Wisdom from the ant hill
Mubanga Kalimamukwento | Editor-in-chief
Maanu alazwa amukasuumbwa
Wisdom comes even from a small ant hill.
Tonga Proverb.
* Image by Francesco Ungaro on Pexels
Dear Ubwali reader,
We are one! Exhausted and happy and so proud of all the authors we have been able to publish in our first year, the collaborations we have made with other magazines, and the lessons learned as editors, teachers, and writers.
The 2024 Ubwali Masterclass series came shortly after the launch of our inaugural issue. It was as much a gift for my younger self as it was to the authors we were fortunate enough to include in our classes. I craved for them a space that I once never had the vocabulary to seek out for myself. Almost immediately after we started accepting our first submissions, the need for this class was confirmed to me.
We received more excellent submissions than we could have ever hoped for, but included among those, and even some that we accepted, were several diamonds, still closer to rough than shiny. In their lines, I recognized what was possible if they had the help they needed. In every case where we took a chance on an author and a piece that had not yet evolved into its best final selves, we were rewarded by working with an eager writer whose work was read, shared, and celebrated many times over by our readers around the world.
But for many, unless they knock on the door wearing their best prose, an answer will never come. The masterclass, for me, is a space for growth not just for the authors we have published but also for those who hoped to one day call Ubwali home.
Last year, we invited submissions, selecting participants for free masterclasses. Thanks to Frances Ogamba, we offered scholarships, and a small tuition from some attendees helped fund payment for two authors in our regular issues. This system ensured we worked with both deserving and talented writers. The anthology you are about to read contains nine pieces, written and refined in and as a result of our masterclasses, taught by Cheswayo Mphanza, Chioma Iwunze-Ibiam, Frances Ogamba, Keletso Mopai, Kiprop Kimuta, and Sheila O’Connor. I remain immensely grateful to the teachers who shared their knowledge generously and the students who received and utilized it beautifully.
I hope you enjoy their words as much as I have.
