Most authors resort to self-publishing because publishing houses are fond of rejecting works of emerging writers, on the excuse that their works do not bring easy revenue. Obiora Udegbunam, author and publisher disclosed recently that his passion as a writer is to make people laugh and have a deeper reflection about life.

In a recent chat with Daily Sun, Obiora spoke on his experiences as a writer and publisher, his procedure of writing, inspiration, challenges, writers’ block among other issues.
Background
I am Obiora Odeduman. I hail from Nnewi North Local Government Area of Anambra State. I attended Nnewichi Primary School, Nnewi, Nnewi High School, Aguata High School, Aguata and University of Benin where I studied English and Literature.

Becoming a writer
I grew up reading and enjoying books. I also saw stories around me and I have always loved to tell such stories. I wanted to communicate through the stories. So through reading, life experiences and my studies, I have been able to develop the skills to write and also to engage my readers. My interaction with other writers through books has equally improved my writing ability.

Procedure of writing
I get inspiration to write naturally after which I would sit down to write and ideas would begin to flow. Though writing has its own challenges, I have tried to overcome these challenges over the years.
Objectives
The aim is to be able to communicate what I know through writing and share with people. I do this in a way to cause a deeper reflection for people who would stop and think twice about every situation.

Lessons
I want my readers to see life through the books and reflect on their lives, laugh over certain things and make corrections where necessary. I want readers to examine themselves, and learn from their mistakes. I want my works to capture our own times as well as our past.

Writer’s block
I do experience writer’s block and I am not scared of it. Some of the scenes and episodes in my works that I have found very memorable would come after I might have experienced writer’s block. Whenever I started writing and I got stuck, I would relax, take a walk or sleep and thereafter I would continue with the story.
Audience feedback
I usually receive messages from readers that they enjoy reading my books. Sometimes, they would tell me areas where I need to do better to improve my works. Some of them have come to me with strong emotions about some characters, urging me to write in a particular way or the other. Others come with anger, saying that I should have treated one character or the other better and I always take these criticisms in good faith.

Challenges
As a writer, I always have stories to write but to sit down to write is a major challenge. As a publisher, marketing books is another challenge but I have been able to overcome some of these challenges and I am making progress.
Time of writing
I write at any convenient time when there are minimal distractions. The best time for me to write is at night when there is no noise or intrusion.
My books
Some of my published works include His Mothers Blood, which tells the story of a mother who has great attachment to her only son. The Hearing Voices is about an artist who got missing. Some of his friends made frantic efforts to locate him only to discover other aspects of him, which they never knew before.
Publishing
I came into the publishing industry in order to create a platform through which I can publish my works and also help other writers who may have had challenges in getting their books published. I have published some authors’ works as a way of getting their works known.

Why authors go into self-publishing
It is a reality of our time in Africa and in other parts of the world. The first reason is that good writing is going on but as a result of market challenges, a number of well-known publishing houses may not be willing to publish many works as expected. What does a writer do in this situation? Should he or her keep piling works without getting them published? So they go into publishing as a solution to the problem.
Editing
Before my works get published, I usually contract them out to professionals for proper editing in order to make them error free.