In Benin City, ‘Reading for Development’ excites students

‘Reading for Development’, the theme for Creative Alliance Book Club that held in Benin City a fortnight ago created some excitement amongst students that had the privilege to attend. The event was held at St Maria Goretti Grammar School, Benin City. The event, which was held at the school hall, had students from other schools joining in the fun.

  The event was organised in conjunction with Creative Alliance, organisers of the mouth-watering grassroots competition, Literary Star Search, the N1 million star prize competition - (visit www.creativeallianceng.com for details on how to apply)

  Most importantly, it brought students face to face with writers from within the city to read and talk to them about the necessity for reading works of literature as the best way to develop themselves for future challenges.

  Prominent among the writers that read to the students was Prof. Tony Afejuku, international scholar at the Department of English and Literature, University of Benin, Benin City. He is the author numerous poetry collections of poems including A Garden of Moods. Besides reading to the students one of his poems, ‘Warri boy, an elegy’, where he recounted his memory of a lost dear friend, he also admonished the students on the need to always read as a condition for being great writers.

  Quite uncharacteristically, author of To Saint Patrick and Fine Boys, Dr. Eghosa Imasuen, read ‘The Generator’, a short story he has read over and over again at various fora. One would have expected him to read from his upcoming work, Fine Boys. It seems Imasuen is not so keen on promoting his forthcoming work, which he said he would enter for The Nigerian Prize for Literature for which entry closes month end.

  Nevertheless, it was an electrifying afternoon made moreso when Michael Ipogah read his poetic piece, ‘Words will never be enough’.

  Dr. Kola Eke and Dr. Peter Airevba spoke to the students on why they should read. The students themselves were not left out as they read from works of other writers. They also engaged the writers during the question and answer session to provoke a scholarly debate.

  In all, it was clear students from Oka Secondary School, Ugioma Secondary School, Idia College and the host school, St. Maria Goretti had a special fun time at the maiden edition of Creative Alliance Book Club event, which had the support of Pepsi soft drink. Date for the next edition will soon be announced, according to organiser, Ipogah.

Afejuku, Imasuen, Ipogah headline book reading in Benin City

The ancient city of the obas will play host to a book reading this weekend organized by Creative Alliance Book Club and Literary Society and tagged ‘Reading for Development’, with authors of A Garden of Moods, Prof. Tony Afejuku, To Saint Patrick and Fine Boys, Dr. Eghosa Imasuen, and notable poet, Michael Ipogah leading the pack for a reading and discussion event. The reading will hold today, Friday, March 2, at St. Maria Goretti School Hall. Time is 1pm, and admission is free.

  Imasuen, who will be reading for the first time in his home city said, “I have always been bothered by the quiet in the literary scene down here. It will be a great thing to read here in Benin City, to speak to my people, to ask them, ‘can I be one of your voices?’ Nothing can compare to the validation their answer will give me”.

  He will read from his latest work, Fine Boys, a work set in the twin cities of Benin City, Edo State and Warri, Delta State, that traces how easily Nigeria descended from a model country to one of sundry ills and how its young become consumed by the virus eating up its social fabric. It will be the first time Imasuen, a medical doctor-turned-writer, will read in Benin City having made a name for himself in such cities as Lagos, Ibadan and Abuja.

  Also to make the reading a worthwhile experience for all culture enthusiasts in attendance is soft drink giant, Coca Cola Coke, Benin Plant, which will provide refreshment for guests. Also supporting the event is Creative Alliance with its innovative project, Literary Star Search contest. Its spokesperson, Seun Jegede, said going to Benin City to support a reading event like it did at Ibadan a month ago at Artmosphere, is part of Creative Alliance’s effort to take literary development to all parts of the country.

  Jegede, therefore, charged participant writers in the Literary Star Search contest in and around Benin City to seize the moment being offered to deepen their love for the promotion of literary activities in their part of the country. He urged writers yet to enter for the competition to visit www.creativeallianceng.com for further details on how to participate and be part of the most innovative, grassroots contest in the country.

  Other writers expected to thrill guests include Dr. Kola Eke and Dr. P. Airevba.

Literary Star Search appoints judges

The soar-away on-going grassroots literary competition, Literary Star Search, being organised by Creative Alliance, has appointed judges to decide the winner come July. The ONE MILLION naira first prize contest, whose deadline is April 30th, has named PEN Nigeria President, Mr. Tade Ipadeola, 2011 first runner-up for The Nigeria Prize for Literature, Ayodele Olofintuade and literary critic and journalist, Mr. Terh Agbedeh as its 3-man judges.   Making the announcement early in the week, spokesperson for the contest, Mr. Seun Jegede, who saidLiterary Star Search is a credible contest made more credible by the quality of judges selected to decide the winner. He assured that both the organisers and the judges will perform credibly to endear the contest to Nigerian writers in the organiser’s bid to give writers a lift in the country.   Ipadeola, Jegede stated, is not just a known poet, he is also an erudite critic of the fictive genre and a brilliant essayist. Olofintuade, whose children’s book, Eno’s Story, came second in The Nigeria Prize for Literature, sponsored by gas company, Nigeria LNG, is also a brilliant short story writer. Those who saw her perform last weekend in Ibadan at the Book Reading Forum at Ibadan American Corner were amazed at her skill in the short prose sub-genre.   Also, Jegede expressed happiness at the enthusiastic manner Nigerian writers have responded to call for entries for the Literary Star Search contest so far, and enjoined those yet to apply to seize this rare window of opportunity so as to start benefiting from their creative sweat as writers. He said since publishing seems a mirage for most writers in the country, getting involved in such creative endeavours of reward like Literary Star Search was the only means for writers to prove their mettle, get recognised, be promoted and be rewarded handsomely.   Jegede stated that the magnanimity of the organisers in its intention to publish the first best 25 entries apart from the three winners was an added advantage writers must take seriously to further promote their craft to both the Nigerian and international public. With the added boost that Creative Alliance will enter stories from the collection in international contests like the Caine, Commonwealth and other prize contests at its expense and on behalf of writers, Jegede enthused that Nigerian writers were indeed in the right hand and the best of times.   He, therefore, urged those yet to apply to visit www.creativeallianceng.com for further details on how they, too, can be part of the literary harvest of the year, which promises to give writers a new season of fulfilment.

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The grassroots contest welcomes writers back from strike

Literary Star Search, which has been described by newly appointed spokesman and Abuja-based journalist, PR practitioner and publisher of Housing Circuit magazine, Seun Jegede, as truly grassroots contest, has congratulated all Nigerians, especially writers on the solidarity expressed for the survival of the Nigeria people and the strengthening of democracy in the country during the strike protest over subsidy removal. Jegede noted in a statement that with the protest over subsidy Nigerians would seem to have cast overboard the negative tag of docility in their inability to confront those who rule over them to ask hard questions how public affairs are run in the country.   He commended the Nigerian people for standing up to their rulers and insisting on their inalienable rights to hold government accountable. Jegede then urged Nigerian writers to seize the gauntlet by writing masterpiece short stories for the literary contest that appropriately capture the peculiar Nigerian ethos in charting a way forward for the country away from under-development to the country of their dream where writers can practice their literary craft and be amply rewarded as a way of overcoming the challenges or hardships a deregulated economy may foist on them. He further called on writers to take the opportunity of Literary Star Search contest to realise the fruits of their creative labour.   As a way of boosting writers’ image as community leaders, Jegede disclosed that Literary Star Search’s parent company, Creative Alliance, was shopping hard for corporate sponsors and partners to make the contest truly grassroots. He stated that apart from awarding N1 million grand prize money for the best short story, the winner will be assisted with a further N.5 million to develop a community project, preferably stocking a public school library in his or her alma mater so as to help indigent students have access to reading materials.   Jegede also restated the goals of Literary Star Search contest to include nurturing, promoting and rewarding to raise the profile of Nigerian writers and also providing avenues for them to express themselves creatively. The first and second runners-up to the grand prize winner will go home with N300,000 and N200,000 respectively while the best 25 short stories will be published in a collection to called Stories Nigeriana. Writers that make it into this collection will be promoted in reading tours. Jegede, therefore, advised writers to direct their enquiries on how to be part of Literary Star Searchcontest to visit: www.creativeallianceng.com and www.literarystarsearch.blogspot.com.

How to Apply

WRITE Yourself to FAME & FORTUNE!!!

in the

Liteary Star Search contest

for Nigeria’s star writers in the SHORT STORY category

(not more than 3,500 words long)

in the

One Million Naira Grand Prize,

with N300,000 and N200,000 respectively for the second and third best places. The best 25 stories will be published in a collection and entered for competition worldwide, including the Caine & Commonwealth Short Story Prizes

To apply, write not more than a 3,500 word short story (double space typing) and enclose with Three Thousand naira (N3,000) Entry Fee in bank draft obtainable from any Zenith International Bank Plc branch nationwide, and payable (addressed) to Creative Alliance. Deliver by hand or courier service, addressed to:

Creative Alliance Nigeria Limited

(Literary Star Search)

1, Oladosu Street, Off Toyin Street, Ikeja, Lagos

or,

Mail through any NIPOST office nationwide to:

Creative Alliance

(Literary Star Search)

PO Box 2442 Ikeja, Lagos.

For further enquiries, please call: 08057712377; 08091031390

Email: ozoro4u@yahoo.ca; literarystarsearch@gmail.com; dreampartners@yahoo.com

Website: www.creativeallianceng.com; www.creativealliance.blogspot.com

The search is on… Join NOW!

Literary Star Search

(...enhancing the profile of emerging writers)

Coming your way soon is the biggest and best platform for writers to express themselves in bold narratives in an expanded frontier never before known in prose, drama and poetry.

This is borne out of the need to expand the literary space to accommodate everyone with a noble idea to share  with humanity.

But often, the chances and choices are few, indeed, too few, especially for writers to share from their ever-fertile imagination that is ready to extend the boundary of culture and society with a view to enriching them.

  Literary Star Search, as an affiliate company of Creative Alliance ®, is committed to broadening the literary landscape to accommodate more conversation with and interrogation of culture and society.

With values believed to be going down the spiral way, it’s only literature and the men and women that produce it that can halt the slide through reinventing social order by bringing the past to bear on the future in a seamless manner to preserve the health of humanity.

  So, out there are stars yet undiscovered, who, nonetheless, have so much to say to humanity to enoble society and culture. The rest of us dare not ignore them.

They need to be searched out, evaluated and rewarded, and their messages to society harnessed, like those gone before them – Wole Soyinka, Chinua Achebe, Ngugi wa’ Thiong’o, JP Clark, Buchi Emecheta, Flora Nwapa Sefi Atta, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Wale Okediran, Femi Osofisan, Ben Okri, Biyi Bandele, Helon Habila, Chika Unigwe, Gabriel Okara, and so on - to revitalise society and instil in it wholesome values to sustain it to the next generation and beyond.

  It is the belief of Literary Star Search that hidden stars abound in the literary landscape, but they remain hidden, unsung.

So that while stars are being made and hugely rewarded in virtually other areas like beauty pageant, music, movies, dance, writers are largely left out in the cold, and left to watch from the sidelines.

Yet, writing is one area where worldbeaters have been made in our midst, men and women, who have put us on the world map as part of the world’s cultural citizens.

MANTRA OF A PRIZE…

While there is abundance of potential star writers, there is little opportunity for them to rise and shine! Reward for them is still criminally low; they are just too few prizes on the local scene for those with something important to say.

Inability to throw up star writers and truly celebrate them has created an absence of writers as models for society, especially for the young, impressionable members of society.

This has the multiplier effect of alienating young ones from reading what writers produce as a disconnect between the two has become so obvious. So, how can young ones be inspired to emulate writers when writers appear to be the dregs of society as under-achievers?

The connection between writers and literacy cannot be hard to imagine either; that there is a lack of a reading habit in the populace, therefore, becomes logical in the sense that writers have not been made a central part of our collective consciousness.

To address these issues, icons in the field of literary creativity have to be made. Yes, young icons just like the way it is in music, movies, dance, pageants and other competitive areas of our social life.

These icons will lure young readers back to the literary space and books when they see in the icons that are made a mirror of themselves, indeed, stars to fire their aspirations to nbler visins; people they can only dream to be like.

This is what Literary Star Search aims to do in the days ahead…