The First Time I Got on a Writing Contest Shortlist
In 2015, after over a year of entering contests and sending my work everywhere, I got on a writing contest shortlist for the first time. I was in the university at that time and was living in the hostel. Turns out the grand finale would…
What Items Would an Intending Freelance Writer Need to Start?
In online writing circles, freelancing has become a buzzword. English words can be deceptive. On first hearing the word, one might imagine that freelance writer means someone who writes for free. This might be because of the belief that writing is not a commercially viable…
Just Got a Rejection Mail? Here’s How to Handle it
On the first day of January 2021, I was going through my Facebook page and I saw one of my friends share βI got a rejection mail on the first day of the year, what a way to beginβ. I could relate to her pain…
We Need New Writing Devices Before 2030
Typewriters were invented in the 1860s, and only became commonplace as the century ended. Before then, the only writing tool available was the pen, before that was the quill before that was the, well, Stone Age. What this means is that writers like Shakespeare and…
Social Responsibility: Do We Need More Protest Poems?
In Nigeria, the agitation for social change reached a frightening crescendo last week. Peace was stretched to yield point and the streets were a melange of chaos and violence. Abdulbaseet Yusuf shares his thoughts about these happenings, emphasizing the need for protest poems and its…
A Peep into the Writers’ Life: Is Creativity a Curse?
An examination of creativity from two lenses; experience and observation. I came across a Facebook post recently. At first read, the post earned a chuckle from me. But after I ran the sentence through the new sensitivity checkers in my mind, the chuckled faded. Contemplation…
Tips on How to Build a Personal Brand For Yourself as a Writer
When your name is mentioned, what emotion do people feel? Is it exactly what you would like for them to feel? This is where personal branding comes to play. As a writer who dreams to make the craft much more than an activity for your…
What Is The Difference Between a Cover Letter and a Bio?
Preparing your work for submission to literary journals is sometimes scarier than the process of crafting those pieces of art. You are first faced with the challenge of selecting your best work ever from a pile of poems, if it is a poetry submission. Or…
A Complete Guide For Submissions to Literary Journals
As a writer, submitting to literary journals is nearly as important as writing because these journals showcase you to one fraction of the literary world, which ordinarily may not have a sip of what you brew except for the exposure of certain journals. Literary journals…
How I Stopped Being a Closet Poet
The first time I stood before an audience to share a poem was October 2016. I remember it like yesterday. It was the grand finale of the Scribble the Future Poetry Competition for all-female student poets at the University of Ibadan. I was wearing a…
