Being an avid reader of Nigerian and African literature, I have always been interested in finding out how authors come to be, how they approach their craft, and, most of all, how like the rest of us they are. It is this interest – part curiosity, part awe – that has inspired me to track down some of Africa’s best writers, and begin the Author Q&A.
See the series so far:
Helon Habila – On strangers bearing tales, bad poetry, and the return of Christ.
Tonikan Onwordi – On infidelity and epiphanies in foreign lavatories.
Chika Unigwe – On nostalgia and Alastair Campbell’s endorsement.
Alisa Ahlam – On Ayaan Hirsi, dinner dates with Hemingway and being Muslim Sex And The City.
Chinelo Okparanta – On glossophobia, overcoming the temptation of Adichie’s literature, and the bum-expanding implications of writing
Lola Shoneyin – On Mad Magazine, being published in Hebrew, and resurrecting the yam pounder.
Myne Whitman – On stuffy collars in Ivory Towers, characters spewing philosophy, and The Road that remains Famished.
Jude Dibia – On emotional truth, a writer’s stubborness and a salesperson’s epiphany
Diana Evans – On wrestling the beast of plot and Amy Winehouse’s encore
Unoma Azuah – On querying God, children’s fiction, and bankable literature.
Billy Kahora – On bad behaviour, Binyavanga Wainana, and quantity surveying
Noo Saro-Wiwa – On eavesdropping in buses, ancient hominids, and BBC Book of the Week
Chibundu Onuzo – On infant recollections, selective amnesia, and dying to make a classic
Nnedi Okorafor – On dyslexia, unpleasant classics and Whoopi Goldberg
Victor Ehikhamenor – On misquoting the Bible, avoiding Islam and the art of letter writing
Tolulope Popoola – On losing her way, rediscovering self, and conquering her fear
Kenechi Udogu – On world-building, the sticky middle, and been trapped in a teenage mind
MissOjikutu 