Skip to main content

Blogtemper: My Africa, my words

There's 30 minutes left the first day of this challenge. The challenge is to write a post every day for the month of September.

I'm not ready. I am afraid I will fail to post everyday, but here I am. I will do my very best and I will succeed.

Stories from home, that's what we are going with. I've developed an insecurity about not being African enough in my blogging. My all time favorite writers are European, what do I know about African literature? How dare I even think about writing African stories?

When you have been accused of "coconut", oreo or not black enough most of your life, it gets to you. I didn't realize how much till I stumbled upon the afroblogging community. The more I realized African bloggers/writers are nothing like that "African narrative" we need to change, they are normal every day folks with thoughts and words not too far removed from my own, the more I see that someone lied to me along the way.

I did not realize how deeply I  was affected until this challenge, it's daunting task. I feel a bit inadequate.

Am I the only one who feels this way?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Rejection Slips

  I love my rejection slips. I am going to print  and put them on a notice board in my room when I finally get around to  making my writing corner a reality. I imagine, they'll inspire me to pour my heart out and try again, because failure is not trying.  I got a rejection slip today, an email from an online magazine I really want to be published in. It hurt more than the others, it hurt because I really, really really wanted this and I poured my heart and soul into the article I submitted. It hurts, that's what I want to get across is, the " we regret to inform you that we eventually decided against publishing it as we do not think it is suitable for our platform at this time " that, that was an arrow through my heart. What does that even mean? I've poured over the magazine, I've read every article that caught my eye, I was guided by what was published. The article I submitted was a result of the feelings some one the articles evoked in me.   So tell me, ...

You should marry her instead

I won't do the dishes, I'll leave them in the sink for 2 days. You'll get sick of them and do them yourself. I won't pick up after myself and I only do the laundry when I have nothing else to wear.  I do not cook. I'll grab an apple and make a pot of tea if I'm hungry, you cook. She cooks and cleans and makes the bed every morning. You should marry her instead, she makes a better wife. I'm anti social, temperamental and sometimes just bitchy. Your friends will love me but I'll be in the bedroom when they come to visit. She's social and a very good host. She's the better choice. I'll frustrate and irritate you needlessly, I'll work on your nerves and I won't even know it. I'll be sorry for a little while then I'll forget. I'm self absorbed and very selfish. I'll think about me before you. I won't pause the movie when you use the loo and I'll continue to watch the series without you when you're at w...

On Girls who shoot their shots

In honour of it being a leap year when apparently western tradition okays women proposing marriage, on the last day of the month of love, I give you the post I have been mulling over all month. So, urban dictionary defines shooting your shot as " To let go of your pride and pursue someone you are interested in. For example : "He hasn't made the first move yet, so I'll have to shoot my shot and slide up into them DMs " I have never been particularly patient with regards to matters of the heart, so sitting idly by waiting to see if someone likes me too, has never been been my style.  If I like you enough, you will eventually know. The first time I expressed my feelings for the male species was in a letter I hid inside a textbook I borrowed to "study" for an exam in 9th grade. I had my own assigned textbook but I needed an opening seeing as I haven't been in this guy's vicinity since 7th grade and we went to different high schools. When I r...