUSON Centre, Lagos
• 2014: Last Stand, Terra Kulture, Lagos
• 2018: Renovation, The Jos Festival of Theatre
• 2019: The Death Road, The Jos Festival of Theatre

Radio plays

• 2002: The Engagement, BBC Radio
• 2004: Makinwa's Miracle, BBC Radio
• 2007: A Free Day, BBC Radio

Screenplays

• 2021: Swallow, a Netflix original movie based on Sefi Atta's second novel, Swallow, co-written by Atta and Kunle Afolayan, premiered on October 1.

Awards and recognition

• 2002: Macmillan Writers Prize For Africa, shortlist ^[16]
• 2002: BBC African Performance, 2nd Prize ^[17]
• 2002: Zoetrope Short Fiction Contest, 3rd Prize ^[18]
• 2003: Red Hen Press Short Story Award, 1st prize ^[19]
• 2003: Glimmer Train ′s Very Short Fiction Award, finalist ^[20]
• 2004: BBC African Performance, 2nd Prize ^[21]
• 2005: PEN International David TK Wong Prize, 1st Prize ^[22]
• 2006: Caine Prize for African Writing, shortlist ^[23]
• 2006: Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa ^[24]
• 2009: Noma Award for Publishing in Africa ^[25]
• 2009: The American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, quarter-finalist
• 2019: WeScreenPlay Diverse Voices Lab, finalist
• 2019: The American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, finalist
• 2021: The National Playwrights Conference, semifinalist

Visiting Writer

• 2006: University of Southern Mississippi
• 2008: Northwestern University
• 2010: École Normale Supérieure de Lyon

Atta was on the jury for the 2010 Neustadt International Prize for Literature, ^[26] and a judge for the 2019 Caine Prize for African Writing.

A critical study of her works, Writing Contemporary Nigeria: How Sefi Atta Illuminates African Culture and Tradition, edited by Professor Walter P. Collins, III, was published by Cambria Press in 2015.

References

1. Sefi Atta – Short bio – Q&A (panellist) – Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 27 August 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2012.
2. "Sefi Atta", Myriad Editions.
3. Janine, "New: Acclaimed NOMA Award Winner Sefi Atta’s Latest Novel, A Bit of Difference", Times Books LIVE, 22 August 2014.
4. Ifeoma (19 September 2018). "5 Female Revolutionary Writers From Nigeria Whose Books Are Widely Acclaimed". FabWoman. Retrieved 31 January 2025.
5. "Atta, Sefi 1964- | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
6. "Sefi Atta". www.litencyc.com. Retrieved 7 February 2025.
7. "Atta, Sefi 1964–", Encyclopedia.com.
8. TOBAR, HÉCTOR, "Americanismo", Latinx Writing Los Angeles, UNP - Nebraska, pp. 173–182, doi:10.2307/j.ctt21kk1rh.19 , retrieved 7 February 2025
9. Atta, Sefi (2010). Swallow. Northampton, Mass: Interlink Books. ISBN   978-1-56656-833-3. OCLC   606053609.
10. Atta, Sefi (9 May 2008). "One or the Other: An Essay by Sefi Atta". AfricanWriter.com. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
11. Szupernap. "Sefi Atta az angol Wikipedián · Moly". Moly (in Hungarian). Retrieved 7 February 2025.
12. "Writing Contemporary Nigeria: How Sefi Atta Illuminates African Culture and Tradition By Walter Collins". www.cambriapress.com. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
13. "The Prize | 2006 Winner". The Lumina Foundation. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
14. Gabi-Williams, Olatoun (21 April 2019). "After seminal anthology, Busby celebrates New Daughters of Africa". The Guardian. Nigeria.
15. "Sefi Atta makes children's literature debut". The Sun Nigeria. 12 October 2018. Retrieved 25 May 2022.
16. Fatunla, Dele Meiji (30 June 2014). "50 Books By African Women That Everyone Should Read". Whats On Africa. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
17. "Previous Judges". The Caine Prize for African Writing. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
18. "Atta, Sefi - Peter Hammer Verlag". www.peter-hammer-verlag.de. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
19. "Writing Contemporary Nigeria: How Sefi Atta Illuminates African Culture and Tradition By Walter Collins". www.cambriapress.com. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
20. "Sefi Atta makes children's literature debut". The Sun Nigeria. 12 October 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
21. "Top African BBC plays revealed". 23 February 2004. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
22. "Sefi Atta". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
23. Augoye, Jayne (22 May 2019). "Two Nigerians shortlisted for 2019 Caine Prize - Premium Times Nigeria" . Retrieved 26 May 2020.
24. "Authors". AfricanWriter.com. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
25. "Sefi Atta, Author Info, Published Books, Bio, Photo, Video, and More". AALBC.com, the African American Literature Book Club. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
26. Jury & candidates for 2010 Neustadt Prize, announced March 2009. Archived 24 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine .

External links

• Sefi Atta's website
• Ike Anya, "Sefi Atta: Something Good Comes to Nigerian literature", African Writer Magazine.