Epaphras Chukwuenweniwe Osondu, predominantly known as E. C. Osondu, is a Nigerian writer known for his

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

. His story ''Waiting'' won the 2009

Caine Prize for African Writing The Caine Prize for African Writing is an annual literary award for the best short story by an African writer, whether in Africa or elsewhere, published in the English language. Founded in the United Kingdom in 2000, the £10,000 prize was named ...

, for which he had been a finalist in 2007 with his story ''Jimmy Carter's Eyes''. Osondu had previously won the Allen and Nirelle Galso Prize for Fiction and his story ''A Letter from Home'' was judged one of "The Top Ten Stories on the Internet" in 2006. Osondu's writing has been published in ''

Agni Agni ( ) is the Deva (Hinduism), Hindu god of fire. As the Guardians of the directions#Aṣṭa-Dikpāla ("Guardians of Eight Directions"), guardian deity of the southeast direction, he is typically found in southeast corners of Hindu temples. ...

'', ''

Guernica Guernica (, ), officially Gernika () in Basque, is a town in the province of Biscay, in the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, Spain. The town of Guernica is one part (along with neighbouring Lumo) of the municipality of Gernika-Lumo ...

'', ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...

'', ''

Fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

'', and ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 185 ...

''. His debut collection of short stories, ''Voice of America'', was published in 2010.

Biography

Epaphras Chukwuenweniwe Osondu was born in

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

, where he worked as an

advertising Advertising is the practice and techniques employed to bring attention to a Product (business), product or Service (economics), service. Advertising aims to present a product or service in terms of utility, advantages, and qualities of int ...

copywriter Copywriting is the act or occupation of writing text for the purpose of advertising or other forms of marketing. Copywriting is aimed at selling products or services. The product, called copy or sales copy, is written content that aims to incre ...

for many years. He received an M.F.A in creative writing from

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

in 2007. He has been teaching at

Providence College Providence College is a Private university, private Roman Catholic university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1917 by the Dominican Order and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, it offers 47 undergraduate Academic ...

since 2012, where he is a professor of English, teaching courses in Creative Writing, Introduction to Literature, and the Development of Western Civilization. ''Waiting'', published in October 2008 by ''Guernica'', describes life in a

refugee camp A refugee camp is a temporary Human settlement, settlement built to receive refugees and people in refugee-like situations. Refugee camps usually accommodate displaced people who have fled their home country, but camps are also made for in ...

from a child's

point of view Point of View or Points of View may refer to: Concept and technique * Point of view (literature) or narrative mode, the perspective of the narrative voice; the pronoun used in narration * Point of view (philosophy), an attitude how one sees or ...

. Meakin Armstrong, the magazine's fiction editor, noted that "it isn't pretentious nor rife with literary trickery. It's simply a well-told story about a kind of life most of us couldn't even begin to imagine."Meakin Armstrong
"Guernica/E. C. Osondu/Clifford Garstang"
Five Star Literary Stories. In addition to the £10,000 cash award, the Caine Prize also brought Osondu a month's residency at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Osondu's ''Voice of America'' is included in ''Gods and Soldiers: The

Penguin Penguins are a group of aquatic flightless birds from the family Spheniscidae () of the order Sphenisciformes (). They live almost exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere. Only one species, the Galápagos penguin, is equatorial, with a sm ...

Anthology of Contemporary African Writing'' (2009). After winning the Caine Prize in 2008, he has gone on to win the Pushcart Prize, the BOA Short Fiction Prize, the Allen and Nirrelle Galson Prize, among others. His short fiction has appeared in The Atlantic, AGNI, N+1, Harper's Magazine, Kenyon Review, Zyzzyva, Lapham's Quarterly, and has been translated into many languages including Japanese, Italian, Greek, French, Icelandic, Belarusian, etc. Osondu sits on the pan-African literary initiative, Writivism's Board of Trustees, with fellow writers

Zukiswa Wanner Zukiswa Wanner (born 1976) is a South African journalist, novelist and editor born in Zambia and now based in Kenya. Since 2006, when she published her first book, her novels have been shortlisted for awards including the South African Literar ...

, Chika Unigwe,

NoViolet Bulawayo NoViolet Bulawayo is the pen name of Elizabeth Zandile Tshele (born 12 October 1981), a Zimbabwean author. In 2012, the National Book Foundation named her a " 5 Under 35" honoree. She was named one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by '' Ne ...

, Nii Parkes and Lizzy Attree.

Books

Voice of America- Short Stories This House is Not For Sale- Novel When the Sky is Ready the Stars Will Appear- Novel

References

External links

The Caine Prize for African Literature
* Review o
"Voice of America"
* Text o
"Waiting"
in ''Guernica'' magazine. * Text of "A Letter from Home" a

* Laura Adibe
"Interview with An Author: E. C. Osondu Pens Multi-Faceted Human Experience in 'Voice of America'"
, Black Voices, 5 November 2010. * Temitayo Olofinlua
Interview with E. C. Osondu
''Bella Naija'', 29 June 2009. * Gbenga Awomodu
"8 Questions for E.C. Osondu, 2009 Caine Prize Winner & Author, Voice of America"
''Bella Naija'', 11 September 2011. * BB
interview with Osondu
by Molara Wood at Africa Beyond: Celebrating African Arts in the UK. * ''Guernica'' fiction edito
Meakin Armstrong on Osondu's award.
* E.C. Osondu �
The Writer’s Voice, Providence College Podcast, Episode 169, October 14, 2019
{{DEFAULTSORT:Osondu, E. C. Nigerian male short story writers Nigerian short story writers Living people Caine Prize winners Year of birth missing (living people)