I can’t remember what spurred me to heed the call of the Association of Nigerian Authors to writers to submit their work for the annual literary contest. All I remember is the single thought “Well, why not?” and it then my work joined over 137 entries by writers home and abroad to compete in the various categories of the literary show down.
So, trying not to second guess my action and ignore the small, still and ruthlessly persistent voice that reminded me of my newbie status in the colourful world of Nigeria literature, I pushed the memory of what I had done from my head and went about making the most out of the year.
It would be almost eight months later before I would learn that my book had been nominated in two categories of the contest. My work competed in the ANA/NDDC Ken Saro Wiwa category with books like “The secret lives of Baba Segi’s wives” by Lola Shoneyin and “Roses and Bullets” by Akachi Ezeigbo, as well as the ANA/NDDC Flora Nwapa category with “Heart trick” by Joan Oji and “Our wife forever” by Julie Okoh. Suffice to say, I was excited by this news and looked forward to learning the fate of my book during the convention slated for the early days of December.
When the day finally arrived, I met up with other writers and did manage to strike a few friendships. I witnessed my first ANA election and it was quite an enlightening experience for me. Apart from the annoying constant buzzing of my mobile phone as countless messages urged me to vote for different candidates, the day went quite well. Dinner was held at Sheraton and after a few hours I left the venue as it drew close to midnight. It would be a few days later till my phone would ring with the word “congratulation!” and the next thing to comes to my mind is “uh-oh. I won something.”
So yes, I ended up the 2011 winner of the ANA/NDDC Flora Nwapa prize and finally got to blow a raspberry at that ruthless small voice. Winning the prize has been a blessing and I am grateful to God who has been my major source of inspiration. My family who love me for nothing more than th fact that I am me. People like Dr. Kabura Zakama, Dr. Emman Shehu of Abuja Writers Forum, Bola Essein-Nelson (who has brought so many wonderful women into my life), Christopher Okiri, Jude Dibia and Toni Kan have contributed in my self confidence and rise to the top and words alone cannot express my gratitude.
As I begin another fruitful year, I would like to end this note with words from the judges of the ANA panel and a Canadian based book reviewer on my book “Twilight at Terracotta Indigo.”
God bless you all
Umari
WORDS FROM ANA JUDGES
TWILIGHT AT TERRACOTTA INDIGO (AWARD WINNER)
The text is an intriguing tale of love and betrayals among well-to-do society people situated in a Lagos milieu. Well composed and highly imaginative, it is strong on description with an impressionable and colourful sense of place, and a heightened sense of mystery and suspense. This is a well-crafted story about a search for personal identity, for a “real” self. A novel with a highly-relevant psychological outlook, Twilight at Terracotta Indigo invites the reader to join the female protagonist Marlene in regaining memory through an encounter with art. The novel’s interest in women, is captured through women’s conditions in marriage, memory, and search for selfhood and fulfillment.
WORDS FROM AMY MCKIE, CANADIAN REVIEWER AND BLOGGER
As with many romance / thriller books this one frustrated me to no end in parts, but in the end it was an enjoyable read and I’m glad that I gave it a chance. Ayim has blended together intrigue, romance, and even some humor to create a fun read to entertain for a few hours.
Marlene wakes up after a nightmare to find an even scarier nightmare upon waking – she is sleeping half-naked with a man who claims to be her husband. It turns out that she has amnesia and has to struggle to regain the life she had and remember the people in her life such as her family, her husband, her baby boy, and the various other people claiming to know different things about her.
I liked the way Ayim used the amnesia to discuss relationships and the ways we interact with others. Who we chose to trust and how is really interesting when you delve into it, and it is interesting the way our bodies and minds know more than we consciously think. That being said, the inability of people to talk to each other as a plot point always does frustrate me… But although, as you can tell, this bothered me, it still worked in the story and never seemed too unbelievable, as people really do have issues like this in real life.
After my review last Friday talking about the unnecessary sexual violence I want to point out that this is a book where I felt it was done much better. Although there is some sex and some violence, it never seemed gratuitous. Rather than being there simply to shock or awe, it served a point in the book. Sex and violence do happen in real life, but I prefer when they aren’t there just to try to get a reaction. That kind of attempt on a writer’s part, I think, is simply because they can’t write their plots well enough. Ayim, luckily, doesn’t fall into that trap.
Upon finishing the book I couldn’t believe I hadn’t guessed everything earlier, but there you have it, I missed the connections. I’m interested to know from others who have read this what they thought – did you figure it out earlier??
If you like thrillers or romance, or just want a few hours of good entertainment, do give this book a try!
Amy writes at www.amckiereads.com