How We Partner With You

Attempting to foster and improve creative writing in Africa is a tall order and we do not presume to be able to do this on our own. To make any real gains towards having the kind of impact, and reaching the number of writers we hope to reach, can only be achieved by working with others with the same/complementary interest.

And so, we work with schools, corporate organizations, publishers, writing organizations, libraries, bookclubs, and creative individuals to contribute to and support the general efforts being made to improve writing among young people on the continent, one country at a time.

Partnership with Schools

Papertown Imaginarium partners with schools to design and run programs that get pupils and students engaged with creative writing. This is what our partnership with schools look like:

  1. We work with writing instructors to come up with creative, engaging and insightful ways of teaching creative writing to pupils and students. This may involve sharing teaching techniques with writing instructors and providing them with useful materials to help them hone their own understanding and practice of the craft. This way, they are better able to guide pupils and students in their efforts to write.
  2. We work with schools to conceptualize and set up writing rooms where students and pupils can go and write. These spaces are specifically designed to inspire the desire to write and spark the writer's imagination. They are designed in ways that are comfortable and inviting, as well as being equipped with writing materials and resources that help creative brainstorming, research and writing. To ensure that writers get the most from these spaces, our work here may also involve working with writing instructors who can help guide the writers that use the space in their writing journey.
  3. We organize publication projects, mostly in form of literacy weeks, through which all pupils and students in the school are engaged in exploring various themes through writing. All the writing done are put together and published in class or theme based anthologies.
  4. We set up and help run press clubs for schools where pupils and students work together as researchers, journalists, photographers, designers, contributors and editors, to gather and share news and topics that are of interest to the school-community.

Partnership with Corporate Organizations

We work with corporate organizations to execute writing projects for young writers, such as physical writing events, festivals, publishing projects, and creation of writing rooms in designated locations.

Our work with corporate organisations is tailored towards helping these organizations fulfill their education-focused corporate social responsibility (CSR) goals. We work with the organisations to determine the best project; design, plan and execute the project; and track/monitor, and report on post-project results.

Beyond executing writing projects for corporate organizations, we welcome financial support from organizations, which goes towards funding our general operations.

Partnership with other Writing Organizations

A key part of what we do at Papertown Imaginarium is to help young writers find and take advantage of opportunities to explore and improve their writing - to help them take their writing as far as they can and want.

To do this, we partner with organizations that offer writing opportunities for young writers (such as internships, writing retreats, workshops and fellowships, etc.), helping connect them to writers on our platform.

Partnership with Individuals

From authors, (particularly authors of children and young adult books), to illustrators, poets, editors, and such others in the creative field, we welcome partnerships with individuals who are interested in encouraging and supporting creative writing among young people on the continent.

Our partnership with individuals generally takes the form of coordinating physical and virtual writing events, reviewing and giving constructive feedback to writing done by young writers, contributing to the creation of writing materials and resources distributed to young writers for free, serving as review panel members on writing project and competitions, etc.

With the funding we receive from corporate partners and individual sponsors, we may be able, from time to time, to appreciate partnering individuals for their time and work. Otherwise, as a not-for-profit, we are mostly paid with hugs, smiles and words/letters of appreciation.

Partnership with Publishers

In helping young writers explore their interest and develop their writing skill, we often work with writing materials and resources published by other publishers. We partner with these publishers to help provide writers with writing resources and materials they need in their writing education and practice.