Brewing Interest in Creative Writing

Nigerian Breweries PLC, whose brands include Heineken, Star and Amstel Malta, recently announced its sponsorship of a creative writing workshop. In partnership with Farafina Trust, a nonprofit literary foundation, the brewery will donate 7 million naira (nearly $470,000) to the trust to help organize the workshop in Lagos for both published and unpublished writers.

The initiative, which is the brainchild of award-winning author Chimamanda Adichie (Purple Hibiscus, Half of a Yellow Sun), aims to promote literary skills development. Up to 25 participants will be chosen for the workshop. Those interested should send an email (without attachments) to udonandu20009@gmail.com with:

The writing sample should be fiction or non-fiction. The closing date for entries is July 30, winners will be notified by Aug. 15 and the workshop will take place Sept. 17 to 26. Along with Adichie, workshop facilitators will include authors who have won such literary awards as the Caine Prize, the PEN/Faulkner Malamud Award and the Guardian Fiction Prize. For more information, go to the Nigerian Breweries website.

Nigerian Breweries' record of corporate social responsibility features work in areas such as education, the environment and sports, so it's nice to see they're adding literary skills development to that list.