‘It’s hard choosing between medicine and writing’

First: Congratulations on making the NLNG shortlist. What was your reaction on learning of your being shortlisted for the prize? I was understandably thrilled and honoured. This year’s shortlist is a rather strong one. What do you make of it and the competition? You are right, it is indeed strong competition. I have actually read […]

First: Congratulations on making the NLNG shortlist. What was your reaction on learning of your being shortlisted for the prize?

I was understandably thrilled and honoured.

This year’s shortlist is a rather strong one. What do you make of it and the competition?

You are right, it is indeed strong competition. I have actually read and do admire quite a few books on the list.

What would you say your chances are?

Who can tell? It’s up to the judges and what appeals to them. It’s most definitely out of my hands.

How important is it for you to win the prize and what would you do with all that money?

I think it will be presumptuous of me to make any assumptions at this stage  But you will note that the awards committee has made recommendations,  a wish-list of sorts,  outlining how they hope that the award money would be spent.  I think or I hope all the nominees have taken note.

Your book, Oneado: The Blacksmith’s Daughter, is a historical novel set in the 16th century. What was it that intrigued you about this almost forgotten period that you felt you just had to write about it?

It is a time in Nigerian or West African history that growing up in Nigeria we hardly heard about even though we were surrounded everywhere by evidence of our Portuguese past. For instance a city like Lagos was named after a Portuguese city of the same name. And then other places like Forcados and Escravos derived their names from our Portuguese heritage.

How long did it take you to write this novel?

Too long. About four to five years. The others will hopefully not take that long.

Tell us of your rejected stories. All writers have had to deal with it. How difficult was it to get this book published and how did you deal with the initial rejections?

Rejection knocks your confidence and makes you wonder if all the work you have put in has been in vain. So you must be prepared.  If they are kind enough to give you usable advice, you use it; you polish your work and find an agent that deals with your genre.

Interestingly, you had to do a lot of research for this novel. The novel is coloured by this research but not cluttered by it. How did you manage to achieve this?

I made an early decision to move away from didactics and add as much drama as I could.  As a scientist, a medical doctor, my training is to make an argument and put forward theories to support or refute. But thankfully I have an artistic side to my brain too and that’s what I put into my writing.

How did you come about conceiving an interesting and likeable character like Onaedo?

She’s  also complex and sometimes stubborn, just like a lot of teenagers I know!

Your novel ends in a way that suggests there might be a sequel. Are we likely to have a sequel or are you moving on to something else?

Both. My next book is about something else, but after being coy about it for some time, I have to admit now that there will be a sequel to The Blacksmith’s Daughter.

I suppose that when talking about Ngozi Achebe, her uncle Chinua Achebe would have to come up. He has been an inspiration for virtually all Nigerian writers.  You started, just like your uncle did, with a historical novel. How much of an influence would you say he has been to you in particular?

A lot.  His work as editor of the African Writer’s Series for over a decade introduced me and a lot of young people to the concept of writing, especially African writing.  I owe Chinua Achebe a debt of gratitude; we all do.

You are passionate about medical practice and writing, but really, which would you say is your first love?

For me, medicine is a vocation and a way of life, a job I have done all my working life so far. I also love literature and writing having been raised in it too.  And so it is now difficult for me to choose.

Incidentally my uncle Chinua, as most of your readers may know, also started life in medicine but found his heart early and went for literature so that medicine’s loss now became literature’s greatest gain. Maybe I left my choices too late but I can’t say I have any regrets.

And finally, being a medical doctor and raising two lovely children, how on earth do you find the time to write?

My children Nnamdi and Jennifer have both been huge blessings to me. The truth is that I love all I’m doing now and as long as I can, I will find a way to tell the stories that need to be told, in ways that people will hear and hopefully understand. I’ve been truly blessed indeed and I thank God and all the people that are coming with me on this journey.