Ex banker turned creative writer, Chinyere Obi-Obasi who won 2011 NLNG Literature prize shared her story.

Chinyere Obi won the 2011 NLNG literature prize, she recently had this interesting interview with The Nations, enjoy.

The Nations

Writing is a gift. It has been fun writing books and stories and being appreciated by those who read them. My mother introduced me early into the world of creative writing. In promoting my creativity, she spent a lot of money buying novels for me. My mother used to buy us as much as 10 books; and they were relatively cheap. She would give us money to buy books ourselves and exchange with friends when we were done  with reading.  She also encouraged my writing then. All these helped me to become the writer I am today.

I have always been writing. I started writing bit by bit from secondary school. Up till while I was studying English, and later Law, I kept on writing. After my second degree, I sent a complete manuscript to a publishing company: they neither acknowledged nor published it. I finished law school and concentrated on my law practice. And it was not until 2001 when I got into the bank that I picked up writing again to fill up those nights that I used to prepare my submissions.

The high point of my writing career, which gave me a lot of joy, was in 2011 when I got to the finals of Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Literature Prize competition. I have published three children’s books, The Brave Driver, The Faithful Dog and The Great Ponds, while my short stories have been featured in newspapers/anthologies (Camouflage) and (Eko O nibaje). My book, The Great Ponds, was shortlisted for 2011 NLNG Literature Prize. That same year my book, The Change, won the ANA/Lantern Prize. I am the current National Financial Secretary for the Association of Nigerian Authors (ANA).

Mixing banking and writing

While in banking, I already had a good writing culture, so I wrote every night.Just like I did during my school days, I wrote every night from 2am till early hours of the morning without fail, including Saturdays and Sundays. While I was working in the bank, then, there were lots of frustration: long working hours and all that. When I came back home, I’d pour that frustration into my writing. Writing was like an escape for me and a lovely experience.

I would have left banking a long time ago but I didn’t have a clear vision of what I was going to do. I knew I’d leave there and write someday; but I wasn’t sure about what I wanted to do to put food on my table. I wanted to own a bookshop but there was the danger of not running the bookshop by myself. So, I left last August when I got a clear vision of what I was going to do. I have no regrets. With Kenechi Uzor, we have floated a publishing house for children, Grower Literature. We currently have three books on our label. This is beside the other things I  now do, such as public speaking, stand-up comedy and acting.