Mayowa: The Man, the Myth, the Legend
One of the wonderful suggestions from Reader Feedback Day was for yours truly to reveal more of himself to ye readers. Who is the man behind the Pens With Cojones and all the outrageous ideas? Why does he write? What does he write? How many licks does it take to get to the center of his literary goodness? What manner of person is he?
So today i’m going to roll around in the muddy paddock of my ego and spend a whole post revealing myself to you (insert juvenile joke here). I present to you Mayowa: the myth, the man, the legend.
The Myth
There are no myths really, everything you’ve heard is true.
I did once stare down a wounded lion…and I convinced a rabid pack of tea partiers to hold hands round a campfire while listening to Jewel. I give P.Diddy lessons on how to be a wealthy asshole and in Vegas I am known simply as M. I once wore out two beautiful women while simultaneously driving a Lamborghini and writing a short story. I went Panda hunting with Sarah Palin and I know what solar system Lady Gaga is from.
On the slight chance you’ve heard nothing about me, that is also true. I am nobody, an atom of leashed bliss coasting through the sweet and sour sauce of the universe. Pay me no mind.
The Man
I won’t bore you with the first date details (24, Nigerian, work in IT , live in SC, favorite movie is The Sound of Music, love cheeseburgers, cars and conscious hip hop, adore bald Natalie Portman), rather I will attempt to give you some measure of the man.
In many ways, I am one of those sad literary young men; always reading and writing, always having intense conversations about life and love, never learning any of the lessons from those conversations. I have now been wrong enough to know that I don’t really know how anything will be or end. I am frequently as sensitive and tortured (about love, my health, my craft, my country) as the public likes their artists to be.
And yet my default state of being is Happy. I do an okay job of living life instead of always talking or thinking about it. I have a pretty clear idea of where my life should be headed and where it is actually headed (straight for the shitter). I am rather aggressive, obsessive and stubborn in the pursuit of my goals (using this blog to bring about positive changes to writers and publishing for example) and I don’t believe in settling for the current system/situation/anything if it can be made better. All this earnest rebellion tends to rub more laid back/reasonable/experienced folks the wrong way. Pay me no mind.
I write because I find abandoned or ignored stories that need to be told. I write to make sense of all the chaos and perfection I come across. I wrote my first novel, In Brutal Splendor, because I was so sick of the stereotypical view of Nigeria and Africa (chaos, corruption and poverty) and I needed people to know the Nigeria I know, to see the resilience, joy and ingenuity that exists despite the chaos, corruption and poverty. I needed the world to see the unique and wonderful people behind the foreboding mystery of the dark continent. I write to tell the truth.
What do I write?
Literary fiction all the way, because it suits the stories I want to tell. I write rather slowly and can only really focus on one project at a time so my body of work is rather slim. So far I’ve written reams of terrible poetry, one full novel and the beginnings of another. Nigeria features a lot in my writing either as setting or as a full bodied character. My writing style is a mixture of lyrical writing and crude observations. Imagine a Nabokov wannabe cracking “thats what she said” jokes and you’ll have a pretty good idea of my style. If I’m lucky enough to get published, I’d probably be shelved in the same area as Chinua Achebe and Khaled Hosseini.
The Legend
There is no legend, only hope.
I hope one day, someone reads my work and cries/laughs/punches someone in the face/shoots me an angry email/visits Nigeria/calls their congressman/calls an old flame/calls the police/forgives an offense/decides to write/decides to stop writing/dances a jig/loves again.
I hope i find (and keep) another lass willing to put up with all my bullshit. I hope I have time and the freedom to write everyday. I hope my country fulfills it’s potential. I hope the world sees us for who we are. I hope I am still unwilling to settle for the status quo. I hope the price for not settling is not too high.
——————–
So there I am, in all my glory. Did I leave out something you want to know? Are you even more sure that I’m an ignorant moron? Think i’d look good in a poncho? Use the ol comment box down below.
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Looking sharp in that suit, Mayowa.
Why thank ye, maam :)
I feel like I’ve known you forever….well written. :)
Likewise, T. Likewise.
Thanks for stopping by.
This is absolutely wonderful! Thank you so much. As for: “I write because I find abandoned or ignored stories that need to be told.” Yes! Thank you again. As for being shelved with Chinua Achebe, wow, what an honor that would be. Every time I think of how young he was when he wrote TFA and how it has become an international classic, I am in complete awe. Please keep letting us see You, even if only through your fiction.
Judy,
Thank you for the idea! And I really appreciate the encouragement.
This is a great post and a great way to describe yourself. You seem to have an excellent sense of humour.
Thanks Loni…i am a bit of a clown :)
Your writing hip hops and stays – clowns cool…to dare to put up that smiley face with a secret soul that is mute, for whatever lies underneath and insist on it… Pay u mind.
Mayowa is my younger brother and i RUN to this blog to escape my crazy day. He claims i inspire him but its all lies..HE inspires me. I watched him read EVERYTHING as a kid…i watched him..always so engrossed in what he was reading that when the power went out (which was quite often) he would curl around the lantern …or continue with a flashlight. Legend? Kid you already are.
I don’t know this person.
Sorry I couldn’t resist :)
Say hello to my big brother, folks…and yes, he really is this supportive and all around awesome. Quite mushy though…..lol
Mayowa, thanks for the nice characterization of me in your Writers Brain Trust post!! Will definitely want to get you an invite to RedLemonade (the first Cursor community) as soon as it is ready…(Also, what kinda IT do you do?)
Anytime, Richard, You and the dbw folks are doing a great job of being thought leaders for publishing. I’ve heard/read a lot about Cursor and RedLemonade and I’d love an invite, thank you.
I’m a software developer (c#, business rule engines, java, etc.)
Thanks for stopping by.
Made me laugh. Enjoying getting to ‘know’ you, Mayowa. Btw, where is SC?
Excellent…i’m glad i don’t come off as too much of a jerkwad (which I most definitely am hehe). SC is the great state of South Carolina.
Oh man your blog rocks!!!. Now will start following your blog.
Thank you for the kind words, sir.