Written by Stephanie Sadler
Tuesday, 14 April 2009 00:00
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is only 31-years-old, yet has written two novels, including the critically-acclaimed Half of a Yellow Sun and many short stories that have been published in The New Yorker, the Guardian and the Washington Post. She’s taken home the Orange Prize for fiction, a MacArthur “genius award” and, this year, the Italian Nonino Prize.
Seven caught up with the busy Nigerian author to ask about her new collection of short stories
The Thing Around Your Neck, gather a bit of advice for budding writers and find out about her upcoming feature on
The South Bank Show.
SS: Your collection of short stories, The Thing Around Your Neck, was just released in the UK. Many of the stories were previously published. How did you decide which ones to include?
CNA: All but one was previously published. I worked with the editor mainly to decide which stories to include, but it was mainly just which ones I liked the most and which I thought were strongest.
SS: In comparison to your two successful novels, what limitations and advantages do you find in writing short stories?
CNA: They are very different; completely different forms. Some people think short stories are younger siblings of the novel, but that’s not always the case. Some of the short stories took longer to write. The subject dictates the style. I don’t have a set form or technique.
SS: Among others, you have won the Orange Prize for fiction, a MacArthur “genius award” and most recently, the Nonino Prize for 2009. What sort of pressure does this put on you as a writer?
CNA: Not very much, to be honest. I don’t really think consciously about it. They are very lovely to get, but I don’t wake up in the morning thinking about how I won the Orange Prize and what I have to do because of it. I wake up and read and write and do the things I want to do.
SS: Do you feel a moral obligation to use your talent and influence to raise awareness of certain issues?
CNA: I do feel very strongly about certain issues like race, gender, politics of power and how it affects people’s lives. I find myself writing about them, but I don’t start my fiction with a sense of moral outrage.
SS: You have already written about the plight of first-generation immigrants in the West in some of your short stories, like “You in America”, for example. Is this topic one you plan to explore further in future projects?
CNA: I think so. I’m quite keen. I spend a lot of time in the US which means I have a lot of material so it would be nice to be able to use it.
SS: The South Bank Show will be featuring you and Chinua Achebe in a double edition on the 10th and 17th of May. Can you tell us a bit about what to expect?
CNA: I actually don’t know what to expect either, but they did a lot of filming in Nigeria so I’m curious as well.
SS: Your novel Half of a Yellow Sun is set to be released as a film in 2011, written by a Nigerian screenwriter and produced by the people who made the Last King of Scotland. How much control will you have in the outcome and what are your thoughts on the book vs. film debate?
CNA: They are so different, books and films. Film has a wider audience, though. I don’t know the date yet for sure because I’m really not involved in it. I think the people who are involved, though, are very good, so I’m not worried. I suggested Biyi Bandele-Thomas write the script. He is Nigerian, but he’s also a very good writer and not just going to write about some white men going to save Africa.
SS: As a writer and having led creative writing workshops, do you have a few words of advice for budding writers?
CNA: Read. Reading is most important. But don’t just read; read as a writer and look at style and form. People, in Nigeria as well, are much more interested in the idea of being a writer than putting in the work. I read about things I care about, but I suggest reading widely. I am much more drawn to realistic fiction than experimental fiction, but if I was putting on a workshop for new writers, I would include both in the reading packet. It’s important for new writers to see a wider range of what is possible.
SS: How does bouncing between Nigeria and the States affect your work?
CNA: I like the opportunity of going back and forth from Nigeria to America. Nigeria is the home of my house and America is the home of convenience. It doesn’t really affect my work; it is what it is, but it helps to write about Nigeria when I have distance from it and America does give me that.
SS: Are you an Obama supporter?
CNA: I’m not an American citizen, but I’m a very keen Obama fan, especially his book, Dreams of my Father. And I have a huge crush on Michelle Obama.
The Thing Around Your Neck by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is available from Fourth Estate for £14.99
Friday 30 July 2010
