The April 2015 edition of Authors’ Talk organised quarterly by Goethe-Institut Nigeria focused on unpublished writers. With the theme, ‘Writing, Through the Perspective of an Unpublished Writer’, it featured authors like Toni Kan, Dami Ajayi, Abubakar Adam Ibrahim and a host of others, who shared their experiences with the writing craft for the benefit of the guests.
Most of the guests, who turned out to be aspiring writers, learnt a lot of lessons from the presentations and performances on the afternoon of April 18 at the City Hall office of the German Cultural Centre.
For instance, Toni Kan spoke on the topic, ‘Demystifying the Intricacies of Spellbinding Writing: Paradigms, Prerequisites and Precautions’. He said this was the best time to write, since there were many more opportunities than there were when he decided to become a writer some years ago. According to him, there is, for instance, many blogs and online magazines where aspiring writers could send their works or even self-publish.
Earlier, he had mentioned that every writer needed someone who would constructively criticise their work before they send it out to the general public.
“So find a friend who would tell you the truth about what you have written,” Toni Kan, who is also a PR practitioner, explained.
He said reading wide and all the time was also a very important thing for a person who desires to be a writer.
At the end of the day, the budding writers, who had a lot of questions for the panelists, left satisfied and better equipped to pursue writing. They had learned a lot of lessons from the aforementioned presentation and several others, including the paper by Miracle Adebayo titled, ‘The Manifold Encumbrances of a budding Writer and his Extrication from them’. There was also, ‘Three in Bed: Writing, Reading and Re-writing’ by Dami Ajayi, as well as ‘Social Media as a Tool to Redefining your true self’. Other topics for the day included: ‘Creative Writing and Filmmaking’, ‘Between Poetry and Filmmaking: A Synthesis of form’, and ‘The Association of Writing with Poverty: Countless Confirmations and Countless Exceptions’.
This is not counting the performances that were as exhilarating as they were educative. In all, it was a package those who attended will not forget in a hurry.
Meanwhile, the film, Man on Ground, directed by Akin Omotoso, which best captures what is going on in parts of South Africa right now will screen today courtesy of the Lagos Film Society and Goethe-Institut, Nigeria. Venue is Stranger Lagos, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos, at 4pm. What’s more, it is free entry and free popcorn!