Tlotlo Tsamaase

Tlotlo Tsamaase is a Motswana speculative fiction writer and poet whose writing has been nominated for or won numerous awards.

Tlotlo Pearl Tsamaase
Occupation	Author
Language	English
Nationality	Botswana
Genre	Science fiction and fantasy
Notable awards	Bessie Head Short Story Award, Nommo Award
Website
www.tlotlotsamaase.com

Her fiction has appeared in Clarkesworld Magazine, Strange Horizons, Africanfuturism: An Anthology, Africa Risen, and more.

Life and career

Tsamaase earned a bachelor's degree in architecture from the University of Botswana as well as an MFA in creative writing from Chapman University.^[1] She has said that "studying architecture brought [her] to science fiction."^[2]

Her first novella, The Silence of the Wilting Skin, was published in 2021 by Pink Narcissus Press and was nominated for a Lambda Award in the LGBTQ Speculative Fiction category.^[3] Her first novel, Womb City, was published by Erewhon Books in 2024^[4] and was nominated for a Locus Award for Best First Novel.^[5]

Her fiction has appeared in publications such as Clarkesworld Magazine, The Best of World Science Fiction Volume 1, Futuri uniti d'Africa, Terraform, Strange Horizons, Africanfuturism: An Anthology, Africa Risen, The Dark Magazine, and The Year's Best African Speculative Fiction.

She is currently represented by Naomi Davis of BookEnds Literary Agency.^[6]

She is Motswana.^[1]

Awards and nominations

Year	Nominated work	Category	Award	Result	Notes	Ref.
2011	Unlettered Skies of the Sublime	Best Novel	Bessie Head Short Story Awards	Won		[7]
2017	I Will Be Your Grave	Best Poem	Rhysling Award	Nominated		[8]
	"Virtual Snapshots"		Nommo Award	Nominated	Longlist	[8]
2021	The Silence of the Wilting Skin	LGBTQ Speculative Fiction	Lambda Award	Nominated		[9]
		Best Novella	Nommo Award	Nominated		[10]
	"Behind Our Irises"	Best Short Story		Won	Joint winner	[11]
2022	"Dreamports"	Best Short Story		Nominated		[12]
2023	"Peeling Time (Deluxe Edition)"		Caine Prize	Nominated	Shortlist	[13]
2025	Womb City	Best First Novel	Locus Award	Nominated	Top ten finalist	[14]

Selected bibliography

Fiction — short stories

• "Who Will Clean Our Spirits When We Are Gone?", The Dark Magazine
• "The River of Night", The Dark Magazine
• "Eclipse Our Sins", Clarkesworld Magazine
• "Behind Our Irises", in Wole Talabi, editor, Africanfuturism: An Anthology (2020)
• "The River of Night" in Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki, editor, The Year's Best African Speculative Fiction (2021)
• "Peeling Time (Deluxe Edition)", in Sheree Renée Thomas, Zelda Knight, and Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki, editor, Africa Risen (2022)
• "Dreamports" in Apex Magazine (2022)

Fiction — novels and novellas

• The Silence of the Wilting Skin (2020)
• Womb City (2024)