Applications are invited from early-career scholars of African Literary and Cultural Studies based in Eastern and Southern Africa to take part in a year-long writing and mentoring programme, including a 4-day in-person writing workshop at the University of Nairobi.
Designed in partnership with the journal Eastern African Literary and Cultural Studies and funded by the British Academy, the programme focuses on developing PhD chapters into articles for publication in high-impact international journals.
The 4-day academic writing workshop will bring experienced book and journal editors to the University of Nairobi, offering early-career scholars opportunities to learn more about academic publishing processes and grant writing, receive detailed feedback on their work, and build stronger relationships with an assigned mentor and peer writing group.
Between June 2026 and May 2027, participants will also be invited to engage in a carefully curated online programme of mentoring, skills development, and networking opportunities.
Directly concerned with issues of visibility and value in relation to the circulation of African cultural production, early-career scholars will also build connections and collaborations with leading creative industry professionals and global academic networks.
Linked to this, the first day of the in-person workshop has been planned to coincide with the final day of an academic conference focused on Eastern African Literary and Publishing Networks 1963-1978 (hosted by the Department of Literature at the University of Nairobi, in collaboration with the Department of English and Creative Writing at the University of Exeter).
Accommodation and travel bursaries will be provided for all participants.
Application Guidelines
This workshop will bring together 15 early-career researchers of African Literary and Cultural Studies, including those working on or through African cultural history, performance, literatures, music, visual cultures, gender, media and technology, creative industries, world literature, and postcolonial studies.
Applicants must be based in Eastern or Southern Africa.
Given the emphasis on developing PhD chapters into articles for publication, applicants must be enrolled in a PhD programme or have been awarded a PhD.
An early-career scholar here is defined as a scholar within 5 years of receiving a PhD.
To be considered for the workshop, please submit to nairobiliterarynetworks@gmail.com:
● A brief expression of interest and contact details for 2 referees (up to 300 words)
● A short CV (including date of conferral or expected conferral of PhD)
● A substantive chapter or extract from your PhD (up to 10,000 words)
● An abstract of between 200 and 300 words for an article to be developed based on your PhD research through the workshop.
Deadline: 20 May 2026.
Best of luck to all applicants!
