Nuzo Onoh to receive lifetime achievement award from ‘Oscars’ of horror genre

The Queen of African Horror, Nuzo Onoh, has been nominated for an award of the 2022 Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award.

The prestigious Bramstoker Lifetime Achievement Award, widely regarded as the Oscars of the horror world, is being awarded to an African horror writer for the very first time in its long history.

In an announcement by the Horror Writers Association, the body said that the Nigerian-British writer and daughter of the former Governor of Old Anambra state, Late Chief C.C Onoh, is being honoured for “superior achievement in an entire career.”

The Horror Writers Association, HWA, said that “The Lifetime Achievement Award is the most prestigious of all awards presented by the body. It does not merely honour the superior achievement embodied in a single work, instead, “it is an acknowledgement of superior achievement in an entire career.”

Other former recipients of this prestigious award include the king of horror, Stephen King, the great horror actor, Christopher Lee, Koji Suzuki, the Japanese author of the famous book that inspired the film franchise, The Ring, the horror film director, John Carpenter and the classic horror author, Ray Bradbury, amongst other notable big names in the horror industry.

The award will be formally presented to Nuzo Onoh at a high-profile ceremony in Pittsburgh, USA, on 17th June, 2023.

Announcing Nuzo Onoh’s award, the Horror Writers Association, states that “The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented periodically to an individual whose work has substantially influenced the horror genre.”

Nuzo Onoh is credited with being the pioneer of the regional horror genre, African Horror. Earlier, her books exploded into the horror world with the publication of her first book, The Reluctant Dead, the term, African horror, was usually brought up in news of disasters, diseases, wars, and corruption in the African continent.

Nuzo stated that her goal in writing and promoting African Horror as a bonafide horror genre was to remove the negative stigma against the continent by the popular media using the term, African Horror, since searches of other genres like Korean, Japanese, or Scandinavian horror usually brought up results about literary horror works.

Nuzo has published numerous books all set in Nigeria, especially in Igboland. Her books include The Reluctant Dead, Unhallowed Graves, The Sleepless, Dead Corpse, The Unclean, Call on Your Ancestors for Success & Happiness, and A Dance for The Dead.

According to an announcement in Publisher Weekly, her upcoming book, The Ghosts in the Moon will be published by the top UK publisher, Titan Books.

According to Wikipedia, Nuzo’s writing showcases both the beautiful and horrific in African culture within fictitious narratives. Her works have been featured in numerous magazines and anthologies. She has given talks and lectures about African Horror, including at the prestigious Miskatonic Institute of Horror Studies, in London. Her works have also appeared in academic and feminist studies such as the Routledge Handbook of African Literature, amongst others.

In being conferred the highly coveted award, Nuzo Onoh becomes not only the first black-British person to receive it but also, the very first African to do so. Nigeria has been the world leader in literary endeavors and with this prestigious award, The Bramstoker Lifetime Achievement Award, Nuzo has proven once again why Nigeria leads the African continent in the literary and creative industries.

Nuzo holds a Law degree and Masters Degree in Writing, both from Warwick University, England. She is a certified Civil Funeral Celebrant, licensed to conduct non-religious burial services. An avid musician, Nuzo plays both the guitar and piano and holds an NVQ in Digital Music Production from City College, Coventry. She currently resides in The West Midlands, UK with her cat, Tinkerbell.