07 May Women in Publishing: Flora Nwapa
Historically, women have been under-represented in African publishing at all levels, but especially in upper management in what continues to be a male-dominated environment. This has been changing recently, with the likes of Bibi Bakare-Yusuf of Cassava Republic Press and Lola Shoneyin of Ouida Books blazing a trail in publishing. An inspiration to women in publishing everywhere, Flora Nwapa (1931-1993) was a Nigerian novelist best known for recreating Igbo life and customs from a woman’s viewpoint. In 1976, at age 45, Nwapa decided to write full-time and founded Tana Press Ltd., later Flora Nwapa Books Ltd. This allowed her to focus on two goals: • Facilitating the writing and publishing of both children’s picture books and adult novels, thereby influencing girls and women to value themselves and their culture. • Encouraging girls and women to write and share their own stories. Like Flora Nwapa, it’s our duty to continue opening what is called ‘women’s space’ (Gibson, 2002) in literature for African women publishers and writers. Source • britannica.com & sahistory.org.za
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