By
Catherine James
Chukwuebuka Leonard Ibeh is a young, creative writer from Nigeria.
In this interview, he talks about himself, his writting career and the problems of writing on particular themes in Africa.
CATHERINE JAMES:
We are pleased to have you with us, Mr Chukwuebuka.
CHUKWUEBUKA IBEH:
Thank you, I’m honoured.
CJ: I like the way your name sounds. Chukwuebuka. What does it mean?
CI: Thank you. It means ‘God is big’, or ‘God is great’, whichever.
CJ: Very nice. I can see the greatness already in you, your amazing works.
CI: Thank you.
CJ: I first came in contact with your story, ‘Like Walls Crumbling‘ in 2015. It was a nice story, really. I could imagine how heartbroken and disapointed the mother of Oluoma felt. What inspired that beautiful plot?
CI: I’m not sure if I was inspired to write that story. I remember I wrote it early one morning. I just took my book to the dining room so I could get some silence and space, and the story came on its own.
CJ: I also read ‘The Power of a Rain In January‘, ‘On Sun Baked Street‘ and ‘What Happened Yesterday‘. ‘On Sun Baked Street’ is my favourite so far. It was a brutally honest and intriguing story. I never saw that suspense comming. A nice job you did there. What inspired the story?
CI: Thank you. I always wanted to talk about ‘Jungle Justice’. I’m considering writting an essay concerning it. I’m quite unsatisfied with ‘ON SUN BAKED STREET’, because I think it ‘subtle’, not provoking enough. It’s unfair, how humans subject each other to such inhumane treatment, all in the name of Justice. I once watched a video on youtube where three people, a man and two women were stripped naked and thoroughly beaten up, simply because they stole two phones. A neighbour of mine began to tell stories of how he led boys back then in his hometown to burn or beat up thieves, and other neighbours listened to him with unabashed interest. I wanted to slap him, but he was older than me. Is it now an achievement? Such open killings all in the name of Justice? ‘ON SUN BAKED STREET’ was also written to address ingratitude, especially by children towards parents.
CJ: I believe you passed a real message there. The protagonist must have learnt his lessons, I believe?
CI: I do hope he does.
CJ: I also read ‘WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY’. Don’t be surprised. I’m quite addicted to your stories. I was quite thrilled. It’s difficult to find a ‘same-sex’ fiction by an African writer. Was there a particular reason for the story?
CI: Thank you for being ‘addicted’ to my stories. (laughs). Yes, your’e right. Its difficult to see ‘same-sex’ fiction by an African writer. I think Jude Dibia is the only Nigerian writer who has written a full-length novel where the protagonist was a gay man, and it made him become a ‘a controversial’ writer. ‘Same-sex’ itself is a sacrilege, something we don’t want to hear about, something appalling, something ‘abominable’. Nigerian writers don’t want to write about it, even though we have the ideas, we have words to say.
We let our stories die because we don’t want people to talk about us negatively. I won’t blame the writers anyway, its the Nigerian mentality that drives us to stay away from subjects as heavy as ‘Same sex’. When ‘WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY’ was published, I recieved an email, questioning my sexuality. The person asked if I had ever had ‘same sex’ issues, because, according to him ‘my potrayal of the protagonist’s feelings was so apt and matter-of-factly’. At first I was stunned, then I was laughing, then I stopped and began to wonder.
So I wrote ‘The Power of a Rain in January’, and nobody emailed to ask if I was present during the Civil War. I wrote ‘LIKE WALLS CRUMBLING’, and there was no email asking if I had ever gotten preganant before. I wrote ‘ON SUN BAKED STREET’ and I was not asked ‘Was your father ever a thief?’. Then I wrote ‘WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY’ and somebody wanted to know if I had sexuality issues. That’s the problem writers face. When we write about issues that have been left undiscussed for long, people tend to relate it to our lifestyles. Its funny in a sense, and then its absurd in another. I am aware that there could be some people who just came to the conclusion “That author might have sexuality issues.”
However, that would not stop me from writting about same-sex stories, when I get the inspiration.
CJ: Talking about inspiration. What made you write that story ‘WHAT HAPPENED YESTERDAY?
CI: ‘THE SHIVERING’ and ‘WHY CAN’T HE BE LIKE EVERYONE ELSE?’, by Chimamanda Adichie. Another shortstory by Jude Dibia. I can’t quite recall the name.
CJ: You seem to like Adichie. Is she a model to you?
CI: Yes, I like her a lot but I wouldn’t call her my model. She’s a writer I admire.
CJ: And she wrote an essay against the anti-gay law, right?
CI: Yes, she did. I mentioned it earlier. A friend in school once asked me which writer I liked, and when I said Adichie, she said “That lesbian?” I was like ‘Haba! So because she criticised the gay law, she’s now a lesbian?” You see, that’s the problem I talked about earlier. When Wainaina wrote that piece declaring his homosexuality, my friend said “Now have you seen? Why would she keep gay friends if she’s not a lesbian?”
CJ: Are you against the anti-gay law?
CI: No, I’m not. I came to know that there was such a thing as ‘same-sex’ when I was in JSS 2, and then, even up till now, I still wonder why a man would choose a fellow man instead of a woman. I don’t even agree with Adichie. Same-sex should not be permitted in Nigeria.
It goes agains the law of nature. It’s appalling. People can go ahead to speak big grammar about it, but the fact remains the fact. Gayism is evil, period.
CJ: Are you working on something currently?
CI: Yes. A couple of stories that would appear in my debut collection.
CJ: Oh, really? When do we expect it?
CI: I’m looking at late 2016, or early 2017, or maybe longer. When I am sure I am ready.
CJ: Okay. You’ll publish over here in the US, won’t you?
CI: I believe I will, but right now I want to concentrate on writing the stories first, talks for publishing will come later.
CJ: What would you consider your greatest achievements, so far?
CI: Um…I’m not sure. But if I’ll have, then maybe I’d say one particular saturday, when I read and discussed my essays with a group of teenagers. It was so heartwarming. I’d never forget that day.
CJ: How many essays?
CI: Three. One on Low Self Esteem, one on Rape, one on Kindness.
CJ: Wow! Should we talk about it?
CI: I would love to, but its a long story, really.
CJ: Maybe, later?
CI: Definitely.
CJ: You won an award, right?.
CI: Yes, it was long ago. An inter-school prize. It was really beautiful because it was unexpected.
CJ: Which author inspires you?
CI: Buchi Emetcheta, most especially. Helon Habila, Chimamanda Adichie, Chika Unigwe, EC Osondu, NoViolet Bulowayo, J.M Coetzee… I could go on and on.
CJ: What do you intend to name your collection?
CI: I’m not sure, yet. I was considering a particular story I love so much, ‘A FISHER, OF MEN’, based on rape. It could change as time goes on, I’m not sure. I just want to take my time, enough time. I don’t want to come out, naked.
CJ: I read somewhere that a publisher approached you for publication, and you turned it down.
CI: Yes, because I had to. I was not yet ready enough. I want to take my time, slowly.
CJ: Oh. Thank you so much, Mr Chukwuebuka. It was really nice having you around.
CI: Same here maam. Thank you so much.
Ibeh Leonard Ebuka
Chukwuebuka Leonard Ibeh was born in Nigeria. His shortstories have appeared in Tuck Magazine, Jotters United, VictorUgooNjoku, and is forthcomming in The Nigerian Writer.
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Interview with Nigerian writer Chukwuebuka Leonard Ibeh
TUCK
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