100 writing mistakes to avoid

I got a review copy of the book ‘100 writing mistakes to avoid’ by Maeve Maddox two days ago. As is my nature, I quickly scanned through before reading – from the end downwards.


I must say that the first thing that struck me was the choice of font and colour; they truly stood out and made for an easy read.

Thirty minutes later I looked up from my screen, a smile of intense satisfaction playing around my lips. It is not every day that one encounters gold nuggets, something this book truly is.

Yes, this book aside from being timely is one of those ones that you would readily recommend to friends, but dread giving out. Like the author said in the introduction “it is for writers who want to avoid the most common errors of written English without spending a lot of time looking it up.”

The 100 errors are arranged according to type: spelling mistakes, usage Mistakes, grammar mistakes and punctuation mistakes. All in an easily accessible way.

The errors covered are many of those that cause writers a lot of embarrassment, especially when they appear in works that have passed through the editing process. The book will surely not answer the questions of anyone not familiar with English parts of speech and other basic terms, but it sure would become a very good companion for writers that find it hard commiting things to memory.

For me, I think it is one of the handiest books on the subject matter I have seen so far. I recommend this to anybody serious about error-free writing.

the book is available at http://www.dailywritingtips.com/

Pilgrimage invitation

2011 election draws near, where are the gladiators

They say the change should start with us. I am willing to vote for a progressive next year; it’s just that I can't seem to find any.
Pat Utomi used to be the 'man' but he has since dropped back to the usual wordy posting on Facebook. One had hoped Donald Duke would morph into some kind of Kennedy, but like the others, he seemed to have too many ... See more skeletons to bury.

I hear Dele Momodu is gunning for the top job, but I fear he might move the capital from Abuja to Accra. Besides, beyond musicians, actors, money bags and the like, I doubt if the man on the street knows who he is, abi welders and conductors dey read Ovation.

Bankole could have been a 'to die for' but the guy own worst pass, like Chimaroke, he seems to be keen on squandering a golden opportunity to endear himself to his fellow youths.

As it stands, I want to vote next year, but unlike last time around, when around this time I already knew Pat Utomi was going to get my vote, I am at loss as to who will fly the flag of the progressives.

Jonathanlitics or not, I am yet to be sold on the man, he seems to be a man with purpose and good intent, but so was OBJ.

I WILL VOTE sha, for Fashola... I don't know who else for.

In The Hills Of Anike, Awgu LGA, Enugu State

Yes, writers and books are ‘in’ in Nigeria

I was again opportune to be at the Island on Saturday 26th June 2010 for two literary events: the Book Jam at the galleria and the review of Nnedi Okorafor’s ‘Zarah the Windseeker’.

For some, there might be nothing worth celebrating in two book events in one day in a city as big as Lagos, but for those of us who had sought for avenues to interact with established writers, this is as big as it gets.

Yes, Nigerian literature seem to be going places, buoyed up by a resurgence that is bringing smiles to the faces of the old timers and a burst of writing energy from emerging writers. I recall not so long ago when the only avenues where one could interact with fellow writers were the monthly Association of Nigerian Authors Lagos chapter (ANA Lagos) meetings at the National theatre (dry mouth meetings, as one old timer used to say), Tosyn Bucknor’s S.H.A.R.E and Taruwa, that tough more of a weekly open-mike-night, still found it worthy to incorporate poetry readings and the like.

A couple of years back, Nigeria writing on the net, though available, was spread too thin and appeared only able to accommodate the known names, a fact that was serious source of frustration for amateur writers like me who then needed feedbacks on their attempts at stringing words together (we had to contend with feedbacks from foreigners who knew next to nothing about the environment we were writing from).

Then came neo-Nigerian sites like NigeriaVillageSquare.com, SentinelPoetry.org and the like, which allowed writers avenues to display their work and get feedback from people who understood where they were coming from.

These days, there are an abundance of sites dedicated to Nigerian and African literature and social network sites like facebook allows young writers to not only post their works but also tag established writers who offer advice and encouragements . One such site garnering massive following among new writers is Myne Whiteman’s Naijastories.com.

I missed the Zarah the Windseker’s review as my African timing failed me (I think it’s time I join the modern age) and I got to the venue one hour late, with my copy of Nnedi’s novel clasped tightly under my armpit, to find the event I was so looking forward to over. I was annoyed, but only at myself (I had hoped to say a lot about the fantasy genre in Nigeria, since I too write traditional fantasy and felt my contribution would have been welcomed), I didn’t have much time to be annoyed as I quickly bought Seffi Atta’s ‘everything good will come’ and Chimamanda’s ‘Purple hibiscus’ and jumped on the next Okada to the Silverbird Galleria where Bookjam was in full session.

It was a fulfilling session (though I came too late and didn’t get to partake in the item seven) with Toni Kan Onwordi, author of ‘Nights of the Creaking Bed’ and Abraham Oshoko, author of ‘June 12: The Struggle for Power’ giving deep insights into their work and life.

Yeah, I got to talk about writing with writers and left feeling elated. Good news is that we get to do it again on July 3rd 2010 as DADA books showcase the writers involved in what is the most anticipated anthology in the country at the moment: Lagos: 2060. Yep I am one of those writers.