By Prisca Sam-Duru

Journalist and author of ‘Mighty Mite and Golden Jewel’, Henry Akubuiro is again, on the Longlist of the Nigeria Prize for Literature worth $100,000.

In this exclusive interview with Vanguard Art, Akubuiro explains the impact of the prize and his book on children and the society, and much more. Read on

You must be feeling honoured for making the longlist of the 2024 the Nigeria Prize for Literature after getting to the finals last year?

It is quite gratifying and a reassurance on the steady progress I have made as a writer.  Last year was fun – the long run to the shortlist of three.   Getting to the last three of the biggest literary awards in Africa is not always an easy task by any standard, and also considering that Yamtarawala, the Warrior King was my first published play, though I had written other plays before that one. I am equally excited that I have made the longlist for the children prize this year. Interestingly, children’s literature is one of my favourite genres. I have published more works here than in other genres – four in all.

Don’t forget, Nigeria is one of the powerhouses of African Literature in Africa, if not the leader. Being selected from an outstanding poll of writers in the country back-to-back is mind-blowing. It is a form of validation.

You were close to clinching the prize last year which focused on drama; share your level of disappointment.

Any writer who makes the shortlist of the Nigeria Prize for Literature is capable of winning the prize because literature is subjective, seen from different lenses from different cameramen. However, once you are on the shortlist, you should bear in mind that you could either win or lose. If you have that mindset, you don’t have to jump into the lagoon because the prize doesn’t come your way. As we have seen in many instances, never give up. I, rather, felt validated as a playwright getting to the shortlist in 2023. With a bit of luck, I could also have won. For me, being disappointed is out of it. We live to fight another day.

You have Mighty Mite And Golden Jewel competing with 10 others, what’s the inspiration behind the book?

Overtime, I have discovered, to my dismay, that ours is not that egalitarian society we claimed. There are some shortcomings. One of the areas it is glaring is with persons with disabilities. They constitute a high percentage of the beggars and downtrodden in this part of the world, because they have been made to look unwanted and inferior to everyone else. That made me revisit their condition in Mighty Mite and Golden Jewel, a work that echoes the trite – “there is ability in disability” – by creating two disabled heroes who refused to be consigned to a life of ordinariness by striving to change the narrative of people like them, using creativity and social media as instruments. This work emphasises the importance of creativity and social media for children in general. It creates a pathway to follow to make fame (and fortune), while maintaining academic equilibrium.

Instead of wasting time exploring the negative side of the internet, which has cast a pall on Nigeria’s image globally as a fraudulent people, Mighty Mite and Golden Jewel demonstrates that there are positives to explore on the internet for children than the negatives. It hints on the role of parents and guardians to guide their children to discover their talents to reach the sky at a tender age. Today’s societies no longer recognise boundaries to climbing the ladder of success, which is why the internet abounds with more whizkids than we have ever had in history.

I was also inspired by the impact of insecurity on schoolchildren in Nigeria. We are aware of the ordessies of the Chibok and Dapchi girls and the lingering disruption of academic activities in some parts of the country by insecurity. This work draws attention to what we are not doing right to our children’s academic development and the urgency of solving the problem.

Besides, history and geography, which every child was exposed to in primary and post-primary education in the past, are no longer emphasised in school curriculum now. Hence, we are training children who know little about the African past and borders. Therefore, I incorporated a bit of West and African history in the book by allowing the heroes embark on a journey across the West African coast. The young readers reading this would hopefully add something to their repository knowledge.

What else will they take away from the book and what are the  themes or messages explored through major characters?

Readers take away many things from a book, even ones the writer didn’t deliberately envisage originally. So it’s best to leave them to make their own deductions from the text. However, what is quite glaring in Mighty Mite and Golden Jewel include courage in the face of adversity, ordinate ambition and the big lesson that hard work pays. There are also things adults and politicians might take away from the book: that we are all guilty of mistreating the disabled; they need a helping hand to succeed in life. We are also guilty of allowing school children to suffer unnecessarily because of insecurity in the land. In addition, the effects of bullying on children in school are also there, not forgetting the place of culture in society, which is worked into the narrative, and many more.

What style did you employ to strike a balance between entertainment and education in your book?

In the course of writing many children’s books, I have since realised that there should be a blend of education and entertainment. In Mighty Mite and Golden, there are at least four elderly characters who played the role of the teacher (un) consciously trying to influence the lives of the younger ones through imparting knowledge. I also created scenes in the book where children are made to learn by themselves by reading and learning from the trajectories of some of the characters in the novel, especially how they use creativity to make a name, why artistic collaborations are important in self-discovery and mistakes to avoid. Also, it’s inevitable that readers would feel pathetic to the plights of disabled people by seeing what they passed through in the book.

Mighty Mighty and Golden Jewel is replete with fun and entertainment from the beginning till the end. There is a bit of mystery and traditional African culture in it. There are also thrilling adventures in the plot from rural communities to the metropolis and along the West African coast. One of the most interesting episodes comes from the floating village of Ganvie in Benin Republic, where the heroes of the book disappeared hours before they were supposed to be in Ghana for a major competition. Their reappearance and heroism displayed are spellbinding.

What roles does children’s literature play in the overall development of a child’s imagination and creativity, and the society?

Children’s literature shapes the minds of young readers. Making them develop a reading habit begins at that stage. Children like emulating what they read and see. This is why teaching morales are high on the agenda of children’s books in Africa apart from the entertainment value it offers. In my writings for the middle grade readers, I often create stories that would appeal to the adult reader, which is no surprise that many adults in the universities, who have used my books for children’s literature or GST classes always write back to testify how the books have wowed them greatly.

Apart from drama and children’s literature, which other genres are you comfortable with, and how do you navigate from one to the other?

I write fiction, both the extended narrative (novel) and short stories. As you are aware, I am also a playwright, and a poet. Of all the genres, poetry is the one I haven’t published a book in, despite having over a hundred poems. I am lucky to have this peculiar gift of writing across genres. It has been the case right from my university days, where I produced many manuscripts in many genres. But it was not long ago that I told myself: “Henry, make the world know about your creative side, too.” I am glad it is paying off with the visibility and recognition. Yes, I forgot to mention that I am a biographer also.

Are there authors that have shaped your writing style or approach?

Every writer is influenced by one or more authors. I must admit, I was inspired by the writings of Chinua Achebe and Ayi Kwei Armah in prose, Wole Soyinka and Ola Rotimi in drama and Chris Okigbo and Soyinka again in poetry while learning the ropes. These were the writers we read extensively in secondary and university days. Each of them appealed to me on different levels, from nuanced writings to storytelling ability. But I have learned to develop my own voice without aping.

Are you working on any book for the next cycle?

I don’t actually write for award circles. I like creating works and allowing them to gestate. I have had a collection of unpublished short stories and poetry for a while. What I do most times is to improve on the existing works or those in progress for publication, not necessarily for a prize. I don’t enter all the time for literary competitions. I only enter when I am convinced the work won’t be thrown away in a refuse heap by the judges and get discouraged.

How does the Nigeria Prize for literature impact the literary community and society in general?

After the Heinemann African Writers Series left the promising stage, the Nigeria Prize for Literature perhaps is the biggest thing to happen to Nigerian literature. While the former discovered talents and took them to the doorsteps of readers in Nigeria, Africa and the world, the Nigeria Prize for Literature celebrate writers, reward them with prize money to compensate for the labour of love called writing in this part of the world and promote their works for audiences to get immersed in literature. In these days of poor reading culture, I guess every writer needs a lifeline to remain afloat and not quit writing out of frustration. The prize has created conversations around literature to the public who follow the threads in the media spaces. Again, it has narrowed the gap between publishing abroad and at home. Every writer and author is now united by the desire to produce a quality work.

To what level do you think this literature prize shapes the works of Nigerian writers?

It has fueled the spirit of competition among writers, which is good. If there is no competition, docility sets into the literary establishment unconsciously. The idea that you are submitting an entry to compete with those of veterans, academics and your peers makes you sit up and go the extra mile. The prize has really improved literature in the country from the quality of writing itself, to publishing.

 What advice would you give to aspiring writers of children’s literature?

Writing takes patience. You have to be patient like a dog to eat the fattest bond as a writer. It takes a while to hone your craft. If you rush to publish every work you have written for the sake of peer adulation, there is a high tendency you might get disillusioned if you fail to make it quickly. Attending writing workshops and fellowships help, but reading voraciously is the right mojo the best writers have used to take their art to the next level. Talent is not enough anymore.