₦airaland Forum

Ishilove: The next writers should shed more light on why an anti-social, forex trading geek was chosen to be an assasin.

A fictitious hero should have a vice while a villain a virtue...I guess Forex trading is Ayomide's virtue. Or is it vice?

I used to think that Ayomide was disguising as the limping man, now that Ayomide is dead, I guess I was wrong. So, the limping man hasn't been given an identity yet, right? The HIM...what's his name again?

Good prose. As much as this story spells literature at its apex, I'm finding it hard imagining it being recommended as a literature text for students. Except of course, if the school is sexually-motivated.

Ishilove has said it all...however, I'd disagree that her use of the word 'badder' is wrong. The word 'badder' could be used metaphorically, and mostly to emphasize humour and degree of a complicated situation. Grammatically, it isn't advisable for the use of a student sitting for SSCE, but a fiction writer could be excused. Liberty thingy

He believed, most times, that writing could be a lonely business. People of his calibre had argued countless of times with him about that but he still stuck to this belief. He had explained that it was either you, your computer system, a pen and a piece of paper. He didn't mean about play or movie scripts. Those were communal endeavours to him. Writing with commitment was what he meant, which goes deeper into the core of human imagination. To him, both novelists and poets were recluse. And after spending too much hours behind the writing desk with this anchoritic profession, you lose the sense of the great big world beyond you. You forget how to act. Associating with people becomes a challenge because you continue getting worried about what they think of you. Your whole universe, however, would be condensed into a blank sheet of paper. The life of a writer, inadvertently, turned into an inactive life, sedentary, and mentally and emotionally chained to your desk.

Ariel was a writer; an unpublished one though. He had grown a fondness for literature at an early age; at age seven, Ariel had read Chinua Achebe's classic Things Fall Apart, and before he clocked his tenth year he'd devoured all Achebe's to date. Although his favourite had been Chike and the River until he turned eleven and begun to read tales from the Western world, including literature texts. A bibliophile that Ariel was, by the time he became eighteen years old, he had consumed the whole of Soyinka's plays and poems, and had read Shakespeare front to back twice; his favourite of the plays was The Tempest, and his favourite character therein was Ariel. Hence his own pseudonym. This love of literature and works of fiction had heightened his desire to write his own novels too. His first book, which he titled Babylon, was nothing but a file document on his computer laptop. The second book, Brick of Jericho, was at least forwarded to a publishing company from which he had never gotten any reply. Although Brick of Jericho was Ariel's second book, it later turned out to be a prequel to the already written Babylon. But contrary to their titles, none of these two books were having any biblical reference in their plots.

Believing strongly that he would one day become an accomplished writer, Ariel never stopped writing. His third book, a work-in-progress, he titled Ash; a book with a particularly different genre from its two predecessors. In this new novel on which he was working, he was trying to write about fate and destiny. About a young and poor doctor who lived all alone. The doctor found a beautiful lady who got knocked unconscious by a runaway bus. He carried the lady to his home and had her treated. The lady's wounds healed and she came awake after days, then she fell in love with the doctor. In the end, the lady was revealed to be a rich man's only daughter. They got married and lived happily afterwards. A silly story for a nice concept, Ariel knew, the average story that could become Nollywood's finest but would never win an award. He knew, therefore, how to change the dull piece of work into a tale which could charm and mesmerize readers. There must be suspense, twists and turns; like, the driver who hit the lady being the man who had been blackmailing her father for a crime committed quite a long time ago, and the doctor had been the victim of the crime, which was the cause of his own penury, or something more technical. There was an abundance of yarns.

Ariel was a young man of twenty-four years, and single. He was a man who lived a quiet life; created a lone world of his own and lived by the rules. He made his own bed each morning, brushed his teeth twice daily, did his own laundry and washed his dishes. He rarely did anything out of the ordinary, except write. Even in secondary school, all those girls who liked bad boys; which, strangely enough, seemed to be most of them, thought of Ariel as a nerd for his chivalrous personality, or even thought of him not at all. If they could see him now, writing a novel, they wouldn't swoon on him and become giddy with desire, they wouldn't even throw their panties at him as if he were a superstar; as some ladies did at the P-Square concert the week before. They would simply roll they eyes, boo and hiss at him. He would appear to them more boring than he initially was back in high school. None would even take a sneek-peek at what he had written. He knew that before girls like those ones both in high school and higher institution would swoon over guys like him, the sun would rise in the west, tiny babies would grow beards, Pasuma would win the Grammy, and a honest man would become the President of Nigeria. Well, each man has a cross to bear. At least he hadn't been born with a hunch-back or suffer strabismus.

However, two years earlier, Ariel had met Ella at a social gathering for upcoming writers. Their passion in creating a desired kind of literary art had brought them together. Ella wasn't one of those 'hot' girls but she was quite beautiful, and Ariel had loved her on the instant. At the age of nineteen, Ella had published two novels. All of them received well by reviewers and critics alike, but none of them sold in sufficient number to make her famous or even guarantee that she would find an eager publisher for the fourth. Both Ariel and Ella, though with different writing styles, worshipped each other's works. They believed strongly that they would rule the literary world of the country if they persevered and continue having each other. Their love knew no bounds but their relationship lasted only six months.

One Thursday morning, Ella parked her Honda, a gift from her father, near an ATM to withdraw ninety-five thousand naira. She had been robbed of the money by desperate hoodlums, then stabbed in the eye. He car was driven away. She was helped by kind pedestrians but she died before reaching the hospital. This unfortunate event had dealt Ariel a blow from which he had not been able to recover. The only thing he knew he could do to keep Ella's momory alive was to continue writing and plotting thick tales. From hence, Ariel had always edited his works with a red pen and a metaphorical hatchet, leaving evidence of bloody suffering with the former, and reducing scenes and dialogues to kindle with the latter. Ella had taught him that worthwhile art could be carved only from raw language and with self-doubt and justice as sharp as a chisel. Regarding his work, Ariel was extremely puritanical, he found virtue first in self-flagellation.

Rap maestro: hei hei.. Just do it 4 me boss

Do what? Neuter you?

Uniquexty: it will sir

Thanks a lot, Ms.

Rap maestro: I've been banned by one Antisp.erm bot

Maybe you've been donating too much of the white flakes.

Foxy_Ultimate: Why are you overly serious all the time? Don't you like the traffic this thread attract?

If person talk one. You go counter am. I know say if na to make me drop the links for my signature, you for don do am since. Try to be playful one bit abeg. Overseriousness no too good.

Forgive me, I'm sorry. I'll change

Rap maestro: u are vewi free bro, atleast peepz will opt 4 anoda tin while u guys are still thinkin of wat next

We aren't thinking of what to do, buddy, the next chapter'll be posted tomorrow, I assume.

Rap maestro: MY OWN STORIES, READ, ENJOY AND ADVICE www.nairaland.com/1207026/love-favour www.nairaland.com/1183464/standing-up-community www.nairaland.com/1138378/different-style-work

My humble thread has just been made an avenue for adverts. Thanks Rap.

I may just visit each of the links you posted and advertise my threads therein too...t*t for b**b, you dig?

Uniquexty: yessir.

God bless you, ma'am.

ichommy: I can wait for next post Ishilove, i know u stay in Ota make i come?

Now this is what I call Payback!

Unique, the update is expected tomorrow. I trust you're almost through.

Mazi_Omenuko: my fans actually overpowered me. So I've given up. Sometimes I just log on and see 3 new pages filled with chit-chats.
Don't let us overpower you like that

I'll put that in mind.

Ishilove: English master

I thought the phrase was ambiguous.

Mazi_Omenuko: I was beginning to wonder if this thread was the literature section chat room!

LOL! It's funny you should say that, considering what's going on in the NYSC thread.

Mynd_44: Hello oldbies

Aren't you older than we all are?

Rap maestro: bros eh, all work no play, make jack a dull boy.. Here na my play play arena o

Go to a circus! This thread isn't a 'play play arena'

Ishilove: There was no issue she couldn't put before her God.

Anything wrong with that line? Please let me know

No, you're quite right. I realised now that the word 'before' is a preposition, adverb and also a conjunction, so its usage depends on the kinda message it is meant to pass. Forgive me.

About Mark's feat, I described Mark as a boy who possessed the mind of an adult, and he did his things with aplomb. He was not afraid of anyone, remember when the robbers confronted him and a gun was pointed at his head?

luvmijeje: Larry u re welcome, before I bounce out to read the prequel I will love to go into specifics why I asked those questions.
1.In 1975 Cain was 18.In chp1 nine yrs later Daniel was flashing back? That is where am getting the mixed signal.
2.I know Nigerian police are useless but they couldn't be this dumb.They were also at the entrance and the arm robbers escaped without damaging their car!fine that one is even ok,the one that amaze me is mark,he even has the time to change bag and id card and also drive out!
Let me go and read the prequel.

Much like the prequel, which has its Prologue set in 1985 and the chapters set in the year 2009, this Paradox of Abel follows almost the same pattern; the Prologue set in 1975 and the rest of the chapters set in 2012/2013, with a few back-shifts in time. You'll find out that even in the first chapter of the prequel, a back-shift in time was also made (twenty-three years in the previous). Everything connects.

Good one, indeed a very good one. Nicely penned.

but "...there was nothing she couldn't put before God..."

luvmijeje: Just finished chp1,great suspense,Beautiful character development and so far in my short stay here,I ve never seen anyone describe the way u did but...2 quick questions-
1.What time era was chp1 set coz am getting mixed signal.
2.I know most banks in Nigeria has one entrance and I just couldn't stop wondering how did the arm-robbers and Mike escaped?

Be back to finish it.

Thank you, Luvmijeje.

To your questions:

1. The chapter was set late last year, December 2012 to be precise. And Mark's experience with the robber was set ten years prior...that is in 2002.

2. The robbers escaped through where they came in; so also did Mark. The cars were out of the bank's gate, so both Mark and robbers alike reached their cars by making their ways out of the bank.

So far so good, the plot is still straight on, but it'll get to a stage where references would be made to events that had happened in its prequel (The Brand Of Cain), if you haven't read the prequel I'd suggest you read it...you'd be enchanted

Thanks again,

Bless you, ma'am.

oyestephen: Oga, this isn't fair *straight face*

But I'm updating already.

Mynd_44: I really do not know you. I am a newbie and I am trying to make friends

Grow up.

bigsholly: Nice one bt always update on time plssss

Thanks, I will.