Ayo Oyeku: Writing is a gift that keeps giving

‘Children’s literature is about empowering children’s minds , giving them hope, and sprinkling showers of happiness into their lives’

From a child writer to a writer for children, Ayo Oyeku has been writing for children since he was 13, and has produced an amazing body of work. And for him, writing is a gift that keeps giving. Although this is his first time on the longlist, Oyeku believes in putting magic in the tender hands and minds of children, so they can dream impossible things into being, and narrates what his hero does in The Magic Jalabiya to ANOTE AJELUOROU in this conversation

The Magic Jalabiya is your first time on the longlist of The Nigeria Prize for Literature in children’s writing. What would you say is unique about your writing?
THE Magic Jalabiya is a magical adventure that offers a breath of fresh air in Nigerian children’s literature. It comes from years of research and an open mind into the present and future of the Nigerian child. I wrote this book to show children some of the wonders, fun-facts and beauty of Nigeria. And above all, to offer them hope for a better future. Some say it’s ‘renewed hope’, I say it’s ‘reimagined hope’. Through this book, our children will imagine a future they want for Nigeria, and be encouraged that from their small dreams, great things can happen. This books also adopts the international requirement for children’s reading curriculum—Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics (STEAM).

In this book, children will see how they can use science, technology, engineering, art and maths, as problem-solving skills in our technological age. Finally, diversity and inclusion is of utmost importance in children’s literature today. In this book, a child with disability is portrayed with strength. Children from different roots, tribes and culture also find beauty and strength in their diversity. The Magic Jalabiya is punch packed with every information needed for a proper representation of the Nigerian Dream.

Do you write only for children or you do other genres?
I started writing children’s literature at 13. I signed my first book deal at 17. My first two books came out at 19, and to date I have published 10 children’s book, cutting across the following genres: picture book, chapter book, middle grade and young-adult. So creatively, I only write for children. But professionally, I ghostwrite and edit books across most (if not all) genres of literature. This I achieve through Eleventh House—the publishing house I founded in 2018.

Are you looking forward to the Book Party? What’s your expectation?
Yes. I’m excited and chuffed to bits. Looking forward to meeting lovers of children’s literature and the children that inspire me to write for them.

What was your reaction when your book made it to this longlist?
I was surprised. I aspired for this, and now it’s a dream come true. The good news reminded me once again that ‘the writer’s dream is valid.’

Your book is about children experiencing utopia. Why do you think it made the cut?
Like I said earlier—it’s a breath of fresh air for Nigerian children’s literature. This kind of storytelling is quite difficult to execute, but I was able to pull it off. A tiny acorn becomes a great oak. The book sows a tiny idea of a fabulous future into the minds of children. I believe it will someday become a dream come true for me, the children, and Nigerians as a whole.

Ayo Oyeku

While most children experience traumatic situations, your characters seem to experience differently. What can we learn about the life of your hero/es? Is theirs escape from reality?
Truth be told, children’s literature is about empowering children’s minds , giving them hope, and sprinkling showers of happiness into their lives. I think it’s cruel to let children read traumatic stories—it hurts their minds and dampens their dreams. In my book, the children also had unhappy childhoods; begging for alms, hawking on the streets, being maltreated, subjected to child labour, and even child-trafficking. Rather than over-flogging these ugly experiences in the book, I offered a reading balance through a magical adventure across the six geopolitical zones here, and in the Future Nigeria. This wasn’t intended as an escape from reality but an inspiration for their minds, in order to remind children (and all readers) that insignificant people can even do significant things.

Have you been writing for children before now or is this your first effort? And how was the journey?
Like I mentioned earlier, I started pretty early at 13, and the journey has brought surprises, setbacks and great expectations, too. Writing has taken my name into rooms I dare not set my foot in. I have won awards, gone on writing residencies, sat on literary panels, and currently the only African contributor to World Kid Lit. Writing is a gift that keeps giving. I’m grateful.

Fantasy writing is great, but when you juxtapose it with reality, does it match up?
Children need all the magic they can consume in their formative years. It opens their minds and gives them the chance to think creatively. Perception, they say, is stronger than reality. Let children imagine, let them believe, and let them think creatively. At the end, they will use their hands to shape the possible-reality they want. Their futures will even be greater than they can imagine. The future is possible for those who believe.