Exceptional publishing initiatives and collaborations
The first international award to promote individuals, organisations and initiatives that are making a lasting difference in the publishing industry.
The 2025 Aficionado Award goes to the independent publisher Seagull Books from Kolkata, India. The publisher is represented by Naveen Kishore and Sunandini Banerjee. With a keen eye for aesthetic design, linguistic diversity and literary quality, Seagull Books has created an exceptional international programme.
The 2025 Aficionado Award goes to the independent publisher Seagull Books from Kolkata, India. The publisher is represented by Naveen Kishore and Sunandini Banerjee. With a keen eye for aesthetic design, linguistic diversity and literary quality, Seagull Books has created an exceptional international programme.
In addition to its publishing work, the house is actively committed to cultural education and exchange through the Seagull Foundation for the Arts and the Seagull School of Publishing. The programme also includes works by significant German-language authors such as Max Frisch, Herta Müller and Ingeborg Bachmann.
Three outstanding projects that have been shortlisted for the Aficionado Award 2025.
Three outstanding projects that have been shortlisted for the Aficionado Award 2025.
The 2025 shortlist nominees (from left to right):
- La Disparition(opens in a new window) (Marseille) represented by Annabelle Perrin: A unique epistolary media project chronicling what is vanishing from our world.
- Seagull Books(opens in a new window) (Calcutta), represented by Sunandini Banerjee, merges world-class literature with cultural and educational engagement.
- zoralit(opens in a new window) (Berlin), represented by Laura Weber: A cooperative of literary professionals who develop joint projects and advancing fair, sustainable, and inclusive publishing.
The 2024 Aficionado Award was presented to Rita Mattar, co-founder of the poetry subscription platform Círculo de Poemas, an imprint of Fósforo Editora. Rita Mattar accepted the award on behalf of the founding team during the ceremony held on the Frankfurter International Stage.
The 2024 Aficionado Award was presented to Rita Mattar, co-founder of the poetry subscription platform Círculo de Poemas, an imprint of Fósforo Editora. Rita Mattar accepted the award on behalf of the founding team during the ceremony held on the Frankfurter International Stage.
Círculo de Poemas is a rotating collaboration project between independent publishers and publishes two books per month. Based on the motto ‘poetry can be for everyone’, it aims to create a community of readers who share a passion for poetry and literature via a monthly subscription and attending local events. Other cooperation partners of the project include bookshops, the Goethe-Institut and restaurants.
Three remarkable projects have been shortlisted for the Aficionado Award 2024.
Three remarkable projects have been shortlisted for the Aficionado Award 2024.
The 2024 shortlist nominees (from left to right):
- Alba Donati for her bookshop, La libreria sopra la Penna(opens in a new window) (Italy), in a small Tuscan village, and its accompanying literary festival.
- Rita Mattar, co-founder of the poetry subscription platform Círculo de Poemas(opens in a new window) (Brazil).
- Frederike Doppenberg for her Fifth Wave Magazine(opens in a new window) (Netherlands), which provides a platform for independent Russian authors.
The very first winner of the Aficionado Award was the Aké Arts and Book Festival in 2023. The unique festival was founded by Lola Shoneyin in 2013. Over the last decade, Aké has excelled at establishing a sense of community between participating authors while creating important connections with the local audience in Abeokuta, Lagos State. One of the festival’s explicit aims is to promote literacy, especially among a younger audience. To date, Aké has brought together writers, artists, poets and filmmakers from 29 African countries.
The very first winner of the Aficionado Award was the Aké Arts and Book Festival in 2023. The unique festival was founded by Lola Shoneyin in 2013. Over the last decade, Aké has excelled at establishing a sense of community between participating authors while creating important connections with the local audience in Abeokuta, Lagos State. One of the festival’s explicit aims is to promote literacy, especially among a younger audience. To date, Aké has brought together writers, artists, poets and filmmakers from 29 African countries.
The 2023 shortlist nominees:
- Lola Shoneyin, founder of the Aké Arts and Book Festival(opens in a new window) (Nigeria).
- The Passenger(opens in a new window), a unique book magazine (Iperborea and Europa Editions).
- The Meridian Czernowitz International Literary Corporation(opens in a new window) (Ukraine).