"MY WORST POST YET"

How do you handle rejections? I mean how do you handle confusion? What do you do when the road becomes too dark?

Most times, I feel like I sound brutal. I don't care about people's feelings; what people will say or the the already existing system. But I must speak my mind. I must talk and I can never be silenced. And yes, the world will hear about me in the most glamorous and best way possible.

I have pitched my novel, Shattered Dreams, to a number of literary agents and there has never been a positive response. The publishing industry does not favour the young writers in Africa. I know this because I am not the only one in this situation. I also know a writer who is pitching her novel to literary agents. She has gotten 38 rejections so far!

And one might ask, what about the publishing houses in Africa? For me and for every other writer in Africa,it is not about publishing a book. It is about connecting the world. It is about giving the world a chance to feel and hear my story. I want my story to change the narrative and people's perspective on issues concerning Africa.

I reached out to an established African writer. I shared my predicament with him while requesting he reads the first six chapters of my novel, Shattered Dreams, on Wattpad. This established author expressed his disappointment as he was too occupied to go through my novel(which is quite understandable). However,he urged me to write more novels, saying that his fourth manuscript was actually his first published novel.

This advice struck me because at that point, I understood why many writers publish hundreds of titles every year. 

It is quite understandable that he wanted me to stay in track with my dream as a writer. He doesn't want me to be stuck with pitching my unpublished novel. He wants me to test and explore new grounds. However, I had already created a means of staying connected with my writing. I had launched a companion blog for this unpublished novel, Shattered Dreams. I had also joined Substack. I don't want to be a writer who keeps writing and publishing books just for moneymaking sake without caring about my writers. I had written a novel before Shattered Dreams during the COVID-19 pandemic. So, I wasn't in a rush to publish titles. But yes, I have always wanted to publish Shattered Dreams and getting dozens of rejections wasn't the best way to go.

Shattered Dreams,a twenty-two chapter novel,tells the story of a timid but highly intelligent boy, Chikadibia, who is destined to liberate the people of Umuaga from an age old tyranny. It is set in an imaginary country in West Africa during the 19th century. Shattered Dreams explores the themes of colonialism, neocolonialism, corruption and political participation of the African youth.

For publishing details, send an email to deraonuoha46@gmail.com.

Thank you for coming to my Ted talk 💙 


Yours sincerely,

Chidera Onuoha.

Nsukka, Nigeria. 

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