In this Edition of the Writers Space Africa Magazine, I am privileged to chat with the Queen of Flash Fiction all the way from Kenya. Make welcome, Scholar Akinyi.
PPBlessing: How was growing up for you?
SA: Fun! I grew up in a flower farm in Kenya. I was the happy child who loved dancing and reading. It was all a blissful life, everything a child could ask for.
PPBlessing: That’s wonderful. Did you envision becoming a writer then?
SA: Yes. I always knew it was my path. And I deliberately followed it.
PPBlessing: How did you know?
SA: I always found books to be my happy place… I was very good in creative writing, and even though back then I did not know that writing could be a career, I still wanted to do it in the long run, as something permanent. I was a library prefect, and I was always awed at how much people could weave words into books or magazines. That was fascinating and I wanted that.
PPBlessing: That’s beautiful. So, when did you start weaving your own words?
SA: I’d say, I’ve always been weaving as a child, in creative writing, but my first serious attempt was in 2018.
PPBlessing: What was it about?
SA: I wrote a story about domestic violence. It was titled; The Red Affair, and when the story got shortlisted for the inaugural African Writers Awards, it was a confirmation to me that indeed I was doing the right thing.
PPBlessing: Congratulations on making the short list. I read the story on your blog, what inspired it?
SA: It was one incident I witnessed while growing up. A man beat his wife to a pulp, and the one I witnessed stayed with me for years. So, I turned it into a story.
PPBlessing: What are the particular genres you write in?
SA: I mostly do Flash Fiction, short stories, and creative nonfiction. Through the years, I’ve realised that I am very good with Flash Fiction.
PPBlessing: What inspires your writing generally?
SA: Day to day observations. Human behaviour. I get my inspirations from observing the happenings of my surrounding.
PPBlessing: Has writing won you any award?
SA: Yes, I have won a flash fiction award in the YOUTHHUBAFRICA Creative writing contest. The story is titled ‘Writing Womanhood’. It is about ending the Silence surrounding Female Genital Mutilation.
PPBlessing: That’s a beautiful one. Do all your writings focus on societal issues?
SA: I think they do. Considering the ones that have shot me to the limelight are societal. So, yes.
PPBlessing: When did you get the award?
SA: 2022.
PPBlessing: That’s quite recent. Congratulations on the win.
SA: Thank you. It was the award that made people christen me Queen of Flash Fiction.
PPBlessing: Aha! I’ll start calling you that too or QFF for short. You have a degree in literature, right?
SA: Yes yes.
PPBlessing: Why Literature?
SA: Well, like I said earlier, I had thought long and hard about this writing thing from childhood, and Literature was my best bet. I’d say, it was very intentional, and the world conspired to give me what I wanted.
PPBlessing: What have you found most challenging as a writer and editor?
SA: As an editor: Getting into the mind of the writer to understand what exactly they intended to say in a piece of writing is the most challenging, because, in writing, every word matters. Every word is meant to carry an emotion, or a reaction. So, sometimes it really gets difficult to sift through.
As a writer: My biggest challenge is creating time. I get lazy. The other issue is, when I have read a lot, my mind gets so clouded with ideas, so I tend not to write to avoid cases of replicating other people’s works subconsciously.
PPBlessing: What else do you do aside from writing?
SA: I am an editor. I do curriculum design interpretation for school books and edit book content for Kenyan learners.
PPBlessing: What does doing a curriculum design interpretation entail?
SA: It entails understanding the kind of knowledge and content suitable for learners at different stages, and helping authors curate the same. So, the whole process entails choice of diction, complexity or simplicity of knowledge, researching and selecting images and illustrations appropriate for learners and ensuring that the books sent out are in alignment with the requirements of the curriculum institute of a country, in my case, Kenya.
PPBlessing: Sounds like a lot of work! How do you juggle that with writing and editing?
SA: It sure is a lot of work. I think what has worked for me is having seasons. When I am in the writing season, I tend to avoid any editing. When editing, I try to avoid writing. I am yet to find a balance, and editing has always gotten more time. It is still a struggle for me.
PPBlessing: May you find balance soon enough.
SA: Thank you. I pray for that.
PPBlessing: Do you have published books?
SA: None yet
PPBlessing: Why?
SA: Not to lie…
- Laziness on my part
- The fear of not giving it my best. I’d love my debut book to be the best, so I’ve been stuck in that rut of seeking perfectionism.
It is a scary path.
PPBlessing: How long do you think it will take to get the perfection you seek and publish?
SA: I have since started letting go of that fear, and if all goes well, the plan is to get published by mid-2023. Plans are underway.
PPBlessing: I hope it does. We will be looking forward to the book launch. What will the book be about?
SA: Thank you. I’ll do an anthology of short stories which will range from questions about religion and God, Family dynamics, friendships, pain and healing, and grief.
PPBlessing: That’s a lot! How many stories in all?
SA: 7.
PPBlessing: We’re looking forward.
SA: Thank you. I look forward to it too.
PPBlessing: Are there any books that have impacted your writing?
SA: Yes.
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara.
A Curve of Darkness by Munira Hussein (A poetry collection)
Chigozie Obioma’s works.
And Elizabeth Pisani’s Wisdom of Whores
And many more.
PPBlessing: Do these happen to be your favorite authors too?
SA: Yes, and many more. I think I have so many favorite authors, but for now, the four are atop my list.
PPBlessing: What do you hope to achieve as a writer?
SA: I have never really pegged my writing to any end goal, but if it is to do something, then I hope it inspires change, as well as entertain.
For myself, I hope I get to study African literature and writing to the point of being an expert, even as the seasons and patterns of writing change.
PPBlessing: Are you single, dating or married?
SA: I am single.
PPBlessing: For how long do you hope to keep writing?
SA: I hope to keep writing for as long as I live.
PPBlessing: What has been your greatest achievement so far as a writer?
SA: I think, the fact that it is my passion and it has also since become my source of livelihood is a big win for me.
Also, being an award-winning writer! That is such an achievement I don’t take for granted.
Thank you for reading through this month’s edition of the Writers Space Africa Magazine. Until next time, keep reading.
Read – Namse Udosen: the Educational Rockstar
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