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Elnathan John, member of the Kaduna State chapter of Association of Nigerian Authors, and a graduate of Law from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, has just published his first literary work, a collection of short stories, which is due to be launched next Saturday at VIP Hall, Murtala Square, Kaduna. In this interview with Sumaila Umaisha, he speaks about the book and other literary matters.

NNW: Tell us about yourself.

Elnathan John: I am from Zangon Kataf Local Government Area of Kaduna and was born in Kaduna. I got a Law degree from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and attended the Nigerian Law School. I am also a member of the Association of Professional Negotiators and Mediators.

When did you start writing?

I began writing midway through secondary school with poetry. A teacher of mine walked into class and on her first day and without even teaching, gave an assignment on poetry. It was the first time that I’d heard of writing poetry. There was a deadline for the assignment and I had no idea what to do. So I just cooked up something. My assignment never got assessed because my English teacher claimed I had copied it from a book. I figured that I must have surpassed her expectations, so I decided to start reading poetry. First I tried to write like the poets I had read, until I felt confident enough to write completely original poetry.

What is your new collection of Short Stories, Daydreams Etcetera all about?

It’s about realities that stare most of us in the face but which we either run away from or refuse to accept. It breaks from the typical happy ending style and paints the picture the way life really is: the disappointments, the taboos, the tragedies, the lies… The themes range from love and lust to betrayal and loss.

You also write poems. Why did you decide to publish short stories rather than poems?

I recently made a slight shift to short stories and found the genre quite unique and challenging. I still plan to publish poetry though.

What is your view of the Nigerian literary scene vis-à-vis the young Nigerian writer?

I don’t want to sound pessimistic but the Nigerian literary scene is a pathetic disgrace. Apart from over celebrating already popular writers, there is little that the literary community is doing to encourage and assess young writers. Like our educational system and most other things in Nigeria, it is all going from bad to worse. People don’t read so writers can’t sell. Our educational system has collapsed so we wait for Nigerians who are trained abroad to win awards and then claim them as our own. You need more than normal motivation to keep writing seriously. To put it succinctly, the young Nigerian writer has to swim through a deep ocean of ignorance, against the tide of apathy, filled with sharks called publishers and pirates.