THE TRAVAILS OF A YOUNG AFRICAN WRITER.

IT IS MUCH MORE EASIER FOR A YOUNG AFRICAN TO BREAK INTO THE GLOBAL MUSIC SCENE THAN FOR A YOUNG AFRICAN TO BREAK INTO THE GLOBAL LITERARY SCENE.

 Yes, I said what I said.

Whenever an established author is asked to give a word to the teenagers who are aspiring to be writers, their advice is simple,"Read and write as much as you can".

Indeed, that is a wonderful advice. It is one of the best advice an elder will give to a young person.

However, these writers fail to address the issue of publishing. Every year, African teenagers write excellent books. These books,if they are published, will become global bestsellers. These teenagers are people who will compete with the best brains in literature. 

Unfortunately, these teenagers do not get representation for their work. There are no institutions to sponsor these young people's dreams. So, their dreams are buried in the world of impossibilities.

In 2022, I wrote my novel, Shattered Dreams, which 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. The novel,a speculative fiction, is set in an imaginary country in West Africa during the 19th century. After writing this novel, I sent my work to a different literary agents. However, I got no positive feedback. 

In 2025, I started publishing my novel on Wattpad. Publishing my novel, Shattered Dreams, on Wattpad was never the best decision. However, I chose to publish I wanted to create an opportunity for myself. For that same reason, I launched this same blog,shattereddreamsnovel.com, as a companion blog. 

Here lies the problem. Young writers in Africa send their works to literary agencies in the West. Why are these agencies not in Africa? Why are these agencies not in Nairobi? Why are they not in Cape Town? Why are they not in Lagos? Why are they not in Enugu?

Africans keep submitting themselves to the whims and caprices of the colonial masters. When they come to our "aid",we scream "neocolonialism!!!"

Can I also tell you that many young writers are also facing this same predicament? On Wattpad, Africans publish millions and millions of books. But nobody read and engage with these books. Why? African themes do not thrive on Wattpad. Themes that thrive on Wattpad are sexually related themes. And Africa has a wide range of stories that is embedded in the culture and traditions of the land.

Do you now feel the pains of young Africans who wants to be globally recognized authors?

If only these literary agencies are based in Africa, things would have been better. Young Africans won't keep having nightmares of joining the global stage.

Even if these institutions are based in the West, they should be connected to the motherland.

This will help us produce global leaders just like Afrobeats have produced conquerors on the global music scene.


        For publishing inquiries,  send an email to 

deraonuoha46@gmail.com.

Comments

  1. shattereddreamsnovel.comMarch 1, 2026 at 9:44 AM

    We need to establish institutions that will help these young writers.

    ReplyDelete

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