The Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG), in partnership with the Committee for Relevant Art (CORA), has hosted the first eleven poets longlisted for the 2026 edition of The Nigeria Prize for Literature during the annual CORA Book Party held in Lagos.

The literary gathering followed the official announcement of the 2026 longlist and created a public platform where the selected poets presented their works, read excerpts, and interacted with readers, critics, journalists, publishers, students, and other members of Nigeria’s literary community.

The event featured poetry readings, conversations, and critical discussions centred on the longlisted works for this year’s poetry cycle, alongside other cultural and literary activities.

The longlisted titles emerged from 223 entries received after the competition opened for submissions in February. The selection was made by the panel of judges appointed for the 2026 edition of the Prize following the close of entries for the poetry category. The announcement represents a major stage in the adjudication process before the shortlist is unveiled and the eventual winner is announced later this year.

Addressing participants, NLNG’s General Manager, External Relations and Sustainable Development, Sophia Horsfall, said the Book Party highlights the importance of sustaining platforms that extend literature beyond the written page and into the public space.

She noted that The Nigeria Prize for Literature was established to honour outstanding literary works while strengthening Nigeria’s reading culture, critical engagement, and creative expression. Horsfall added that this year’s focus on poetry recognises the genre’s ability to convey complex realities through powerful language, connect personal experiences with universal themes, and amplify voices that might otherwise go unheard.

“The 2026 Poetry cycle attracted 223 entries, each offering a distinct rhythm, perspective and artistic expression. Together, these submissions attest to the vitality of Nigerian poetry and to the confidence Nigerian writers continue to place in the NLNG-sponsored Nigeria Prize for Literature,” she said.

Speaking at the event, CORA Secretary-General, Mr. Toyin Akinosho, explained that the Book Party was conceived to create a public literary experience where books are not only announced but also read, debated, appreciated, and critically examined. He said the initiative continues to serve as an important intervention in Nigeria’s literary landscape by increasing authors’ visibility and fostering direct interaction between writers and readers.

Akinosho also described the Book Party as a unique platform that enables authors to engage directly with the reading public before the final announcement of the winner of The Nigeria Prize for Literature.

He commended NLNG for its long-standing commitment to promoting Nigeria’s literary and reading culture.

“We are here because a profitable Nigerian gas company decided that a way to spend some share of its profit is to enable the Nigerian reading space. I’d like to thank NLNG for continuing to support this yearly afternoon of book conversation and the celebration of this country’s finest authors.”

Concluding his remarks, Akinosho underscored the significance of the CORA–NPL Book Party within the literary prize process.

“I don’t know of any literary prize process in which the final award is prefaced by a celebratory event of this nature, at which the authors face a community of readers in a room and talk about why and how they wrote what they are offering.”

Now in its 22nd year, The Nigeria Prize for Literature, sponsored by NLNG, rotates annually across four genres, Prose Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Children’s Literature. The 2026 edition is dedicated to Poetry, with the eventual winner expected to be announced in October.

The CORA Book Party remains one of the activities leading to the final announcement, offering a public forum for engagement with the longlisted works and the writers behind them.

Source: Real News Magazine.