Nominations close Wednesday: Help us make the Nommo shortlist
Plus Ignyte Awards news and a recap of Olivia Kidula's appearance at Qwani LitFest.
It’s been an exciting few months for us at Will This Be A Problem? Between award nominations, literary events in Nairobi, and ongoing conversations about African speculative fiction, we’ve been reminded how fortunate we are to be part of this community.
In this edition, we’re celebrating two major award recognitions, sharing a reminder about the closing Nommo Awards nomination window and looking back on a memorable weekend at the inaugural Qwani Literary Festival.
Will This Be A Problem? is a 2026 Ignyte Awards Finalist
The stories we published in 2025 are still finding new readers, and we're delighted to see our writers and publications recognised by major SFF awards. Since the release of our fifth anthology and second digital magazine, our work has appeared on the Locus Awards Recommended Reading List, the Bram Stoker Awards Preliminary Ballot, the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA) Awards Longlist, and now the Ignyte Awards Shortlist.
We’re thrilled to announce that Commensalism, or the Labyrinth’s Vessels by Albert Nkereuwem and Will This Be A Problem? are finalists for the 2026 Ignyte Awards.
Albert’s story is up for Outstanding Short Story, while Will This Be A Problem? is nominated for the Community Award for Outstanding Efforts in Service of Inclusion and Equitable Practice in the Genre.
The Community Award goes to individuals, teams, organisations or publications whose work has helped diversify and strengthen speculative fiction through a focus on inclusion. Outstanding Short Story covers works between 2,001 and 7,499 words. We’re grateful to the Ignyte Awards committee for the nominations and to everyone who has supported our work over the years.
Public voting remains open until 16th August 2026, and we’d be honoured to have your support. It’s a small act, but it makes a real difference for us.
To vote, head to the Ignyte Awards website and find the vote section, where the full list of nominees is posted. Each voter gets one ballot, one finalist per category. Fill out the Google Form provided.
If you’d like to read Commensalism, or the Labryrinth's Vessels before voting, it’s published in Will This Be A Problem? The Anthology: Issue V, and is free to read on our website.
2026 Nommo Awards Nominations Close August 12
The nomination period for the 2026 Nommo Awards is entering its final days.
If you’ve spent the past year reading African speculative fiction, now is a wonderful time to look back at the stories that stayed with you. We’d be grateful if you would consider the works published in Will This Be A Problem? The Anthology: Issue V and Will This Be A Problem? The Magazine: Issue 2 for this year’s nominations in the Short Story category before the window closes on Wednesday.
The awards celebrate excellence in African speculative fiction and fantasy, recognising works by African writers published between 1st January and 31st December 2025. Nominations are submitted by members of the African Speculative Fiction Society (ASFS), with this year’s nomination window closing on 12th August 2026.
The Nommo Awards recognise works across four categories:
Novel - Stories of 40,000 words or longer
Novella - Stories between 17,500 and 40,000 words
Short Story - Stories between 1 and 17,500 words
Graphic Novel - Stories consisting of both images and words, any length
All the stories are available online, so it’s easy to catch up on anything you missed. Read and share with anyone who might enjoy them.
Olivia at Qwani LitFest
In late July, our co-founder and editor-in-chief Olivia Kidula joined writers, readers, publishers and literary enthusiasts at the inaugural Qwani Literary Festival held at Baraza Media Lab in Nairobi.
Olivia sat on the panel “Emerging Themes in Modern Kenyan Writing”, talking through how Kenyan literary themes have shifted across generations. The conversation moved from the post-independence and decolonial concerns in works like Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o’s A Grain of Wheat, through the era of literary magazines and publishing houses, to today’s landscape of self-publishing, digital platforms online literary communities.
What stuck with us most from the festival was discovering how many readers are still unfamiliar with Kenyan speculative fiction. While the genre continues to grow, there is still important work to be done in bringing greater visibility to the science fiction, fantasy and horror being written by Kenyan authors today.
We’re grateful to have been part of a weekend that celebrated storytelling and the connections literature makes possible. Congratulations to the Qwani team on a successful debut, and for building a space where emerging and established creatives could meet, learn and share their work.
Thank you to everyone who showed up, asked questions and swapped ideas. It made for a memorable weekend.
As always, thank you for reading, supporting and championing African speculative fiction. Every story read, recommendation shared, event attended and conversation started helps us keep doing this work. We're grateful to have you with us.
Until next time,
Lilian Mironga
Will This Be A Problem?