Stephen Embleton

I've loved birds since I was a kid, and this cover was an absolute pleasure to indulge in. Mirari Press had a long deadline, which gave me the time (and creative freedom) to experiment and add the detail I wanted to, giving this piece the TLC it so deserved. Buy Nerine Dorman's  "The Company of Birds"  here (coming soon). As always, Mirari Press gave an excellent brief, and with much needed background to the main character of Maga Liese ten Haven (and the variety of key bird species) from Nerine, the creative direction was clear in my mind: use a pencil crayon/chalk on paper (digital) technique with metal foiling for the Moon and Title script. This piece really took me back to my illustrating training in the early 90s, when most of our live figure drawings were using coloured pencils or chalk on coloured (not white) paper. The paper texture is vital to capture, as well as the nuances of the chalk smudges and fine line work. Digital is all well and good, but for me it...

  Finally released 14th November 2024! With contributing authors—Aline Mwezi, Cheryl Ntumy, Dilman Dila, Nerine Dorman, Nuzo Onoh, Shingai Njeri Kagunda, Stephen Embleton, Suyi Okungbowa, Tobi Ogundiran, Xan van Rooyen—for their boldly hybrid chapters that interface Afrocentric artefacts and exegesis. I'm really proud to be included in this wonderful anthology of African SFF writers, all sharing our unique perspectives and worldviews on our writing in the speculative realm. My essay,  Cosmologies and Languages Building Africanfuturism , on world-building and cosmology referring to my two novels ( "Soul Searching" , and  "Bones & Runes" ) and the Sauúti Collective. Order Here  Table of Contents Preface The Structure of This Book Chapter 1. On Afrocentric Futurisms–The Case for an Inclusive Expression Suyi Okungbowa, Nigeria/Canada Chapter 2. Cosmologies and Languages Building Africanfuturism Stephen Embleton, South Africa/UK Chapter 3. An Afrofuturistic Dysto...

In this interview, Stephen talks to Ibrahim Babátúndé Ibrahim about his journey from KwaZulu-Natal to Oxford, his many creative interests, how being a designer and filmmaker (among other things) influence his writing, and much more. Please come along for a beautiful and insightful read! Read the full interview here.

I am extremely grateful to say I have been awarded a grant by the Royal Literary Fund .  It’s not something I would have thought I would need, or even thought existed, if it weren’t for a Brittle Paper article in June . I am always grateful to Brittle Paper for everything they do for our literary community. The criteria for applying, the process and the care and sensitivity from the people involved is rather humbling as well as encouraging, given that the  literary merit of my body of work is thoroughly considered along with my financial circumstances. Financial circumstances being the main reason for the existence of the RLF since the 1700s.  Apart from having to be a British citizen, they had to read physical copies of two works published in the UK ( Soul Searching and Bones & Runes ). And it is encouraging to know that genre fiction is viewed as having literary merit. Also considered are any broader activities related to writing, from lecturing, public speak...

Included in a broader review by Amirah Muhammad for BSFA's Vector magazine of the Bloomsbury  ‘Afro-Centered Futurisms in Our Speculative Fiction’ anthology, my essay –  “Cosmologies and Languages Building Africanfuturism” was mentioned. I am grateful to the reviewer, Amirah Muhammad, for including Pule kaJanolintji in their review excerpt on our work together. There has been much positive feedback on my essay in this anthology and I am glad it is getting read and noticed out there, highlighting Pule's own projects , skills and valued creative endeavours. Excerpt: In particular, Embleton’s chapter emphasises the creative opportunity that language presents in speculative writing. His research in linguistics and writing systems, including Ge’ez, Nsibidi, Tifinagh, and isiBheqe soHlamvu or Ditema tsa Dinoko , led to the creation of the word Huriǁhaoǃnakhoena for his novel, Soul Searching (2020). Embleton writes that “Huriǁhaoǃnakhoena is both a word and a phrase – liter...

  Thanks to Dr Ainehi Edoro and Brittle Paper for an excellent feature of African Science Fiction and Fantasy short stories, including my Sauúti novella "Undulation" ! 🙏🏼 ❤️ 43 Short Stories to Get You Caught Up on New African Sci-fi/Fantasy. “The list features established voices like Dilman Dila, NK Jemisin, Nnedi Okorafor, Deji Bryce Olukotun, Tade Thompson, Stephen Embleton, and many who are relatively new on the scene like Tobi Ogundiran and Adam Oyebanjo.” Featuring 6 The Sauúti Collective stories, 5 in the Mothersound Anthology .  Adelehin Ijasan – “Xhova” Somto Ihezue and Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki – “A City, A Desert and all their Dirges” Stephen Embleton – ‘Undulation” Tobias S Buckell – “The Groves Lament” J Umeh – “Kalabashing” Eugen Bacon – “Sina, The Child With No Echo” Find out more about the Sauútiverse and the Mothersound Anthology .

2024 Nommo Award winner for Best Novella by an African , presented at Glasgow WorldCon, for his Sauúti novella, “Undualtion” , published by Android Press in “Mothersound: the Sauútiverse Anthology ”  (2023). The Nommo Awards was special! An awesome feeling being nominated but special winning, for Sauúti . Such a great event for us all in person! Meeting friends and colleagues 🙏🏼👏🏼❤️ It was amazing to receive the Nommo Novella Award from Nnedi Okorafor, one of the best novella writers out there, and writing African stories her way. The awesome Nnedi Okorafor Reading from "Undulation" With Wole Talabi and Tendai Huchu Love these guys! More featured on File 770 , Brittle Paper , and at Glasgow 2024 . And Brittle Paper's Glasgow Roundup .

It was a real pleasure to be able to create something unique for a friend and Sauúti Collective colleague – Cheryl Ntumy – for her new novella coming out with Atthis Arts press: a custom display typeface and title design. Design & Typography: Stephen Embleton, Illustration: Akintoba Kalejaye Find Atthis Arts here. A latinised version of the Adinkra alphabet from Ghana (because Cheryl is Ghanaian!), it has some fantastic characteristics and a very modular form which made it a fun, yet simple, design to work on. I first focused on the letters needed for Cheryl's book cover, and then fleshed out the other characters, as well as creating a "light" version. One happy accident for the cover design was incorporating the "working" components of each letter in the design itself. i.e. when I work on fonts, I find the common weights (stroke thicknesses) and common shapes, and move these around to exact positions. And by making them separate bright colours enables m...