Well Versed Author Event: Nick Makoha

In this event, we welcome poet Nick Makoha to share some poems, have a chat, and give you a chance to ask questions as part of our Well Versed series in partnership with StAnza International Poetry Festival.

Dr Nick Makoha is a Ugandan poet and playwright based in London and founder of Obsidian Foundation. His new collection is The New Carthaginians, (Penguin 2025). Winner of the 2021 Ivan Juritz Prize and the Poetry London Prize. In 2017, Nick’s debut collection, Kingdom of Gravity, was shortlisted for the Felix Dennis Prize for Best First Collection and was one of the Guardian’s best books of the year. His poems have appeared in Poetry, the Cambridge Review, the New York Times, Poetry Review, Poetry Wales, Rialto, Poetry London, TriQuarterly Review, 5 Dials, Boston Review, Callaloo, Birmingham Lit Journal and Wasafiri. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (RSL).

The Well Versed Series

Each month we will host a different poet, with a chance to read their work a week in advance as part of our Well Versed Poetry Reading group, and to write in response to it the week after as part of our Well Versed Poetry Writing group.

Please note this event will be recorded by StAnza. Speakers will be spotlit on Zoom, but if you prefer to remain anonymous please keep your camera off when asking a question.

Open Book aims to be a safe space for all our participants and Lead Readers. This means our groups should be a place in which everyone feels welcome, respected and comfortable. We ask that you follow CARE (confidentiality, attention, respect, enjoy) and the Safe Spaces Framework each time you join a session. You can read the Space Spaces Framework here.

Participants who arrive 15+ minutes late may not be admitted.

No experience necessary, all welcome, ages 18+.