Birth of a Dream Weaver by Ngugi Wa Thiong'o

Author:Ngugi Wa Thiong'o
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781620972670
Publisher: The New Press
Published: 2016-08-30T04:00:00+00:00

IV

Frustration with EAAFRO had made me look to the pen for an alternative source of extra cash. But I also felt that I was developing ideas beyond those demanded by my class papers, ones that I could not readily translate into fiction. I had a viewpoint, the language to express it, and the energy to sustain the effort.

I published a few more pieces in the Sunday Post, on cultural themes, mainly, while also working on “The Black Messiah” for the competition. Though they didn’t change the content of my articles, the editors would sometimes give them headlines that didn’t reflect the content and form of the article. I soon learned that writers of stories and features in newspapers had no control over the headline and subheadings. An editorial frame could at times clash with the content and intent of one’s piece.

Publication emboldened me to try for an actual job at a newspaper office. During one vacation in the second half of my first year at college, I walked into the offices of the Sunday Post and sought to see the editor. It was then an all-white office, and I don’t know what kind of figure I struck, but the receptionist took my name, and after a while, I was led into the editor’s office.

He introduced himself as Jack Ensoll and offered me a seat on the opposite side of a huge mahogany table. I noticed little else, so nervous I was, but in the friendly manner of his reception, I read, “You’ve got a job.” He knew my name, from the note the receptionist had scribbled or maybe from my contribution, probably the first African they had ever published. He went through the preliminaries. What was I doing, how was I doing it? I thought that my being in my second year at college would work against me, so I kept on assuring him that all I wanted was a vacation job. He wanted to know what I wanted to do after college. My eventual goal was to become a journalist.

As we talked, he dialed somebody, and soon the newspaper that contained one of my articles was spread before him. I was sure of a deal.

“I want to tell you my honest opinion,” Jack said. “I have read and liked your articles. I like the way you write, how you use words, but a few months in this desk, and it’s all gone, the individual voice, the something you have. Please don’t let us ruin what you have. Your future lies between hard covers.”

He wished me all the best as he led me to the door. It was all polite, but what I then most needed was a job, not a future in hardcovers.

I turned to the Sunday Nation. The paper and its sisters, the Daily Nation and Taifa Leo, were publications of East African Newspapers (Nation series) Ltd., later the Nation Media Group, owned by the Aga Khan. Established between 1958 and 1960, they were the newest kids on

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.