I am back again with the hype about home-written thrillers.
I have not been writing for quite long. In fact, I wrote my first book “Courage to go on” in 2005. It was published three years later. The book tells the story of a brilliant village boy, Vershima who must strive through the hardship of boarding school if he must obtain a high school certificate, while his parents could hardly afford the fees. Prof. David Iornem wrote in his forward to the book, “…I can see a Cyprian Ekwensi in Kurannen. This book is a tribute to the great writer who has died at this time the book is making its debut...” It is hard to take it that in my first attempt, I was likened to a great Nigerian author like Ekwensi. I am not Cyprian Ekwensi. I can never write the way Ekwensi wrote; not even close to that. He is one of the greatest writers Nigeria has had. But this comment made me understand one thing, that I had that raw talent to write.
My second book The Quest was published this year. The Quest tells the hilarious story of a young man who must survive high school at an age he thinks is too old as he plunges into one bizarre circumstance after another.
Then came the strong desire to write thrillers. When my friend, Mandy started feeding me with thrillers, the focus shifted. I began to think on how I could contribute not only to what existed but to what was significantly missing. First were the story lines. The bulk of Nigerian authors, even within Africa have been writing on war, family problems and witchcraft. I once told a friend that I am tired of the stereotyped Biafran story. Yes, I am. The relevance of the civil war can never be taken away. It is a fundamental part of the Nigerian history but we have present problems. To those who would say I am wrong, that is their opinion, but I don’t believe in witchcraft in the modern world. It is a distraction from practicality and an insult to human intellect. So I can’t sit and write a whole book about a family living in Lagos or Abuja who can’t give birth and they say it is a curse from their village or a relative or enemy or whatever is using black power to stop them from giving birth. While I don’t discourage any writer from putting down whatever he wants and best suits his comfort, I encourage those who think the same way I do.
In just about four years, I think I have read what works for thrillers and does not more than any writer in this part of the world. My first attempt to write a thriller was a detective story set in Lagos. The story line was good, but lacked a lot of substance. First time. It was a big step. I wrote another, a legal thriller, Grisham-influenced, set in Kaduna. It was better. I gave it out and received a lot of encouragement. I dumped both manuscripts. Then I wrote what I now call the big one: On the Run. Don’t misunderstand me. I’ve not written the perfect book. Is there such thing as a perfect book? I can agree with a masterpiece, but there is no such thing as a perfect book. On the Run is not a masterpiece, but it is something Nigerians have not read from a Nigerian author, and probably have been waiting for. What I believe is when the book finally gets published, people are going to love it. Think about a female protagonist, 50 million dollars, a drug lord, a dangerous and desperate President who must be stopped. Set in modern day Nigeria, precisely Lagos and Abuja, On the Run tells the story of one woman’s desire for revenge taking her deep into a dangerous web of corruption, dark secrets, unstoppable ambitions and murder where the only way to survive is to fight back evil that originates from the top of the country’s leadership.
I still write plain, straightforward stories. While I’m writing my present novel, I am working on a short story for children. But my main focus is to participate in filling the void. Writing thrillers is not my comfort zone, in fact, I said in my previous post that it is very challenging. It is not simple. But to anything that would bring this genre to stay, I am gladly part of it.
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