By Oluchi Favour Chinedu
I. INTRODUCTION.
From the days of the Heinemann African Writers and Macmillan Pacesetters series to the days of Cassava Republic Press – that produced good writings by Chinua Achebe, Buchi Emecheta and El-Nathan John – traditional publishing has always been worshiped. Your writing prowess does not count until you get a nod from the editors-in-charge. And now, a little change has occurred over the years.
The new media are forms of media that are computational and rely on the internet for redistribution of information, to everyone who can be able to access it. The new media does not involve any analogue broadcast. Today, the development of digital media which has influenced the world has also made a huge influence in literature. Social media and social services are some of the examples of the new media that are most used by Africans.
II. THE MOVEMENT
The 21st century new media has overshadowed the cultural media, and it has been of great improvement to literature in Africa. There has been a close relationship between the new media and literature. The activities of these two, state the fact that the new media is of a higher goal to improve the literary work of art. The relationship between the new media and the writer is like that of two individuals en route to achieve a common goal; while the media communicates the human condition in its raw state, with a mandate to inform, educate, entertain, and persuade, literature is also in the same route, trying to achieve the same objective in the same way. Through the new media, stories are now able to be told without passing through the huddles of traditional publishing.
A 2018 study published by Quartz Africa shows that the reading habit of Nigerians is diminishing, most especially the Gen Z and late millennia. And how are they getting addicted to? Social media – Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Instagram etcetera – and for you to get them back to the reading habits, you have to find them where they are.
Young African writers are taking to the welcoming nature of e-publishing, as they continue to find it difficult in getting reputable publishing firms to look at their works, let alone, get their crude piece into impressive gems they could become once they are crucified through editorial means.
Writers, such as Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki, Wole Talabi, Dandy Jackson Chukwudi, Ndubuisi Martins, Chinua Ezenwa-Ohaeto, Suileman Ayuba, and others, have been exploiting the enormous space offered by the new media to get audience for their creative work.
III. THE MEANS
In the early 2010’s, a lot of journals and magazines were established for the sole purpose of promoting African literature. These journals and magazines were diverse in nature; each representing a particular genre. Much, were established for the literary fiction genre while some were established for speculative fiction and poetry.
In 2010, as PhD student, Ainehi Edoro, established Brittle Paper as a blog to document the recent happenings in the African literary sector. Few years later, Brittle Paper became the hub for everything African literature, and in 2020 – during the outbreak of COVID-19 – it published the first ever Africanfuturism anthology.
In 2014, Omenana magazine sprouted up as the brain-child of Chiagoziem Fred Nwonwu — also known as Mazi Nwonwu —a Nigerian correspondent for the BBC and Chinelo Onwualu. In Africa today, you cannot talk about speculative fiction without talking about Omenana magazine. Due to its uniqueness, it harbours both Anglophone and Francophone writers giving a sound and just representation to both – the power of new media.
Lolwe, a magazine owned by Troy Onyango was established in 2020. It is one of the Kenya-based magazines that aids in the publication of poetry and nonfiction alongside Enkare Review, which was founded in 2016. Across Africa, literary journals managed by young writers and artists are emerging with the aim of publishing both new and established voices.
Most magazines and journals do not publish books; that is, novels, chapbooks, anthologies, etcera. And that is where e-publishing comes in. In 2013, Okechukwu Ofili, founded an online publishing firm – OkadaBooks; a portmanteau of okada and books – after he struggled to get published in the traditional way. Today, OkadaBooks has made books accessible to millions accessible in sub-Saharan Africa. From the comfort of your home, you can write and publish without getting a nod from the credible publisher.
For the teen, in 2020, Dandy Jackson Chukwudi moved his 2.1 million Facebook group members into another online platform called InstaNovella – a portmanteau of Instant and Novella. This platform made it possible for stories to be posted chapter by chapter or in full by its writers.
The emergence of these online platforms has boosted the reading habits of every African literature lover and has aided young writers to expand their frontier.
IV. THE STRUGGLES
Every revolution from the beginning of time has had its set-backs and changes. Most businesses had to shut down during the pandemic that its debris is yet to settle, and this also affected the e-literature section.
Wisdom Shanu (also known as Sky Prince) sees online platforms drawing a new, young group of African writers, artist and readers. But even as they strive to give voice to a new generation, these platforms face some of the challenges the traditional publishers face. Key among them is financial constraints, with many of them, relying on individual donations or their own money to stay afloat.
Magazines and online platforms such as InstaNovella, Praxis Magazine – just to mention a few – have gone defunct and those who are still standing are struggling to keep up. To remain sustainable, some online outlets sell print copies of their publication with exclusive material that isn’t online. In order to ease the financial burden, an outlet like Lolwe organise writing workshops with African writers, while another like Doek have partnered with a local bank in Namibia.
“Revolution faces setbacks,” Shanu said. But no matter the challenges, Shanu believes this new generation of literary platforms will pave the way for more publications and embolden young Africans to write the next best sellers.
“It’s only good for the future,” he said. “It’s a win-win.”
It’s this long-term vision that keeps founders like Dandy Jackson Chukwudi – founder of InstaNovella – going as he tries to put the best on the African and global cultural map.
“We are taking little steps in this literary race,” he said, “and we always have to fight this feeling that we are late, that we are in last place. Even though InstaNovella is dead, another will rise.”
Oluchi Favour Chinedu wrote in reporting from Uturu, Abia State