Nigerian writer Adams Adeosun has been named the recipient of the highly esteemed Carol Houck Smith Fiction Fellowship for the 2024-2025 academic year by the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing. Adeosun will join the University of Wisconsin-Madison faculty, marking a significant milestone in their literary career.
Since its inception in 1986, the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing has been a nurturing ground for emerging writers, providing them with the necessary time, space, and intellectual community to develop their first book of poetry or fiction. Adeosun stood out among nearly 800 applicants, securing a spot that includes a minimum stipend of $40,000 and a nine-month residency starting in late August.
The fellowship aims to support Adeosun in completing or revising a book-length manuscript, with the added benefit of being part of one of North America’s top-ranked creative writing programs. This recognition comes at a time when more African writers are being acknowledged for their contributions to literature. Last year’s fellows included Motswana writer Gothataone Moeng and Somali writer Sadia Hassan.
Adeosun holds an MFA from the University of Iowa and has an impressive portfolio of work published in respected magazines and anthologies, including Transition, The Offing, Catapult, Isele, Limbe to Lagos: Nonfiction from Cameroon and Nigeria, and Rele Gallery’s Five Years of Young Contemporaries. Additionally, Adeosun’s poetry chapbook, If the Golden Hour Won’t Come For Us, is set to be released as part of Akashic Books’ New-Generation African Poets box set. Adeosun is also a 2024 MacDowell fellow.
The Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing will open applications for the 2025-2026 fellowships on November 1, 2024, with a submission deadline of January 1, 2025. This program continues to be a beacon for nurturing literary talent and fostering the growth of future literary stars.