Ruyi: Tell
us something about yourself, where you are based, and how you came to be a writer.
My name is Sam Akowe. I was born 63
years ago in Oza-Nogogo town in Ika South Local Government of Delta State of
Nigeria. I am the youngest child of a family of six (4 men and 2 women). I left
Oza in 1968 to Agbor in Delta State (then Mid-West) during the Nigerian civil
war. I later relocated to Lagos in 1973.
When my father died in 1963, continuing my primary education became very
difficult. When my mother could no longer cope, she withdrew me from school,
therefore unable to complete my elementary education. She handed me over to a local trader who also
had a shop at Agbor to become a shop assistant at the age of 12. I left Agbor
for Lagos in 1973 having served my “master” for three years without any reward.
On arrival in Lagos, I wanted to
continue my education but my elder brothers who I had joined in Lagos where in
no financial position to sponsor me. I ended up going into a local Commercial
Institute (one room school) where I studied Typewriting, Shorthand, English
Language and Accounting.
I secure my first even employment
as a Copy Typist with a clearing company based at the Ikeja Airport, Lagos in
1975 – without any paper qualification!
That was how my life began. As I
began to earn, my quest for education continued to grow even stronger. After
office hours, I will go to an evening private school. I continued to struggle
and believe that I will make it. A few years later, in 1975 I sat for Royal
Society of Arts (RSA) Examination in Typewriting Stages one and two (I &
II) and passed. In 1979 I sat for my GCE O’Levels in Commerce, Government,
Economics and Business Methods… Alas, I passed them all. I worked in many companies in Lagos between
1975 and 1991 before I migrated to United Kingdom. My last job was with a
Merchant Bank in Victoria Island.
On arrival in United Kingdom in
1991, it was really difficult to survive. As many other migrants before me, I
did not have enough information about life in UK. I just wanted to travel,
believing that getting there will solve all my life’s (economic) problems. Anyway, I am still in the UK with my family
of 5 – my wife and 3 children.
I became a writer through incessant
social commentaries with friends and pals at work or public engagement. I am a
positive minded person, very out-spoken and always have opinion on any given
issue or topic and never afraid to express them. Through positive response to the ideologies I
profess from time to time, friends and those close to me began to impress upon
me to document my thoughts. I started by Blogging, the rest they say, is history.
Ruyi: The master who did
not reward you after serving him for three years only motivated you to bend the ugly
circumstance to your favor. And I am glad you did. What genre do you really
write and have you considered other genres?
My genre is Motivation. I am very passionate about motivating and
inspiring people. It has helped me in my
personal development and I have observed that it is a vital ingredient to the
scheme of success. With clear, positive and realistic thinking anyone can
achieve.
Hopefully, I will write a fiction
book someday in the future. For now, I still have so much to talk about in self
building and actualization of individual dreams through positive thinking and
actions.
Ruyi: Tell us something
about the books/contents that you have written or created and the story behind
them.
My book GOD, FAITH AND REALITY
(Locate the Key to Your Door of Success) talks about positive thinking, defeating
fears and believing in self. It is a
book that walks on the edge. As an African, we are very scared to express our
opinion, especially if they are contrary to the belief of many people. Religion
is one of those subjects. For many
years, though I was not born a Christian, I became a Christian and did all that
is expected of a Christian. However,
when I experienced personal difficulties that defied professed solutions, I
turned to God as I am taught to do all to no avail. I began to think about the whole concept of
Religion, God’s power to influence our lives positively. I could not find answers to my problems, no
matter how hard I prayed and fasted. I
look around myself, others around me, the society, the country (UK) and it
dawned on me that my long held belief could not be sustained by evidence around
me. I began to wonder why Africans in
Africa and indeed Africans in Europe, America and Asia struggle so much to
improve life. Majority of us are
religious. On the contrary, the
Europeans and Asians are not as religious as us, yet we depend on them for our
existence! Something is not right! Look at Africa, blindly following the
teachings of Religion while disease and poverty ravage the continent! What God will watch His people damaged this way?
The reality is that we are the architect of our own destiny. Great countries and continents are not built
by faith – they are created and built through vision, integrity, hard work and
scientific creations.
Ruyi: Sam, if Africa have
more people like you, the continent will be able to solve most of her problems.
So what place does writing or content creation hold in your life?
Prominent! Everything we use and enjoy in life begins
with a simple thought. Therefore,
knowledge is crucial if you are to succeed in life. I will continue to express myself through
live seminars, videos and writing of materials that will inspire people to
achieve their ultimate goals in life.
Ruyi: All right. What
is your writing process or a typical writing day routine?
I write better at night. It is calm and serene. On the other hand, ideas flow all the time.
Whenever any thought comes to me, I must jot it down and expand on it later.
Honestly, I do not have a rigid process. Ideas come to me from unusual
circumstances, therefore I respond as they appear. I could be driving my car, walking along the
road or just being in a public place – always observing things and people.
Ruyi: What marketing
techniques have been most effective for you?
My book is published by Amazon
Create-Space USA. They are the primary marketer of it. Facebook had been very effective for me. However, I have tried to promote it through
my website, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Ruyi: Browse
my blog. You will find over two hundred websites where you can promote your books.
Some are free. Others you need to pay to have your book promoted. You can also list
your free books on my blog. Send me an email if you want me to get your free books
on my blog. Free books are great tools in the art of book promotion. Take advantage
of it. You can discount your books on Amazon and promote them on some of the websites
on my blog. What do you think makes a book or content sell, or makes a reader
buy it?
In my view, personality is
first. Much as a book may contain
valuable information or story, buyers tend to swing heavily on the status of
the writer – is he/she a public figure of controversial nature? Yes content is
also a strong factor that sells a book, but it also depends on the marketing
tool and process of the publisher to push the book to the buying public.
Ruyi:
What's the most moving or affecting thing a reader has said to you?
Wow… there are many readers who
have expressed very encouraging and heart-felt appreciation for the privilege
and benefit for reading my book. It is
priceless. A reader wrote to me via
Facebook (with a picture of himself with the book) and said: “This is a
valuable book that must be read by all. Thank you, Sam Akowe, for defying fear
to write this book”.
Ruyi: What are your favorite books, and
why?
My favourite books
are:
(1) Things Fall Apart (by Chinua Achebe)
(2) Gulliver’s Travel (Jonathan Swift)
(3) Animal Farm (by George Orwell)
I I love the three
books! Though I do not consider myself
as a political activist, but I do like to know what is going on around me. The three books are highly political and they
highlight what goes on in our society and world.
Ruyi: Yes,
I read the Animal Farm in high school. I agree with you that George Orwell’s book’s
a classic. Who are your favorite authors and what do you like the most about
them?
My favorite authors
are Chinua Achebe, Jonathan Swift and George Orwell. I love their styles of writing; the satiric
approach to social and political issues in society is marvelous.
Ruyi: Well,
my favorite author is “Charles Dickens” and “David Copperfield” is my favorite book.
Tell us about the works that you are currently working on and their
progress.
I am just gathering
materials for my second book. It will be
based on relationships. Relationships have
become too volatile. Those inside want
out and those out – not really sure of what they want to get themselves into
are eager to get in. A small group has
actually decided that relationships are not for them. Relationship is a beautiful thing if you
understand it, your role and ability to compromise. I feel I have something to
say about creating a better understanding in relationship, offer information
that might help couples make educative choice and gaining the ability to
maintain a healthy relationship. What
out!
Ruyi:
What challenges do you think are faced by writers and content creators like you,
and what's the worst thing about the industry according to you?
The challenges faced
by writers and content creators are multi-faceted. Creators of intellectual properties,
especially new ones find it extremely difficult to find publishers to accept
their scripts. They will ridicule you by
making you feel you have written nonsense material. When you finally find one
to publish it, you are ripped off so badly.
Publishers are so powerful that they can make you forfeit your
dream. Authors are publishers’ Fat Cows
– they milk you until you are dry.
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Ruyi: Apart
from writing, what goals do you want to achieve in life?
I want to mount some
big stages around the world, delivering seminars and lecture, motivating and building
champions around the world. That is my dream and I will make it happen!
Ruyi: Is
there anything else you would like to mention?
First I am a
Nigerian, then African. Africans are
great people but our mind set is drawing us back from really developing. For us to progress, we must re-design our
mind-set. We must start thinking
positively so we can effect realistic change in the continent. At the moment what most people
are doing is trying to solve physical problems with spiritual solutions. It is not working and will never work.
Ruyi: You are
right about people trying to solve physical problems with spiritual solutions. What
is the title of your recently published book? Please include an extract of the
book here.
The Title of my book
is: God, Faith and Reality.
…here is excerpt from the book:
“A great number of people across all ages and educational
background are superstitious.
This
tendency can easily be traced to fundamental, cultural and traditional beliefs
most people hold. Irrespective of
whether or not you are educated, your culture and way of life influences your
thinking and reasoning when it comes to matters of poverty or success. Superstition and blame culture prevents
people from having positive view on matter of development and wealth,
especially when things are not going so well.
This is very common among religious people who believe that only God is
able to make good things happen. On the
other hand, the devil is responsible for all the bad things that happen to
us. This belief is prevalent among
Africans and those from developing countries.
We are in the 21st century, yet many, particularly Africans, still
believe that their failure to be successful in life is attributable to bad luck
or misfortune caused by their enemies, usually within the family.
Apart from witchcraft
spells, there is also the issue of generational curse. To many readers of this book, this may sound
strange and confusing for you. Do not
despair too much as I will endeavour to explain it. Many Africans particularly those that are
religious are often told by their pastors and spiritual leaders that their
poverty, ill health, barrenness, sudden death and so on is caused by certain
curse that has been placed upon their past generations (ancestors) that they
have inherited. In other instance, they
claim that generational curse could also be as a result of indebtedness to the
gods for a pledge our ancestors made in the past. These are speculations without proof, yet
many still believe them. Instead of
dealing with issues that confront them, such as poor health, unemployment,
premature death or failed business in a logical way, many resort to endless
prayers, fasting and exorcism.
In recent time, there have been reported cases in Nigeria, Uganda
and the Congo where children and young adults have been tortured and killed
because they have been condemned by pastors as witches and wizards. The question that begs for an answer is:
after these children were tortured and killed by the fake pastors or spiritual
leaders, did the problems facing these families subside or completely
disappear? The answer is emphatic
No! I have only cited these few examples
to buttress the fact that none of these are true. They are unfounded and are mere
superstition. They are speculations born
out of sheer ignorance and backwardness.
The saddest thing about it all is that even educated people in our
society are equally guilty of this calamity.
The genesis of this problem
is borne in our blame culture. People
always look for whom to blame when things go wrong. Rather than search for real answers to their
problems, they look for someone to blame.
That someone could be their mother, father, husband, wife, brother,
sister, uncle, aunt, close neighbour or colleague from the office. Some has gone as far as accusing their own
children for their misfortunes. Whenever
things go wrong it has to be caused by someone who does not want their
progress. As ridiculous as this may
sound, many don’t find it funny. They
will go to any length to find out who among their family members is
responsible. In so doing, they play into
the hands of unscrupulous pastors and spiritual healers who take full advance
of their stupidity and grave ignorance”.
Ruyi: Your book
is fantastic! I hope every African, especially Nigerians get a copy. You nailed
it. Africans are too superstitious. However, the synopsis of a book is important
and most times determine how readers react. Add the synopsis of your recently
published book here.
God, Faith and Reality, a
Motivational Book. This book will inspire you to alter the way you think - from
negative to positive thinking. We often wonder why we are not doing well,
struggle endlessly to change our misfortunes, yet nothing seems to work. This
is because, for many who trust God hundred percent, they trust themselves less.
God, Faith and Reality will teach
you how to work hard doing the right things - not the wrong things! More
importantly, you will discover that when you trust and believe more in
yourself, you will excel in all that you do. You are well endowed by God,
therefore, use your given talent, wisdom, intellect and comportment to make
yourself great. As a Motivational Speaker/Life Coach and Mentor, I am very
passionate about change and helping others achieve their set life goals. We have grown into a society that depends on
God for virtually everything: health, jobs, career, relationship and general
well-being. Africans in particular, have relinquished their intellect,
intelligence and talents in pursuit of God’s promise of signs, miracles and
wonders for those who obey and worship Him. Consequently, they do less for
themselves while spending their valuable time in Churches and other places of
worship in pursuit of this fantastic vision. You are responsible for your own
actions, therefore, your life. Remember, life is like a bank account, what you
put in is what you will take out. God,
Faith and Reality will inspire you to achieve great things in your chosen
career, relationships, and general approach to life’s issues. We often wonder
why we do not achieve our chosen goals while others around us, do great things.
It is down to our individual fear and resistance to change, attitude, thought
and desire. Therefore, to succeed in life, we must first conquer our fear of
the unknown. To enable us do that, we must change the way we think, for,
whatsoever we do begins with a simple thought. God, Faith and Reality will inspire you to change the way you
think. To be successful, you must be prepared to do extra-ordinary things. Be
your own master and take absolute control of your life! God, Faith and Reality
will greatly inspire you.
Ruyi: You have
a nice synopsis. No doubt, people will find your book interesting. What message
do you want to share with budding writers and content creators?
Never give up on your
dream. You will experience difficulty;
humiliation and rejection by the powers that be (publishers) even your friends
and family, but believe in yourself and do what is right for you. I can assure you that the feeling when you
open pages of a newspaper or a web and seeing your work published are
indescribable. Your ability to create a legacy for yourself is priceless. Most
importantly, research into your subject.
Readers are most intelligent and aware now, therefore be sure of
yourself and the material you intend to put out there. Get your work through professional editors
before you go to press.
Ruyi: You are
right about writers who are depressed due to rejections and your
advised to them is priceless. Where can readers find you on social media?
Ruyi: Sam, thank
you for everything!
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