Peeps, am just wondering if one cant become an accomplished Nigerian author without having the Jand-connection. Look at the timeline of our literature. Almost every (almost every? Seems like EVERY, not almost every) accomplished creative author from this part of the world either had to travel out or something, before his/her name became a celebrity. It now appears as if if you dont travel out or at least publish your book abroad and have same reviewd and recommended by foreign press, you havent started as a Nigerian author. It seems Nigerians dont buy books by Nigerian authors until that book has been published abroad and internationally acclaimed to be superb before we give it a second-thought. Even you, yes, YOU who is reading this is not left out. Chinua Achebe wasnt a household name until he took his work abroad and published same, Buchi Emecheta, Chimamanda Adichie, Myne Whitman etc etc, Before you get me wrong, i have nothing against these writers. Far from it. I cherish their works. In contrast, it is you the reader that 'i have something against'. Why cant Mr X from Warri publish his book in Nigeria and you buy, review and recommend it? Why must he first appear on BBC, CNN, New York Times or Oprah before you nod your head in approval of his work?
Please, lets change our mindsets. Naija authors are good, whether they publish abroad or not. Kudos to Kachifo Ltd, Cassava Republic and the rest for trying to publish good naija books by naijarians (i like that name. Sounds more swaggerlicious than Nigerians. lol) in naija. Let me 'hear' your thoughts on this.