DISCOVERING OUR PATHS: AN INTERVIEW WITH WRITER IJEOMA UMEBINYUO

"You cannot write only about love when your nation is literally falling apart. I have not been afforded the luxury of such life."

So writes Nigerian poet and writer Ijeoma Umebinyuo, one of the best new voices in new African poetry. I came across her works on her Tumblr blog and it’s wonderful what she is doing with words, with the muse, and how much influence she is to people with her feminist poems and quotes. I stalked her down to twitter where we have been having our little literary discourses. In this interview conducted via GTalk, I sought to know her more, especially in relation to her themes and ideals. Enjoy!!!

DISCOVERING OUR PATHS: AN INTERVIEW WITH WRITER SEUN ODUKOYA

I have known Seun Odukoya since about 2012. I met him online (and I still only know him online, even now) on the literary forum, NaijaStories.com. I could not help but notice him because, first, he was one of the top ranking writers on the scoreboard, and second, he was one of the best I knew. My interest in his literary works grew even further after I read his first book For Days and a Night. It was one book I enjoyed reading so much. But Seun had another way to draw my interest (and I’m sure he also got the interest of many others-especially women) further: I never saw a picture of him. I remember spending so much time wondering what he looks like- that awkward moment when you’re reading Shakespeare and you’re wondering if he is really human or ghostly, and if he is black, green, red, or white. Anyways, I was able to catch him on Facebook (thank God for social media), albeit I still didn’t see a picture of him. The following interview was conducted via email, as I try to get a bit more personal with him. There is one thing I can say for sure: Seun Odukoya is one man who likes to say so much by saying so little. You want to know how? Here is our interview.

DISCOVERING OUR PATHS: AN INTERVIEW WITH WRITER "ELOVE POETRY"

First time I came across the works of Kenyan-Israeli writer Elove Poetry was some years ago on the literary forum, NaijaStories.com. I knew that someday I would get her talking about her works and life but up until last year it was all but a dream. I was finally able to get her to interview with me. The following interview is intended to let us into the secret life of a writer, and why some writers write the way they do. We do not have a photograph of Elove Poetry anywhere online, and she never shares it. It’s her privacy and so we will respect and not question it Enjoy!!!.

Who is Elove Poetry?

Elove is a person of ambiguous ethnicity, don’t ask how I am cocktailed, and I have two books which I self-published – Holy Innocence and Holy Crimes co-authored with Vincent de Paul.