Tlotlo Tsamaase is a Motswana author (xe/xem/xer or she/her pronouns). Tlotlo's debut adult novel, Womb City, comes out in January 2024 from Erewhon Books. Tlotlo is a Caine Prize finalist. Xer novella, The Silence of the Wilting Skin, is a 2021 Lambda Literary Award finalist and was shortlisted for a 2021 Nommo Award. Tlotlo has received support from the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, and xer story “Behind Our Irises” is the joint winner of the Nommo Award for Best Short Story (2021).

 

Tlotlo's short fiction has appeared in Africa Risen, The Best of World SF Volume 1, Clarkesworld, Terraform, Africanfuturism Anthology, and is forthcoming in Chiral Mad 5 and other publications. Xe is a 2017 Rhysling Award nominee and a 2011 Bessie Head Short Story Award winner. Xe obtained a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Botswana and won an award for design architecture. Tsamaase is currently pursuing an MFA in Creative Writing at Chapman University.

 

You can find xem on Instagram and Twitter at @tlotlotsamaase. Xe is represented by Naomi Davis of  BookEnds Literary Agency.

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