Getting away from everything for six weeks just to write is worthwhile – Dul Johnson

Dr Dul Johnson is an interesting father figure within the writing community, especially in Jos, where he is based. Even at that, he has continually courted controversy with the title of his collection of short stories, Why Women won’t Make it To Heaven, which has had the womenfolk spoiling for war since its release. Though […]

Dr Dul Johnson is an interesting father figure within the writing community, especially in Jos, where he is based. Even at that, he has continually courted controversy with the title of his collection of short stories, Why Women won’t Make it To Heaven, which has had the womenfolk spoiling for war since its release.

Though the book was published years ago, Dr. Johnson is still grappling with questions about it, as was the case when he spoke to journalists recently at Iseyin, where he was a writer in residence at Ebedi.

“That was the title of the first story, so it was normal for me to use it. I did not choose the title, one of my students did. Even, at a reading in Abuja, women actually sat me down to explain to them what I was trying to pass across, and I gave them the explanation. The story is even pro-women, and those who have read it know this. I am not saying women won’t make it to heaven, but if they find a way to avoid those things I wrote in the story, then they will make it to heaven,” said the bearded writer.

Interestingly, he insists he was trying to ‘help’ women with that story, even though most women don’t think so.

“I was actually helping women in that story. I really wanted women to see how to shape their lives if they actually want to make it to heaven,” he said.

I know Dr. Johnson from Jos ANA, where his critical eyes and incisive remarks helped many a writer improve their works, and I also know he is not one to shy away from saying things the way they are.

“You won’t be wrong if you say that I was courting controversy,” he had said in an earlier newspaper interview, “I do have a problem getting titles for my works. Interestingly, the title story presented itself first.”

He lectures at the University of Jos, in the department of English and so knows a thing or two about reading, and how much of it is being done. Dr. Johnson believes that the blame for the poor reading culture in the country is on the writers.

“Every story teaches something to the reader and if only 10 people are able to read the story, then it would have served a purpose. However, we should not lay the whole blame on the readers alone. Supposing a story is not as interesting as the readers would like, would we blame them for not reading? But I know if a book tells an interesting story, I think there would be readers for it,” he said.

Perhaps that explains why the scholar took time off his regular life to focus on writing. He was away at the Ebedi Writers Residency for six weeks, toiling over his manuscript. Prior to that, he had been away at Brown University in the US, just to get away from life and focus on writing. Obviously, he wants to produce more than just ten people will read.

“It’s been quite useful, particularly moving out of the academic environment where there is much demand for one’s attention, and you could never find time on your own to sit down and do anything. Even though I try to leave most of my time outside the campus, phone calls would come in, all demanding my attention for one thing or the other. So when I decided that I was going to be away for six weeks and nobody could stop me, I think I have been able to do something worthwhile. I have enough time for myself here, and incidentally, the electricity has been pretty steady in this town, and this has contributed to my making progress,” he said about his residency in Ebedi.

But what exactly has the good doctor been working on, what piece of writing drove him from his family and regular life, to the hermit life the residency affords.

“I have been trying to do a story. Actually, I came to edit a story that I worked on; this is the second draft, since I had done the first draft a couple of years back and I have a full fellowship from Brown University in the United States to work on this. I spent a whole semester working on it and I thought it was done, and I read it and knew it wasn’t what I want, so when I got the opportunity to come for the residency, I just want to work more on it, and it is going on. I have made some progress. It is a novel,” he said.

But this time, Dr. Johnson is not bent on stoking the flame and pride of the opposite sex, but exactly what the novel is about remains a mystery.

Being one the beneficiaries of the first writers residency in the country, and having benefited from similar experiences elsewhere, Dr. Johnson has a suggestion or two for the brains behind Ebedi.

“I want to commend the founder, Dr Wale Okediran, for the good he is doing. I have always thought that the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA) should have had something like this. We keep talking about the Writers’ Village, this is the idea, unfortunately, nothing is coming up in that regards. I also feel writers who come here should donate one of their books; this will help in building an in-house library. Another thing is that newspapers and the internet should be made available for the residents. Again, there should be a kind of guided tour round the town. With this, the writers will not only achieve progress in their works, but they will actually know about a new environment,” he said.