IN DEPTH INTERVIEW SERIES: Week of 2 May 2016

Kariuki wa Nyamu aka Nyamu KJ

Tell us about yourself…

My name is Kariuki wa Nyamu aka Nyamu KJ. I am a poet, radio playwright and editor who hails from Mwea, Central Kenya. I am also a high school teacher of English and Literature. I am glad to have been irrigated academically in two countries; Kenya and Uganda. I am a Makerere University graduate with honours in English, Literature and Education. I have won creative writing competitions at school, university and national level. My poetry is published in several best selling anthologies. Apart from poetry and radio plays, I also write film scripts, short stories, satirical pieces as well as Children’s tales. I am also a skilled verse and public speaking coach, film enthusiast and music lover. Above all, I am a practicing Christian and son of an evangelist.

Tell us about the poetry scene in your country…

For a long time, Kenya has had many renowned poets who have been anthologized in myriad Africa’s bestselling poetry books. This informs us that poetry writing in Kenya has been vibrant. However, in contemporary Kenyan poetry scene, page poets have apparently been overshadowed by spoken word poets. In fact, the vivacious performances by spoken word poets are sought after thus very trendy especially among the youth. Nevertheless, page poets are still relevant in contemporary Kenyan society although the rate of publication of poetry books is considerably low as compared to other Literature genres like novels, plays and short stories. There are also innumerable poetry forums and events which feature both page and spoken word poets hence offering them exposure.

What influences your creativity?

I spent my formative years in the countryside before we moved to town. The former environment is certainly favorable for creative writing due to its serenity. I also grew up in a very creative environment where our grandmother could routinely tell us stories. The tradition of storytelling which she instilled in me has had a lasting literary impact in my life as a creative writer and poet. My mother is also a proficient storyteller and singer. She inspires me a lot. I must say that my creativity has also been influenced by accessibility of novellas, novels, plays, poetry books, right from primary school. I used to read one novella after another, something that significantly improved my creative writing skills. Besides, our teachers could also engage us in outdoor storytelling sessions especially in hot afternoons. This led to constant writing of imaginative compositions that largely impressed my teachers, classmates and family. So, you can see my creative writing skills have a long history. In my high school days, I immensely enjoyed reading, analyzing and writing poems, something that boosted my creativity. Studying Literature at both Advanced and university level in Uganda also influenced my creativity due to more exposure to world’s Literature. I also love traveling, especially long journeys, and this significantly influences my creativity a great deal in that I conceive great ideas that later turn into poetry.

How do you get around life and your creativity, how do you achieve balance between these, living, and creativity?

Well, I must say that my creativity helps me to live a rewarding life. My pains are turned into gains while my pressures are turned into pleasures. Besides, I always relate well with creative people who inspire me a great deal. Still, engaging in lively interactions and intelligent talks with my family, friends, colleagues and students also boosts my creativity. So I have never erected fences to separate my life from creativity.   

What do you feel is lacking in writing, or poetry making in the continent and how do you think we can solve this?

It deeply pains me when I realize that mentorship in the field of poetry is still deficient. Few renowned poets of African descent, whether living in Africa or in the diaspora, have bothered to nurture budding poets. I can affirm that there are countless undiscovered poets in the villages, towns and cities who have no idea that they are sitting on their poetic writing potential. Can you imagine it took me two decades for society to realize that a poet was born? Well, I all along knew that there is great poetic writing potential in me but I lacked mentorship until I moved to Uganda for my Advanced Level Education. This mentorship continued when I proceeded to Makerere University for my undergraduate degree. That aside, I am greatly indebted to associations such as NABOTU, FEMRITE, African Writers’ Trust and Babishai Niwe Poetry Foundation for offering me steadfast mentorship. Allow me to also appreciate the efforts of my teachers and lecturers at St. Lawrence Creamland Campus and Makerere University respectively for the unwavering inspiration and mentorship. Having said that, I would like to urge all accomplished African poets to nurture especially the budding poets by holding training and mentorship workshops as well as helping them to get published. With this, African poetry will grow immensely.  

If you were a poem, what type or form will you be in, and why?

I would have wished to be a love poem because I believe in Love.

What type of sports are you into?

I love athletics a lot. I also get pleasure from walking fast, whether alone or with company. Basically, this boosts my creativity since I conceive grand ideas that I later use to craft my poetry.

Tells us about your poems in Best New African Poets Anthology…

I conceived the first poem, “The Extraordinary Love Poem,” in one of my senior Literature classes; as I was explaining to my students the meaning of each mentioned stylistic device. If you interact with it closely, you will realize that the persona mentions stylistic devices and artistically relates them with the love experience while illuminating what each is. Frankly speaking, this poem is very close to my heart. The second poem “Palaver” explores modern African societies which are for the most part in ruins. The third poem “Love’s Art and Love-craft” superbly uses form, structure and language to tell the story of uncertainties of love. Basically, since their publication, I have greatly enjoyed enormous literary exposure. I convey my gratification to the editors of BNAP Anthology for their munificent efforts of editing and publishing this book.

What do you think can be done to improve BNAP anthology, in the future editions; marketing, editorial etc?

I humbly propose the idea of holding regional book launches of the future editions which will further inform the public about the poetry book, so that we can have West African, Northern Africa, Southern Africa and East African book launches held in major cities of the respective regions of the continent. This will market the book extensively as well as acting as a platform of inspiring young and upcoming poets into writing. The editors can also consider involving poets from the respective regions in a programme that aims to nurture young talents especially high school and university students. Trust me, there is great talent there. Another thing that needs improvement concerns distribution of the book in major cities of the continent and out of Africa, that is, if funds allow, since in this edition, the distribution has been limited.   

IN DEPTH INTERVIEW SERIES: Week of 18 April 2016

An interview with Anthony Osei

Tell us about yourself

My Name is Anthony Akoto Osei Jr. I am a 1^st Generation Ghanaian-American, the 1^st born son of two Ghanaian Immigrants who came to America to complete their Tertiary educations.  As a Health Science specialist I have had the honor of working for and with the Veteran Affairs Medical Centers in Cleveland, Ohio and Oakland, CA. It was working with Veterans in aiding them to find healthier ways to deal with Stress, OTSD and depression that I was able to make us of the Poetic writing schools I picked up in High school and thought I would discard upon deciding to pursue Public Health and Clinical Research.  Currently I am blessed to live in Alameda, CA with my fiancee’ Claudette Davis and our two pet-children 7 year old Gucci Osei and 2 year old Pabou.

Tell us about the poetry scene in your country

Modern Poetry in Ghana has made a significant boost in popularity over the last couple of years, but there are not too many internationally acclaimed Ghanaian poets that most people know. Instead, Ghana as a cultural melting pot is known for Folk stories and art written in the native dialects of “Twi” and Ga which typically speak of a Love for Nature, GOD and fellow Human Beings.

What influences your creativity?

Having had the opportunity to travel to many different countries, my artwork is fueled by my own personal experiences dealing with Life and Loss as well as the interactions I have been able to make with many many people from vastly different cultures. My poetry is influenced by a desire to communicate within a word where it is difficult for even LOVERS to communicate adequately with each other.

How do you get around life and your creativity, how do you achieve balance between these, living and creativity.

I do not see Living and Creativity as separate. To me, the process of creation requires one to actually live AND experience simultaneously. It demands of us Truthfulness in the interpretation of the things and occurrences we say on a daily basis and how those experiences shape our very minds. The artists is one who takes that Influence and turns it into a physical expression that can be Perceived, Observed and eventually understood through relation.

What do you feel is lacking in writing, or poetry making in the continent and how do you think we can solve this

People always speak of certain voices missing in the stage of poetry: not enough people of color, not enough women, not enough men…. Personally I think poetry in the modern age  is lacking Commitment to its broader audience. Most poets, regardless of who they are only Write to be heard speaking about an issue that is mostly Personal to them alone. Most poets fail to use their avenue to raise awareness surrounding issues that do not directly pertain to them or their experiences in life. This a detriment. Writing about ONLY what you care about limits a Poet in both Creativity and accessible Inspiration.

If you were a poem, what type or form will you be in, and why?

I would not be confided to a particular form if I were a poet as the art of writing for me is a form of Escape and Freedom and I would not want to be stuck within a single form of expertise or ability.

What type of sports are you into.

I personally engage in Swimming, Running, Track & Field, Cultural and Urban Dance, Capoeira Angola and Regional, Various forms of Martial Arts and Yoga. I also enjoy watching Basketball and UEFA Football (Soccer for Americans)

Tells us about your poems in BNAP

My poems are all about my experiences growing up as a Ghanaian American within various environments. They are my point of view, interaction with the world.

What do you think can be done to improve BNAP anthology, in the future editions; marketing, editorial etc..

More publicity overseas in the US and UK would greatly benefit BNAP in the future. 

IN DEPTH INTERVIEW SERIES: Week of 3 April 2016

BNAP presents an interview with Fayssal Chafaki, the Poet from the Kingdom Of Morocco

Who is Fayssal Chafaki

Whenever I am being, respectively, asked this question, my answer reveals itself this way. I am a simple farmer, poet, and writer. This humble answer summarizes a great deal of the poet's life, as it also sheds light upon who Fayssal Chafaki, the Poet of the Kingdom of Morocco, is. I am a farmer because this is what I have chosen to be. I am a poet because this is my nature, my inner self, and the reason of my existence. I am a writer because my modest academic background has granted me, alongside the composition of poetry since childhood, the ability to write prose in terms of short stories, articles, novel-attempts, books, and research papers related to the study of Phonology. (My writings in prose are only in English.) Fayssal Chafaki, in a sum of words, is a Moroccan Arab poet, whose poetic style still preserves the norms and conventions of Classical Poetry, both in Arabic and English, in form and content, but delivers conventionally and conveys faithfully a modern and contemporary message to a multi-cultural literary audience. Fayssal Chafaki, the farmer, the poet, and the writer, lives now in the Western country-side of the Kingdom of Morocco, where he leads a normal life, yet full of struggle, and where he has devoted himself to revive poetry and literature which, seemingly, have ceased to play their great and important role in his country.

Tell us what inspires you to create

To be frank with you, the one and only thing that inspires me the most will have to be the last thing I mention to you. I can almost be inspired by anything that surrounds me. Nature and the farm come first. Then, the fact of being away from the noises of the city-life is what constantly pushes me to create. I can also compose under any circumstances and, above all, when I am faced with stress. When I sense danger, mainly danger that threatens faith, ethics, my homeland, human-being existence as a whole, or any kind of danger that may menace all of us, I use my pen. I compose for war, as I compose for peace. Many of my Arabic and English poems are triggered either by a global, or social, or political event that necessitates the interference of poetry. Sometimes I can be inspired by a simple post on social-media sites, an article I've read, a video I have watched, a comment that made me happy or upset, a kind message or a provoking insult, an old poem, a beautiful lady, a flower, a bird, an insect, an idea, simple or complex, a piece of art, a constellation of the stars, the raising sun, the moon and the clouds, the rain and the winds, the movement of the seasons, calm and solitude, my adorable spouse, my beloved little daughter, my dear mother, and even a friend or a person who may request a certain poem for him or her. At the end, the one and only thing that inspires me the most, and which I always consider the source and power of my Arabic and English poems, is the Holy Qur'an.

Above being a poet you are also a farmer and academic, tell us how you balance these three

I have mentioned the fact of combining between poetry, writing, and farming into one of my Arabic poems stating that “By day, my work, a hoe in my hand; and when night comes, it is my pen.”In truth, farming has never appeared to hinder me  from composing my poems, reading, writing, or conducting research. The farm is not that big enough, so the work there is easily planned and done. Usually my work in the farm starts early in the morning and ends with sunset. After the kids go to bed I isolate myself in a room and begin either to compose a poem, or read, or deal with my writings. I always find the appropriate moment to be in the company of books, papers, and pen. I also find time, occasionally, to be on-line and post some of my poems. Conducting academic research as a farmer and a poet, though demanding, is given a share of my time, and has never been a heavy task for me. Mainly my academic research is conducted independently after facing major obstacles from some university professors. The main focus of my research papers evolves around the study of sounds in Arabic and Old languages. The life of a farmer is very simple, and so the life of a poet, or a writer. To balance between these three, I always feel the need to exert mental effort beside physical one. You may not recognize me as a poet and a humble educated person when I am wearing my boots and plowing the land for crops, but when I compose and write you will.

Tell us about your work as a farmer, what crops you grow or animals you keep etc

The farm, as I mentioned above, is not that big enough, a four acres land, situated in a plain zone in the West of the Kingdom of Morocco. The main agriculture we deal with is seasonal. We grow wheat, corn, beans, carrots, onions, clover, and different types of vegetables in a system of rotation. In the past ten years and more, we used to find difficulties with irrigation. In the present day we have been able to set a small system of drip irrigation that really saves time and effort. As to animals we keep, for the time being there is only some chicken and few sheep, as we witnessed a period of drought and lack of cattle feed. During this actual season, we are planting yellow melon. We are also planning to innovate our small farming agriculture techniques and methods. The whole work in the farm is done and managed by my brother and I, and our two small families.

Tell us about the Moroccan poetry and literary scene, both performance and written

Very recently, the Moroccan Prime Minister announced that the Kingdom in the future will not be in need of poets, writers, philosophers, and Men of Letters, but rather will be in need of people who produce wealth. This is encouraging and dis-encouraging at the same time. Encouraging in the sense that poets in the Kingdom of Morocco will have to be more creative than they may happen to be, and of course dis-encouraging in the sense that poetry and literature are endangered in my country. This leads us to tackle the issue of Moroccan poetry and the literary scene in brief. Moroccan poetry possesses a rich poetic and literary heritage. Poets of the twentieth century like Al Halwi, Al Balghiti, and Bin Brahim will always be the same great modern poetry figures who have lit the path for many other poets. Today, unfortunately, there is very few poets like these great ones, if not even a single one. The reason lies behind the fact that great poets like Al Halwi, Al Balghiti, and Bin Brahim belong to the Arabic Prosodic Poetry school, also called Classical Poetry. After these poets and their likes have gone, Free-verse “poets” have taken the literary scene for a period of three to four decades with the claim that Moroccan Arabic Classical Poetry is not fit for the modern world, and, therefore, is dead. As a result to this kind of literary “conflict” between Free-verse and Classical poetry schools in their Moroccan Arab context, Moroccan poetry, and Arabic poetry in general, degraded. Poetry lost huge audiences of ordinary and educated people alike. This made the literary scene vulnerable to low culture interference, where commercial singing and dancing festivals, for instance, replaced poetry and literary gatherings. People's artistic taste in Morocco have deteriorated towards consumable and ready-made low types of art, leaving poetry and literature into a dark corner face to face with oblivion. There are of course contemporary Moroccan poets who also belong to the same prosodic Arabic poetry school but are seldom active in the literary scene, and if there is any, they do not happen to gather their efforts and collaborate with each other to bring back poetry on stage. Some Moroccan poets secure themselves into closed groups and organize their own events without taking the pain to open their arms to other poets. Some others are timid. Some are fake. Journalists, critics, university professors, the Ministry of Culture, and media are also responsible for such grave and dire situation poetry and literature has reached in the Kingdom of Morocco. Media platforms and newspapers are for sale. Critics are blocked. University professors do not care very often. The Ministry of Culture supports everything but poets' creative work. This is in brief the harsh reality behind the literary scene in my country. To measure how much does a nation value its poets, it would be enough to see how many of them are honored by that nation. My country, I am sorry to say it, values the more all that would help spread ignorance, not what would enlighten brains. The burden is still upon us, poets, to bring poetry's fame back.

If you were to be reborn, what form would you like to return in

If I were to be born again, I would like to return into nothing but the same Servant of Creator, the same human being, the same simple poet. I would like some change, yes, but a change in time and probably in space. I would like to return in time when bards used to be listened to, respected, counseled, and regarded with high esteem. As to place, it does not matter. Everywhere there is the High Creator, and everywhere there is Him, we have a chance to be reborn.

Tell us about your poem, No Wise Man in BNAP

Talking about my poem “No Wise Man”, or any other poem of mine, is always done with some reservation. I prefer to leave room for readers, critics, audiences, and potential researchers to study the poem, or poems, without the interference of the poet, fearing that my opinion, somehow, about the meaning, the structure, or the whole essence of the poem would be taken for granted and considered as a final judgment. Yet, I can always talk about the circumstances under which this particular poem has seen light and the reason behind composing it. “No Wise Man” is a poem about a very old so-called political conflict in the North of Africa. The poem is one among a series of English poems defending the Issue of Moroccan Sahara. “No Wise Man” points to the issue of the Moroccan Sahara and is considered very critical for the poet. The Moroccan Sahara for him is an issue of existence, and in his poem “No Wise Man” he provides evidence to support his right. This poem, and all the other poems that fall under the title of “Defending the Moroccan Sahara” explain to what extent the poet is related and linked to this desert part of his homeland. The poem indicates that the Moroccan Sahara is the poet's mother and place of birth, mentions the poet's origins as connected to his Moroccan Sahrawi nomad grandfather, and informs the reader smoothly about the reality and truth of this so-called conflict. The poet in this poem, “No Wise Man”, refuses to break his historical ties and bonds with his grandfathers who constantly live in the Moroccan Sahara. The poet respects the past, lives the present, and looks for a peaceful tomorrow in the region, as reflected in his poem. What really triggers the poet to compose poems defending the Moroccan Sahara is that the poet is born six months before this so-called conflict started. Prior to 1975 there has been no such dispute and no one has claimed that the Moroccan Sahara is another nation. During that period the whole Kingdom of Morocco has been suffering from colonization. The North and the South is colonized by Spain while the rest is colonized by France. French colonizers have left the country in 1956 and the Spanish have kept the Moroccan Sahara under their control until later. We have been colonized, and so many African countries, and still today there are greedy persons who want to divide our country. The same tribes that live in the Moroccan Sahara are living all around the Kingdom today. All these reasons above, and many other ones, are behind the composition of “No Wise Man”. The poem at the end makes it clear that only a fool will keep fighting for something that does not belong to him or her, and that the earth will only be owned by the creator.

What does BNAP represent for you and the continent at large and what improvements do you want to see in the next BNAP

BNAP is home for me and the best and unique adobe for African poets. BNAP is a torch of enlightenment the continent really needs. It has succeeded into bringing African poets together and presenting them to the world. By this, BNAP has carved a honorable mark in the field of poetry and literature. BNAP is a new African literary movement able to carry the universal message of poetry and give Africa a strong voice among other continents. I will always be happy to see BNAP supporting African poets and leading them towards success. I certainly hope that future series of BNAP would welcome more African poets, especially young ones, and would one day, if possible, include poems in Arabic and Hausa. BNAP is always that heart that speaks for Africa.

Fayssal Chafaki

The Poet of the

Kingdom of Morocco

04/04/2016

IN DEPTH INTERVIEW SERIES: Week of 28 March 2016

This week BNAP features Angolan poet TAGORE RABIN DINURA and Nigerian poet Kelechi Ezeigwe

1-CONTE-NOS SOBRE SI MESMO E SUA FORMAÇÃO LITERÁRIA.

TAGORE RABIN DINURA, pseudónimo de Dilen Alsungas Pandieira José, nasceu aos 12 de Outubro de 1987, no Sumbe, em Angola. Nasci nos finais dos anos 8o. Mas ainda criança meus pais me levaram para capital, Luanda. Na época o país estava em guerra.

Angola é minha paisagem, e o essencial de minha poesia são as coisas simples.

Pois ser poeta: “É descrever o que se sente verdadeiramente, a cada instante da existência.

Não acredito num sistema poético, numa organização poética. Irei

Mais longe: não creio nas escolas, nem no Simbolismo, nem no Realismo, nem

No Surrealismo. Sou absolutamente desligado dos rótulos que se colocam nos

Produtos. Gosto dos produtos, não dos rótulos”. Por isso me defino como devorador de livros.

 Gosto do produto e não do rótulo. Pois me entrego a fundo a procura dos grandes sentimentos humanos, como o amor, a amizade e a liberdade.

Quero levar a minha poesia a muitos habitantes. E há muitos lugares, exprimindo em meus versos os anseios da África. Com o efeito de uma força natural, vitalizada no destino e nos sonhos de um continente”. Cheio de senso de humor camponês, de uma bondade activa e infatigável.

Quero revelar ao mundo. Empenho e na resistência do amor.

Convertendo – me numa cifra de metal sem nome, uma espécie de guerreiro que protesta contra a injustiça social.

Assim me defino poeta do povo. Cuidando a forma, o ritmo, e sem perder meu

Ímpeto original, buscando novas e simples reacções, de um novo mundo harmonioso, cheio de amor pela existência. Na certeza de uma vocação escolhida.

2-O QUE VOCÊ ACHA CONJUNTOS QUE MAIS ALÉM DA SUA GERAÇÃO DE POETAS?

OS POETAS MAIS ALÉM DA MINHA GERAÇÃO FORAM DIGNOS DO SEU TEMPO

3-QUAIS SÃO SEUS LIVROS FAVORITOS, AUTORES, ARTISTAS E POR QUÊ.

Meus livros favoritos são dos escritores da era dourada da poesia, estou falando dos anos vinte. E por a adiante….

4- O que você está trabalhando agora?

SOU UM HOMEM DE MUITA CRIATIVIDADE, TENHO SEMPRE IDEIAS.

5-QUANTAS VEZES VOCÊ ESCREVE?

Sou um poeta estudante, que não leva uma vida extravagante. Defendo meus hábitos literários

Trabalhando em meu quarto, escrevendo 5 poemas por dia.

Tomando intermináveis chávenas de chá…  

6-o que leva a sua criatividade?

A minha criatividade da ao homem o que é do homem, leva, estrelas, sonho e luz, noite, razão e paixão para singelos habitantes que pedem: água e lua elementos da  ordem orgãos imutável: escolas, pão e vinho guitarras e ferramentas.

7-qual é a sua comida, bebida favorita

NÃO TENHO. COMO TUDO QUE FAZ BEM AO MEU ESTOMAGO.

8- Conte-nos algo que você fez ou o que aconteceu para você que você ainda pode se envergonhar.

ENGRAÇADA ESTA PERGUNTA, LEMBRO QUE UMA VEZ ESCREVI NA MINHA FOLHA DE PROVA DE MATEMATICA: “ A MATEMATICA NÃO É DIFICIL O MAIS DIFICIL É SABER TRANSMITIR.

E O MEU PROFESSOAR A BRAÇOU-ME E DISSE MUITO OBRIGADO POR ESTA BELA LIÇÃO.

 Kelechi Ezeigwe: “Writing is my Calling”

This week I got to meet Lagos based writer, Kelechi Ezeigwe, who breaks from the mould of accepted African  literature by writing queer poetry. Renowned writer, Charles Bukowski* once wrote, “unless it [poetry] comes unasked out of your heart and your mind and your mouth and your gut, don't do it [write].” Kelechi Ezeigwe definitely didn’t start writing for fame or recognition but because of an inner calling that could not be ignored, “I am poet not because I am supposed to be or because I learnt to become one or because being a writer comes with this gorgeous aura. I am a poet because it is my calling. I am born with it and what I should be bothered about is whether I am doing that which I am called to do. Nothing attracted me to writing poetry. It runs in the vein.”

TN: What has drawn you to writing feminist poetry?

KE: I once told a friend that there is a sharp difference not only between a man and a woman, but also between a man and an effeminate man. I know how it feels to be suppressed, to be perceived as inferior. It comes with something that kills you, that quenches a fire within. I tell people I’m a feminist because I saw myself being a feminist. I support women’s rights but I never knew there was a defined name for that until I was mature enough to discover they call us feminists and I’m happy being one because it soothes my ideology of freedom, to have a defined individualism, to be who you are as a human, a woman, an effeminate man, as any common man out there hatching his or herself out of this suppressing conformity. There are rights worthy to be fought for; feminist rights, gay rights. I am fortunate to be woven into these two.

TN: What sort of challenges have you experienced as a budding writer?

KE: Well I am still that kind of budding writer who is yet to feel the warmth or maybe harshness of the weather. But if there is any challenge I encounter it is the fact that I am interested in and I prefer to write queer poetry. It is not ‘conformity’, it is not the ‘African culture’, so many people would say I’m crazy, that I am rotten not knowing that being Gay is like being black or white or heterosexual, or African. It is an identity as one of my friends once said. Writing this kind of literature in a world that detests it is a mountain of a challenge.

TN: How have you been influenced by other writers?

KE: Since I met Audre Lords I walked through the streets with my head much higher than it used to be. I am happy that I have always been comfortable with myself; I have always been proud of myself as an effeminate man. Audre Lords fanned the furnace. I love the fact she is out with whom she is. She is a poet with hundreds of amazons inside of her.

TN: And how do you feel about the completed project of the BNAP anthology?

KE: The anthology is a new birth to the world, growing everyday with this admirable vitality. I read some of the reviews and I am happy there are other writers who are interested in writing queer literature. It is inspiring; it is refreshing. The most beautiful of all is the fine nature of the book to bear in itself every piece of humanity, every word and emotion in the heart of humanity, to be born with this spring of diverse colours of rainbow, of you and of me and of someone out there seeing his or herself through that anthology; the hundreds of poems. There is nothing more splendid.  

Kelechi Ezeigwe has been published in The Muse journal of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He is a first prize winner for poetry in the 2015 Muse Literary Arts Festival. He lives in Lagos.

*Charles Bukowski, “So You Want to be a Writer”

IN DEPTH INTERVIEW SERIES: Week of 21 February 2016

This week BEST NEW AFRICAN POETS has a double interview with Fiona Khan and Magno Domingos

 

Em ser um PEN- GUINÉ , Fiona Khan leva-nos profundamente em seu mundo bonito e animado como um poeta , pessoa, mulher, artista e pensador, e cito: " Tudo é por uma razão ou uma escolha ou uma motivação . Nada é incidental. O Universo eu vejo como uma criação relativa. É uma fonte de energia transiente e é binária . Nossas vidas aqui são apenas uma passagem, uma passagem ou um cruzamento. Não há permanência de qualquer coisa " .

And here is Magno Domingos secret. Some day he went to church late with his wife, thus they had to sit at separate places since the church was almost full. Midway into the preacher man’s boring sermon, he left for home, forgetting he had come with his wife to church. Midway home he remembered he had left his wife at church, thus he drove back to pick her. Magno says this still embarrasses him

ON BEING A PEN-GUINE:   Fiona Khan

       

My literary meandering started in 1992. It was my first poem published in America entitled The Cheetah and the Antelope. It was the start of many successes. These successes came from a very painful backdrop of domestic violence, emotional and mental abuse. There was only one thing that could save my sanity and that was one thing I was born with. My writing! Being gifted was something my teachers discovered when I entered school. They groomed and nurtured that talent through much toil and encouragement because I guess I always broke the conventions. I made and lived by my own rules and restrictions. My appetite and thirst for writing and reading was and still is voracious. I feel bereft or lost without it. Having a lonely childhood with very much older brothers and sisters my only companions were music and books. I am a fantastic singer from opera to pop. I wrote on everything. Toilet paper, tissues, newspapers, walls, books, pages ….

There were many poems published internationally in many magazines and anthologies. In 1995 I had my first children’s book published called I Am What I Am in five languages. It set me on a path that has been an adrenalin rush and I marvelled and cherished every moment.

What sets me apart from other poets is that I was raised and taught classics in literature. So I write with an excellent vocabulary and many feel that it makes me too bourgeoisie. It was a harsh lesson to tone down. I started spoken word poetry in 1995 and even converted it into a dramatic art form on stage with Windows of a Women’s Mind. I know how to teach students and children to write and perform poetry using rap, musical instruments and drama. I can write immediately on any topic and that’s versatility. I don’t need prompts. I have not been promoted much because of racism. Writing and publishing in South Africa has always been white and elitist and sadly I stood alone all these years fighting the system. Now we have young black yuppies who have taken up the fight and I am glad. I was really ostracised for speaking out against the system.

I am a bookaholic and invented the word ‘únputdownable’ in 1982. I live breathe and write books. I am listless if I do not read. I have become more sophisticated now with the social media where I receive all my news, reviews and the latest on everything. I have quirkiness like I must read a new book or the daily paper that is untouched. I love the fresh smell and the crispness of the pages.

My favourite books started at three years old. I was raised on fairy tales and there was one story that was edged in my mind as it was used to scare or control my waywardness. It was called The Hobbiyas and little Dog Turpy. At 4 years old I was an avid reader. At 5 the librarian used to keep all the Noddy books for me. I revelled in Enid Blyton and Beatrix Potter and read them voraciously. I was fluent at 5 years of age. My appetite for books was unstoppable. Even the librarian and my family couldn’t cope. As I grew as an orphan it became my only solace.  I was captivated by Shakespeare at the age of 12 and Thomas Hardy and Dickens, then the Iliad and the Odyssey, I read Lady Chatterley’s Lover at 12 years. It was a banned book in South Africa. My brother brought history alive with his vivid narratives of Egypt and Rome and those books filled my imagination with Helen of Troy, Cleopatra and Julius Ceaser. I loved French books from Napoleon and Three Musketeers, then Jules Verne and his Science Fiction, Wilbur Smith because being a South African he never supported the SA government and apartheid. Unlike other authors who cried apartheid but forced us to study their hardcore narratives at school and were supported financially by the education department. I loved the Orientalists in Ghalib, Tagore and Khalil Gibran. Gibran inspired my love for poetry until I found that he was very inspired and indirectly copied the styles of Indian Poets and writers. To Sir with Love was my first introduction into African literature, then Things Fall Apart. Bessie Head and the American writers.

I am presently working on a youth novel, a collection of essays on a gender issue, and my novels, two of them actually. I break this up with poetry and indeed I work so I have a full day. My social life is my writing and my followers or my colleagues. I am the project manager of the Minara Aziz Hassim Literary Award that focuses on debut and published writers. We kick started the project last year to a resounding success. I am presently completing my MBA and I am loving it. It’s my dabbling in the corporate world and its exciting.

I write every day even if its dabbling, doodling or just toying with ideas. I start at 4 am till 6am then again at 6pm until 10pm. I am flexible with time. My greatest distraction is procrastination. I do get a bit lazy. Sometimes I ponder both sides of a story or thought or idea. It takes a few days to reach a resolution. Then I get back to the writing process. I have had many challenges to divert my attention and time is not my best buddy write now. There is too much to do and too little time.

Everything inspires me. From a bee on a flower, to prayer, to the weather. I see beauty in all of God’s creation. Because I am a spiritual being, everything is viewed on a metaphysical level. Everything is for a reason or a choice or a motivation. Nothing is incidental. The Universe I view as a relative creation. It’s a source of transient energy and is binary. Our lives here are just a passage, a passing or a crossing. There is no permanency of anything.

Food for me has no value anymore as it has become too genetically modified and engineered. As a third world country we have become the dumping ground for the rest of the world. I am an award winning environmentalist. I firmly believe in permaculture and organic grown foods. The effects of climate change is devastating and has created a world -wide compromise on food, water and survival. It’s the catalyst for future wars and civil unrest. So I eat organic with a balanced diet and keep living simple. My vice is chocolate.

I am most cautious in everything I do. I know what’s my destination and I don’t allow people to deter me. If they do deter me it’s through scheming and conniving. And I do believe that karma is a bitch scorned. It comes back ten-fold to bite you in the ass and how.

The Leaf did not Fall is based on my observation last Winter and is an allegory for our political restlessness. I watched a tree shed its leaves but this one leaf, grey and shrivelled, refused to fall. For 4 months it bobbed and twirled and sung to and fro but would not fall. I thought of our President. Tenacious and indefatigable in keeping his position. No matter how hard his opposers and political foes dig up the evidence against him, he rises above them and does not fall.  Almost like a weed. I included this line which is very biblical and a metaphor.

‘Shaded by the Leaven’

In the Gospel of Luke, they speak of leavened bread. Leaven is a raising agent like yeast used to make the bread rise. But is also speaks of the work Jesus did in the community for which few people valued, most never appreciated his prophethood. And it refers to women being domesticated. When one looks at the president it is the women who are his strongest supporters, they who keep the home fires burning.

So the humble beginnings of our President has now become infected and has grown and has become too large for his own good and that of his country.

‘The parched thirst of African soil . . .’

Are the people of SA. They are tired of being raped and ripped. Then will come the succession after the elections. People are fickle and feeble with minds that change all the time. If they are not in favour of a leader ,they will be vocal by the way they vote. A typical

comparison to Animal Farm by Orwell.

BNAP is innovative in this continent in its strategy. It was researched and targeted well, looking for a niche market. This concept is only found in America but has been adapted to suit the African market and expand the opportunities in publishing. The strategic marketing via social media and using the poet’s websites and social media site to promote the book in fact encouraged the self -awareness and sales of the book. Publishing of poetry is limited to an elite few in Africa. BNAP has created a platform for emerging poets and a jump for established poets. At cost free the exposure and marketing of the talent and profiles related in making the poets a commodity and improved their profiles and saleability. With BNAP on their CV’s they are on the move. BNAP is the springboard for success for emerging poets.

My suggestion is that the poems be converted to a spoken word poetry slam at relevant venues. Its art. Its performance, its poetry.

 Magno Domingos

Conte-nos sobre si mesmo e sua formação literária .

 - Não tenho propriamente uma formação na área de literatura. Sou gestor, agricultor e estudante de economia. Tenho 39 anos de idade, sou pai (de muitos filhos), e participe das coisas da sociedade. Sou do tipo que não olha a sociedade a acontecer, prefiro me envolver.

O que você acha conjuntos que mais além da sua geração de poetas ?

- Creio que não escrevo para ser melhor, nem almejo ser especial. Apenas escrevo o que me vem à alma, sem seguir as regras e padrões impostos pela literatura. Na realidade escrevo de forma solta, de forma algo rebelde. Aí possivelmente está a diferença.

Quais são seus livros favoritos , autores, artistas e por quê

- Já li muito... Muito mesmo. Sou absolutamente fã da criatividade de Uanhenga Xitu retratada em Mestre Tamoda, Caito, Bola de Feitiço. Sou fã de Pepetela desde as suas Aventuras de Ngunga, Lueji até ao que ele escreve agora.

- Na verdade aprecio quase tudo que se escreve por aí, desde que eu consiga por as minhas mãos nas obras.

- Mas foi The Canterbury Tales de Chaucer que mais me impressionou até agora. Acho aquilo uma estrela de obra.

O que você está trabalhando agora?

- Neste momento estou a escrever dois livros (nem entendo porquê não terminei ainda), um sobre contos populares, e outro sobre uma infeliz experiência de cadeia por que passei a alguns meses atrás.

Quantas vezes você escreve?

- Escrevo sempre que tiver chance, escrevo a toda a hora, estou sempre a escrever.

O que leva a sua criatividade?

- Tudo que acontece na vida, me inspira a escrever. Absolutamente tudo. Eu escrevo sobre alegria e sobre tristeza. Também escrevo sobre os momento intermediários dos dois extremos.

Qual é a sua comida / bebida favorita?

- Gosto de comer massas, mesmo não sendo italiano.

- Ando a algum tempo a lutar contra um mini-vicio em Coca cola.

Conte-nos algo que você fez ou o que aconteceu para você que você ainda pode se envergonhar

- Fui uma vez com a esposa a igreja, chegamos tarde e o protocolo sentou-nós em lugares diferentes. No final, como não gosto de ficar nas rodas de conversas, levantei fui para fora, peguei o carro e fui-me embora... Só já quando estava chegar a casa é que recordei que havia ido com a esposa e deixei-a na igreja. Esqueci totalmente que não havia ido sozinho. Voltei, pedi desculpas... Mas enfim, até agora me envergonho de ter esquecido que fui acompanhado.

Conte-nos sobre seus poemas em BNAP

- escrevo esporadicamente. Nunca planeio o que vou escrever. Acho que sou uma espécie de observador das coisas que acontecem em todas as dimensões da vida, e está me inspiram a escrever.

- Os poemas que estão no BNAP foram feitos assim, a partir de observações que faço das moções da sociedade em angola.

O que você diria que é único sobre os melhores poetas novos africanos ( BNAP ) antologia e que tipo de impacto você acha que BNAP terá sobre a próxima geração de escrita Africano ?

- A liberdade e espontaneidade que estão patentes nesta obra, não têm par. E a obra acaba também por dar espaço a poetas, escritores e pensadores que de alguma forma não tinham espaço para fazer sair o que escrevem. E de repente temos esta visibilidade toda.

- É um exercício bom, que espero que continue é que tenha também divulgação a nível mais local.

- Claro... A continuidade vai certamente dar aos mais jovens a oportunidade de poderem influenciar-se naquilo que já está escrito, e a terem também a sua oportunidade de se anunciar.

IN DEPTH INTERVIEWS SERIES: Week of 14 March 2016

a good plate of white palm oil bean, fried fish and salad

Bem na verdade nunca tive nenhuma formação literária pois a minha área de formação é Marketing A minha única formação foi mesmo na "Universidade da Vida"

Acho que os poetas da nova geração perderam o norte em relação a verdadeira essência principalmente da literatura poética temos que nos afincar determinadamente no alcance do resgate de valores

Eu leio vários livros de autores Africanos e não só o último livro que li foi "O quase fim do mundo" de Pepetela e neste momento estou a ler "O Inferno" de Dan Brown

agora estou a trabalhar na minha mais recente obra literária um livro de poesia cujo titulo será revelado ao publico em breve. Eu escrevo sempre que me encontro inspirado ou impelido a faze-lo

quanto ao numero de vezes que escrevo depende muito do que me vai na alma no momento a inspiração é um dom divino e há momentos em que nos sentimos mais inspirados e outros menos enfim o que me leva a criatividade a minha Angola e as suas realidades as suas utopias o sofrimento e a alegria dos musseques de Luanda a quitandeira a peixeira o monandengue brincando com o seu carrinho de lata tudo isso me inspira e gera criatividade

minha comida preferida é um bom prato de branco feijão de oleo de palma peixe frito e salada

bem quanto a ultima resposta diria que os ultimos serão os primeiros e quem se humilha certamente será exaltado ademais ninguém é melhor do que ninguém e quando acharmos que somos os melhores Deus fará sempre com que apareça alguém melhor do que nós

quanto ao impacto da nossa participação BNAP será sem sombra de duvidas bastante positive pois impulsionará a nova geração a se aprimorar no mundo da escrita abraços

IN DEPTH INTERVIEWS SERIES, Week of 7 March 2016

An interview with Cape poet, Archie Swanson

  How long have you been in the poetry game?

    I started writing when I was 13 and had poems published in our school magazine and a South African national publication of school poetry called English Alive, when I was 16

What kind of poetry/ storytelling tradition exist in your culture/country and has this had any bearing on your writing?

    I think that there has always been a strong tradition of political activist poetry because of apartheid but there are also strong themes relating to the natural beauty of South Africa. We are a very diverse culture with many traditions but story telling is a strong theme. Most of our indigenous history in South Africa, and I guess the rest of Africa, has been handed down from one generation to another through story telling

What urban influences (eg hip hop, slam poetry) have influenced your writing?

    I grew up in the 70’s when there was a strong theme of the struggle of concrete jungle versus nature. I attend quite a few  slam poetry events but it’s not my genre really. I read my own poetry very regularly

What style of writing (free verse, lyrical etc) do you lean towards?

    I like simplicity. My poems have no capitals and no punctuation. Free verse is my primary medium but I do quite a bit of lyrical stuff and rhyming poetry – also some traditional forms like sonnets.


 Which writers have influenced your writing?

    I try not to be too influenced by anyone in particular but I have to say that my early influences were Khalil Gibran and Dylan Thomas. I am continually assimilating the poetry of those around me such as the  great poets at Off the Wall like Hugh Hodge, Jacques Coetzee, Ralph Goodman and Riaz Solke, not to mention all the work that has come to light in the new anthology.

You mention that you’ve been a guest poet at Off the Wall, how do you think spoken word events help to preserve the art form and how do you think they’ve “changed the game.”

    I believe that the relevance of any poets work is in the ear of the hearer. Poetry stirs the  depth and breadth of our emotions. It inspires, warns and laughs with us. All of this cannot happen just as words on a page. There is an interaction when poetry is read and when you read you very soon discover what has quality and what has not by the reaction of those in the room. Reading and performing is completely essential. It’s the  life-blood of what we do as poets.

 In what ways have you used poetry to engage with your community?

    I have written poems that relate to political hierarchy, war, poverty, religion. In London recently I was staying near an old Victorian School that was being torn down and wrote a poem about it that was used as part of the anti-demolition campaign on their website. (Unfortunately we failed, but at least we tried!) Poets are relevant. We reflect the ethos of our own thinking and the societies we live in. When great events are remembered it is always poems that are read because we reflect the deepest thoughts and emotions of the communities we form part of.

Have you read the anthology as yet, if so how do you think it changes the shape of African literature?

     I received my copy just the other day. I’m not finished reading it yet. Time will tell how significant this anthology is. We walk in the steps of great African writers and, who knows, maybe some of the anthology poets will rise to the levels of those that have gone before. I personally think that the value of the anthology lies in its diversity – many poems on many subjects written by many African voices from many diverse cultures and countries within our great mother continent.

BEST "NEW" AFRICAN POETS 2015 ANTHOLOGY can be purchased at Amazon and in South Africa at Exclusive books here 
    http://www.exclus1ves.co.za/books/Best-New-African-Poets-2015-Anthology-Edited-by-Tendai-R-Mwanaka-Edited-by-Daniel-Da-Purifacacao/000000000100000000001000000000000000000000000009789956763481/