Writing has always been a serious business for me. I felt it was a moral obligation. A major concern of the time was the absence of the African voice. Being part of that dialogue meant not only sitting at the table but effectively telling the African story from an African perspective - in full earshot of the world.

I think not just Nigeria but I think the whole of Africa has to turn back to the rural areas and that's where the majority of the citizens are and that's where the engine of of development has to be found.

Writers don't give prescriptions. They give headaches!

What I can say is that it was clear to many of us that an indigenous African literary renaissance was overdue. A major objective was to challenge stereotypes, myths, and the image of ourselves and our continent, and to recast them through stories- prose, poetry, essays, and books for our children. That was my overall goal.

When we hear a house has fallen do we ask if the ceiling fell with it?

There is that great proverb — that until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.

That we are surrounded by deep mysteries is known to all but the incurably ignorant.