S01 E06 Yewande Omotoso

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Award-winning author, Yewande Omotoso, joins Fiona Snyckers and Gail Schimmel to talk about how she has recently got back into writing now that her twins are two-and-a-half years old. She talks about guarding her precious Fridays because that is the time she has to devote to writing.

Yewande wonders whether writing emerges from having an idea or an idea emerges from the act of writing. She talks about how Bom Boy arose from her fascination with characters who exist on the margins of society.

A trained architect, Yewande tells us about layering multiple versions of a manuscript over each other - like working with tracing paper, until the final form emerges. 

Fiona talks about turning a surprise ending into a sequel, and Gail discusses how to get over the doubt that tends to strike at the 15,000-word mark.

The ladies agree that keeping a running record of your ideas is a good way to slot back into writing when you finally have the time.

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3 Jul 2023 English South Africa Books · Arts

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