Thursday, December 31, 2015

More reviews for 2016?: Yes... By Authors For Authors

Gold Star by www.psdgraphics.com
Dear writers, authors, and creative people out there,

I hope "2015" has been a fulfilling year for you and that you were able to achieve all your writing goals.

Some of you might not have set any goals, but still accomplished something; some might have set goals and went beyond them; while others might have set goals but didn't accomplish all or any of them. But don't worry, 2016 is just around the corner to complete all that is left and focus on new goals.

I honestly didn't set any writing goals for 2015, but I was able to complete two novels; two novellas, and about five or more short stories, but I only got to publish one novel, one novella, and two short stories... not bad, right? That's only because I said I want to publish a novel a year. The novellas and short stories are just pleasant additions for me.

For my 2016, I want to write two novels, one novella, and two short stories by Q2/Q3, then I can use the rest of the year for publishing, marketing, researching, exploring, learning, etc.

Also, I want to READ a lot in 2016 and share with authors the best way we can get reviews, and more reviews this new year...

Sunday, December 13, 2015

NYSC Writing Contest - 2nd Edition

Hello everyone,

After the success of the first short story contest, we decided to organise the next one, as planned, only that the timing was sort of bad.

The NYSC has always had three batches each year A, B and C, but of recent, it has been 6 batches, each batch having 2 streams.

This has caused the orientation camp period to follow each other closely, sometimes leaving little or no time for proper planning. The batches in November and December 2015 were done back to back, so we had to modify the contest and make it a "Poetry" contest with limited number of lines, so that it would make it easier for them to send in their stories on time. That being said, the amount of time given wasn't sufficient enough for everyone, and we ended up getting only four entries. Most of the other poems came in long after the contest, and therefore they couldn't be considered.

In order not to waste the effort of those who submitted their poems on time, I have decided to publish the poems here and also give out the four prizes as promised- four copies of a collection of poems titled "The Clarion Call" by author Albert Seraphin. So please as you read and enjoy them, vote for your 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th places. Thank you :)

Here goes:

Wednesday, December 2, 2015

When Fiction Becomes Reality

My third novel titled “Dim Noo Abroad,” which literally means “My husband is abroad” in Igbo (Nigerian) language, was born out of a one-sentence reply to a simple question “why?”

I was at a Café close to Paris-Gare de Lyon in 2011 with two friends discussing life, work, and what the future held when one of them announced that she was moving back to Nigeria for good.

“Why?” was the natural response-cum-question to follow, and it did, from both my other friend and myself.

The friend who had thrown the bomb replied, “Because I want to get married, and I don’t want to be like those girls in the east (Eastern Nigeria) who keep saying “Dim noo abroad,” “Dim noo abroad.”