Ukamaka Olisakwe

Profile Photo

Ukamaka Olisakwe grew up in Kano, Nigeria, and now lives in Vermont. She was awarded an honorary fellowship in Writing from the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa. In 2014, she was chosen as one of Africa’s most promising writers under the age of 40 by the UNESCO World Book Capital. In 2018, she won the Vermont College of Fine Arts’ Emerging Writer Scholarship for the MFA in Writing and Publishing program.

Her works have appeared or are forthcoming in the New York Times, Longreads, The Rumpus, Brittle Paper, RattleJalada, and more.

Stories

Cover Photo: This black and white photograph is of a hand holding a phone and only the phone is in color.
I’m Done Listening to My Family About How to Be a “Good” Mother

Their judgment is clear every time, and my aunt is the only one who is bold enough to say it with her chest: I am a bad mom.

Jun 07, 2022
Cover Photo: Photograph by Artsy Solomon/Pexels
Finding My Freedom Within Marriage and Motherhood

Navigating the burdens of expectation as a married woman in Nigeria

Jul 23, 2019