AWF hosts Henry Akubuiro and Mike Ekunno

Henry Akubuiro and Mike Ekunno will feature in the September 30 edition of the Guest Writer Session, a monthly initiative of the Abuja Writers’ Forum (AWF). It will hold at 4pm at Aso Hall of Nanet Suites, Ekiti House, Abuja.

Akubuiro is a journalist, novelist, juvenilia author and poet. He graduated from the Department of English and Literary Studies, Imo State University, Owerri. His journalism career began as an undergraduate in the university, where he became the pioneer editor of The Elite (the creative writing magazine of English and Literary Students Association) and The Imo Star (Student Union Government newspaper).

In 1998, Akubuiro won the BBC World Service Young Reporters’ Competition and the National Essay Competition, organised by the Federal Ministry of Youth and Sports. And in 2005, he won the ANA Literary Journalist of the Year, while his unpublished juvenilia, Little Wizard of Okokomaiko, won the 2009 ANA/Lantern Prize for Fiction. Currently, Akubuiro is the Arts Editor of The Sun, Lagos.

He will read from his novel, Prodigals in Paradise, shortlisted for the 2016 ANA Prose Prize. Set in Lagos, the story follows the trajectory of a fresh, ambitious Nigerian graduate, Nicodemus, as he travels to Lagos for greener pastures. To his dismay, he discovers that the city is not a bed of roses as he struggles to eke a living. His uncle, Job, whom he is putting up with, suddenly metamorphoses into a false prophet, having converted the decrepit building where they squat called Paradise into a church, and he is saddled with the task of breaking the end game leading to the death of a British miracle seeker. Paradise, thus, becomes a curious social and spiritual paradox.

Ekunno started out in real estate consultancy after his bachelor’s degree from the University of Nigeria. He has since made a switch to media, creative writing and copyediting. Since his career change, Ekunno has worked in radio and television, as Special Assistant to the DG/CEO of Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria and, as pioneer co-presenter of FCT Progress Report on NTA network service. He writes articles for The Guardian on Sunday, Nigeria’s flagship weekly.

His creative writing output is represented in over two dozen journals including Drunk Monkeys, The African Roar Anthology 2013, Warscapes, Sentinel Literary Quarterly, Ascent Aspirations Magazine, Dugwe, The Muse, Bullet Pen and Storymoja, the last two coming with wins in continent-wide contests.

He will read from one of his published pieces and give a talk on writing creative non-fiction articles, publishing in journals and building a writer’s portfolio.

The Guest Writer Session, which also features live music and a raffle-draw for books, runs from 4-7pm and is open to the public. The Abuja Writer’s Forum also runs a weekly Critique Session and a regular Creative Writing Workshop series.