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 Literature / Re: I Have Made It! by newera(f): 8:18am On May 03, 2007 |
Hearty Congratulations!!! I believe in the Nigerian talent. In the past few years, many have found the courage to express it and now it is being celebrated. It started with football, then Music and now literature. I think we should all watch out, because this is just the beginning! |
| Literature / Re: Nigerian International Book Fair by newera(f): 10:51am On Apr 30, 2007 |
http://www.nibf.org/index.php That's the website. The theme is - Capacity Building in the African Publishing Industry with special focus on developing the reading culture in Nigeria. I think that is good because there is a problem if we continue to churn out the books and we don't have people to read them. I decided to take a stand and I plan to participate actively. I believe it's important that we all play our part to support the development of the huge potentials in this industry. |
| Literature / Nigerian International Book Fair by newera(f): 1:06pm On Apr 27, 2007 |
This annual book fair is taking place between the 7-12 May 2007 at the Unilag Multipurpose hall. It is usually a rallying point for all stockholders in the publishing industry. I also believe that it will be a place to network for authors and booksellers. It is being organised by Nigerian Publisher's Association, Nigerian Booksellers Association, Association of Nigerian Authors. It is sponsored by the Education Trust Fund and the Norwegian Ministry of External Affairs. I will be there and i encourage you to make it too. |
| Literature / Re: Excellent Writing Tips by newera(f): 3:38pm On Mar 13, 2007 |
I have found the website and the monthly e-zines very useful. It's free so there is nothing to lose. Creative writing workshops are few and far between in Nigeria. But i do agree that one of the best ways to learn how to write, is to read great authors. Orikinla: |
| Literature / Excellent Writing Tips by newera(f): 11:31am On Mar 13, 2007 |
One of the easiest ways to become a great fiction writer is to become a great writer. The key word is 'become'. It takes time and hard work to develop the skill required to become great. Selling is another matter but first is to have good content, good structure and good presentation. Randy Ingermanson has a website devoted to training writers and offering useful tips from his experience. You can check out his website below and if you find it agreeable, then you may subscribe. http://www.advancedfictionwriting.com/ 1 Like |
| Literature / Shake It Off by newera(f): 8:09pm On Mar 01, 2007 |
No one knows the author of this great piece. May be a true story or maybe not. But it is so inspiring. If life is throwing any kind of dirt at you, why not shake it off and step out. I hope you enjoy it. One day a farmer's donkey fell down into a well. The animal cried piteously for hours as the farmer tried to figure out what to do. Finally he decided the animal was old, and the well needed to be covered up anyway; it just wasn't worth it to retrieve the donkey. He invited all his neighbours to come over and help him. They all grabbed a shovel and began to shovel dirt into the well. At first, the donkey realized what was happening and cried horribly. Then, to everyone's amazement, he quieted down. A few shovel loads later, the farmer finally looked down the well, and was astonished at what he saw. With every shovel of dirt that hit his back, the donkey was doing something amazing. He would shake it off and take a step up. As the farmer's neighbours continued to shovel dirt on top of the animal, the donkey would shake it off and take a step up. Pretty soon, everyone was amazed as the donkey stepped up over the edge of the well and trotted off! |
| Literature / Re: I Enjoy Christian Fiction by newera(f): 9:25am On Jan 05, 2007 |
tlo: Redeeming love is one of the most absorbing books anyone can read. It tells the story of a astonishingly beautiful young girl who was introduced to prostitution at the age of 8. The prostitution becomes all she knows about life and after a while she no longer cares. A young man shows her true love and literally takes the prostitution, bad mouth and agression out of her. It took patience and it took almost 10 years but in the end he won. Amazing story. |
| Literature / I Enjoy Christian Fiction by newera(f): 12:59pm On Jan 04, 2007 |
I enjoy reading Christian Fiction. I find most of the writings to be inspirational and instructive - most often inspiring deep thoughts. I find myself thinking about the issues raised days after i have completed reading. I enjoy thrillers; I find the historical fiction very educative; while i find the Romantic fiction acceptably clean. Some of my favourite authors are Frank Peretti, he helps to see why some unexplainable things happen to us. I recommend This Present Darkness for starters. Ted Dekker is a speed thriller. I gurantee that you will enjoy "Three"; no matter how much i tried, i couldn't decode the story till the last moment. Karen Kingsbury tells contemporary stories, mostly in series that will keep you buying one book after the other. Francine Rivers is another one of my favourites. She is just in a class of her own. I read Atonement Child twice and i can say for sure that it changed my life. The book taught me not to judge lightly. You can never know how you will respond to a situation until you actually face it yourself. In the last one month - I discovered Angela Hunt. She's good but i think she writes better historical than contemporary fiction. And then there is Dee Henderson, you will love her if you like books related to the Armed forces. It will be good to hear from other avid Christian Fiction readers and to know what you think. I hope this thread will also stimulate interest in these books on a general level and also get some people to start writing. 1 Like 1 Share |
| Literature / Re: Talk About Books You've Read, Authors you love e.t.c. by newera(f): 10:11pm On Dec 03, 2006 |
IBEXY: I read the book in secondary school. I can't even remember the full story but I remember i cried too when i read it. |
| Literature / Re: The Aireginan Dream: A Novel by newera(f): 8:44am On Nov 22, 2006 |
hot-angel: Hi, there's a direct link on my website www.dupeolorunjo.com |
| Literature / Re: The Aireginan Dream: A Novel by newera(f): 1:29pm On Nov 21, 2006 |
hot-angel: I'm glad you like it. The Aireginan Dream is already available on Amazon; Barnes and Noble; Tesco UK. |
| Literature / Re: The Aireginan Dream: A Novel by newera(f): 2:34pm On Nov 17, 2006 |
Rubbermaid: I truly appreciate all your kind words. On the issue of the cover, the foreign publisher has its own policy on design. They requested for a soft copy of the book, chose their own design and formatted the whole interior of the book to conform with their standards. They also put in a bar code which is essential for sale in bookshops abroad. They've actually done a good job in making it available on the web. |
| Literature / Re: The Aireginan Dream: A Novel by newera(f): 2:22pm On Nov 17, 2006 |
Mystique: It's available at Glendora Falomo; Numetro @ Silverbird Galleria (Victoria Island); and a few other bookshops in Lagos listed on my website. It is also available on line at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Tesco etc. I too hope you have an enjoyable read |
| Literature / Re: What Would You Write About? by newera(f): 12:43pm On Nov 10, 2006 |
You made an important point there. One of the most important issues in writing is the drive to start, to continue and finish a book. Almost everytime i discuss my books with a person, what i hear is how the person would love to write or had started a book many years ago. I see so many potential books out there. One of the problems is the drive. |
| Literature / Re: What Would You Write About? by newera(f): 12:43pm On Nov 10, 2006 |
You made an important point there. One of the most important issues in writing is the drive to start, to continue and finish a book. Almost everytime i discuss my books with a person, what i hear is how the person would love to write or had started a book many years ago. I see so many potential books out there. One of the problems is the drive. |
| Literature / Re: What Would You Write About? by newera(f): 12:40pm On Nov 10, 2006 |
You made an important point there. One of the most important issues in writing is the drive to start, to continue and finish a book. Almost everytime i discuss my books with a person, what i hear is how the person would love to write or had started a book many years ago. I see so many potential books out there. One of the problems is the drive. |
| Literature / Re: What Would You Write About? by newera(f): 12:38pm On Nov 10, 2006 |
You made an important point there. One of the most important issues in writing is the drive to start, to continue and finish a book. Almost everytime i discuss my books with a person, what i hear is how the person would love to write or had started a book many years ago. I see so many potential books out there. One of the problems is the drive. |
| Literature / Re: What Would You Write About? by newera(f): 5:00pm On Nov 08, 2006 |
Seun: What is a limited government? |
| Literature / Re: What Would You Write About? by newera(f): 2:45pm On Nov 05, 2006 |
Great. Some of the greatest bestsellers are about a person's challenges in life and how the person was able to overcome. Books like this are like a map that can help others navigate better |
| Literature / Re: Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart" Has Sold Over 10 Million Copies by newera(f): 5:46pm On Nov 02, 2006 |
There will be. Its great to know a Nigerian has achieved it. With this we'll all set our sights higher and by the grace of God it will happen again and sooner than later |
| Politics / Can One Man Make A Difference? by newera(f): 6:35pm On Oct 31, 2006 |
I strongly believe so? What we need is one Godly sincere man; an experienced leader with a servant heart as President and the change we desire in our country will begin. With a man of vision who can see and who has a strong desire to prayerfully lay hold of what he sees, the rot in Nigeria will end. I agreed with Myles Munroe when one day I heard him say - A pack of sheep led by a lion will defeat a pack of lions led by a sheep. In the bible when God wanted to make a change He looked for one man - A moses, A David, A Daniel. Examples also abound in recent times - A Nelson Madela, A Lee Kuan Yew(Singapore). Donald Duke has done amazing things in Calabar. I believe the right man will make a difference if we can find him. |
| Literature / What Would You Write About? by newera(f): 6:11pm On Oct 31, 2006 |
We all have a message or some special knowledge that would bless the world if we took the time to share it. Some express themselves through public speaking, some through music, proverbs and some through books. If you had the opportunity to write today and if you knew your book would sell in large numbers - what would you write about? |
| Poems For Review / An Ode To Nigeria by newera(f): 3:41pm On Oct 24, 2006 |
This is a poem i was insipired to write just before the opening chapter of my latest book - The Aireginan Dream AIREGIN The Land flowing with milk and honey The people lacking in health and money A strange land with leaking borders A hapless people in great disorder How is it that … Abundant rain falls and yet the plant withers? Extensive sun shines and yet the child shivers? An oddity indeed, but not in Airegin To come alive again, where do we begin? Can we all drink the milk and eat the honey? Can our fields still bloom and our children look lovely? Yes! But first, we must dare to dream Because all creation and all invention Every reformation and regeneration Began in the mind and the imagination When someone, somewhere, dared to dream |
| Literature / Re: This Forum Is Too Dull. Are Nigerians Not Poem Loving People? by newera(f): 3:32pm On Oct 24, 2006 |
It's a known fact all over the world that poems are not as easy to read as standard prose. Most poems are deep, a message from the author spoken in the language of the mind rather than the language we all understand. It takes time to decode and probably we are sometimes not patient. Maybe that's why we embrace love poems more easily because we all experience love, one way or the other. But Nigerians love poetry. Our proverbs are poetry, our midnight fables are poetry, most of our songs are poetry, oriki is poetry. The problem may be that our poets sometimes write our poetry in another culture rather than ours. |
| Romance / Re: What Is the Meaning of Love? by newera(f): 8:45pm On Oct 17, 2006 |
True love is not just a feeling. Feelings can never be strong enough to carry the weight of a relationship. True love is when you want the utmost good for the person you love. It focuses more on giving than receiving. It is unconditional. |
| Food / Re: What Is Your Best Food And Why? by newera(f): 7:05pm On Oct 10, 2006 |
Mine is Ikokore. It is the Ijebu delicacy - African, rich and yummy. The only food i can eat a little bit more even when i am full. |
| Literature / Re: The Aireginan Dream: A Novel by newera(f): 8:54am On Oct 10, 2006 |
I must say thanks, to all who have taken time to read the sample chapter. (I believe that if you take the time to write and someone graciously takes the time to read, then you should be appreciative.) Orikinla - Thanks for taking the extra step of offering some tips that could be useful to me from your experience. i have noted all of them and will implement immediately. Seun - On the choice of the title. I had a hard time taking this decision. One of my options actually threw up about 5 different titles when i tried to screen it through Amazon. I did think of The Nigerian Dream but discarded that for a number of reasons - 1) It sounded quite ordinary 2) This is my dream for Nigeria. But it's not good enough if i dream alone. I felt that what would take us to the promised land is a collective vision. 3) I needed a name that will spark some curiousity and make a prosective reader pick up the book from a crowd of possibly a thousand other titles in a bookshop, and hold it a little bit longer. 4) You may not be able to pronouce it properly at the first attempt, but i promise, the names grows on you - I've seen that happen already. And there is a moment when you feel you have conquered. Just like Loma who was able to decode the origin of the name. Seun, It's great when a man does something new. You have done a great job here. Nigeria is blessed with great talent. I pray many more of us will actually find a way to put it to use to make a difference. |
| Literature / Do Nigerians Read? by newera(f): 4:52pm On Oct 06, 2006 |
Everytime I want to try my hand on writing, selling books, publishing etc, the first comment i hear is "Be careful, Nigerians do not read." But I've found this not to be true. Nigerians do read. But they are very choosy and read only what they think will add value to them. Try the newspaper stands in the mornings, and you will see us gathering round to catch a glimpse of the head lines. Everywhere, Nigerians love information and will do what they can to get it. Recently, preachers and motivational speakers have been able to create an awareness that you need to understand certain principles to make you a good leader or a successful entrepreneur. Today business books are now bestsellers in Nigeria. So its all about value and the reading culture will surely improve. |
| Literature / Re: We Need To Write And Publish More Books In Nigeria by newera(f): 8:20pm On Oct 05, 2006 |
I think there is a lot of writing and publishing going on already. The major problem is with the poor quality of books written and marketing. Most of the publishing is self publishing and so there is hardly any promotion or marketing. In Nigeria marketing hardly goes byond the launching of the book. That has to change. I agree that there is a whole industry waiting to be tapped in this area. |
| Literature / The Aireginan Dream: A Novel by newera(f): 8:02pm On Oct 05, 2006 |
I've just completed a novel called The Aireginan Dream. It's about a fictional African country which has similar challenges to the ones we have, and how they were able to start the process of change. I'll like to have comments from anyone who has read it. There's a sample chapter on my website. |
| Politics / There Is Hope For Nigeria by newera(f): 7:42pm On Oct 05, 2006 |
I described London to a young friend of mine and with absolute doubt he wondered if Nigeria could ever experience that level of development. We’ve all seen the impossible become possible; we’ve all seen the unattainable become attained. Why not in Nigeria? Ghana, Singapore (from third world to first world), Russia (fall of the Iron Curtain), South Africa (dismantling of Apartheid), Germany (collapse of the Berlin Wall) are a few examples of countries that have witnessed an unexpected change in this generation. Corporate Nigeria, especially in the telecoms and banking industry, has also witnessed significant development. Why not our politics? I think the problem is with our mindset. Most Nigerians believe the status quo will remain and calmly fold their hands. Very few people have any hope, very few people believe. It’s so bad that we complain vehemently about corruption in government and the next moment we give or take a bribe. We are all in this together. For there to be a change the government has its part to play and you and I have our part to play. If we really want a new Nigeria in our lifetime by the grace of God we will have it. God has graciously blessed us with great human resources, great strategists who can sit together and chart the course for a peaceful revolution. We have qualified people who can run this country properly. The coming 2007 elections is throwing up a few of them. Some are praying, some are speaking out, some are going into politics. We all need to play our part. Complaining, discussing the problems and doubts will not help us. What will you do? |
Once ordered 5 books from a publisher in Naija who said it would cost $138 to ship what cost me $35 to buy. Ridiculous!(1) (2) (of 2 pages)
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