EDUCATOR/AUTHOR

   The Liberian Literary Review recently caught up with Prof. Dudu. Prof, as he is often referred to was kind enough to answer our interview questions. He is a rising voice in the Liberian literary sector. Below is the interview. 

   Thank you for doing this interview. It is much appreciated. Since this section is about showcasing the authors and their work, a good place to start will be from the very beginning. So, tell us a little about you- your early childhood, upbringing, education.

   Well, first, let me thank you for having me as a guest. I am truly honored to be here. I was born in the interior of Liberia, in a village called Gordorlahun in northern Lofa County. Initially, I was not destined to go to Western school. My father, a local chief and devout adherent to Islam, had all but settled on having me study only the Quran so as to become a Karamon—Islamic scholar in the path of many in my ancestral line. As fate would have it, however, I ended up pursuing Western education through a confluence of circumstances beginning with the arrival in early 1975 from Monrovia, of my paternal uncle, to our village right on the cusp of my departure for Quranic School.

  So, I left the village in 1975 and started a new life and a determined pursuit of Western Education in Monrovia under my paternal uncle’s guidance. My academic journey began at the Barclay Annex Elementary School on McDonald Street (which later moved to Clay Street). When my uncle moved us out of the city to the suburbs of Gardnersville in 1977, I continued my early education at the United Pentecostal Church School and then at the Lewis Community School. In my ninth grade year, I enrolled at the E. Jonathan Goodridge Memorial High School in Bardnersville. In 1982, in the tenth grade, I enrolled at the William V.S.Tubman High School on 12th Street in Sinkor from where I graduated in 1984.

   After high school, I matriculated to the University of Liberia where I studied for a degree in Economics and Management until 1989. When our infamous civil war erupted in December of that year, I fled the country for exile. Initially, I stayed in Sierra Leone. When the Liberian war spilt over into that country, however, I ran yet again to another country: the French-speaking nation of Guinea. I stayed and worked in Guinea for the next several years. In late 1997, I was blessed to win a competitive scholarship to study at Marymount Manhattan College in New York City, New York. I graduated therefrom in 1999 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management. In the fall of that same year, I enrolled in graduate school at the Peter J. Tobin College of Business at Saint John’s University in the borough of Queens, New York from where I took a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree with emphasis in finance in 2001. 

   Always in search of knowledge, in 2013, I enrolled in the doctoral program in Public Administration at Hamline University in the city of Saint Paul, Minnesota. I look to enter the candidacy stage of this program by the spring semester of 2016.

LLR: What inspires you to write generally?

I am driven, foremost, by an innate passion for the written word, an insatiable desire to ably express myself on paper. Ever since my high school days, I have had a soft spot for writing. Some of my instructors back then—Leticia Balajadia, Marie McKay, and Dr. Celestine Kasasa, to name but a few,—early on, pointed out to me my potential and encouraged me to develop it, cultivate it.  Years on, at the University of Liberia, I had the extraordinary luck of sitting in courses taught by the likes of Professors Althea Romeo-Mark, the late John S. Varflay, Sr., and Patricia Jabbeh-Wesley. These professors, with astonishing effortlessness, had their way with the written word. In earnest, they inspired me more than I can say.

Further, I am an avid reader. So, obviously, part of my motivation for writing can be credited to other people’s writings. The more I read and fall in love with the twists and turns with which ideas are sculpted into form on a written page by others, the hungrier I become to be a part of that process.

Finally, I am inspired by the freedom inherent in writing itself: the freedom to roam with ideas, to test uncharted territories, and, to say things in ways that they may have never been said prior.

LLR: Who are some of the people/things that influence you?

Nature, people, problems, and so much more influence me. I get up each day, look out my bedroom window and just marvel at what I see. Whether it is the sun rising over the horizon or the darkening clouds of a threatening overcast or heaps of whitish snowflakes, it does not matter; I am enthralled all the same.

My parents, the memory of the late Mary Anne Schwalbe—my benefactor in America for many years, my teachers—past and present, my wife, my children, my students, my friends, politicians, writers, people of all class and circumstance influence me in their own unique ways.

Each time I figure out the most precise phrasing—stylistically and context wise—to capture a thought burgeoning in my head, I am influenced; influenced by solving the problem of communicating on paper in a language that is not my mother’s tongue.

LLR: Can you talk a bit about the inspiration for your book "HARROWING DECEMBER?

"Harrowing Deceomber", a memoir, was inspired by my own life story, and by extension, the life stories of many other Liberians. In a way, it is an elegy for the human condition, a story of war, of peace, of perseverance. More than that, it is a story of Good Samaritans—those special breed of people who see beyond color, religion, tribe and all other such social constructs—and recognize their fellow human beings for what they truly are: creations of God and treat them accordingly.

‘Harrowing December’ is, also, a clarion call to action, peaceful action. It beseeches all mankind in general, and Liberians in particular, to learn to build viable relationships, relationships that are not defined by parochial interests or tied to race, color, creed, religion, or tribe; relationships that promote trust so that when we disagree, we can accept to do so agreeably. The kind of relationships, that when cultivated properly, ensure that we can sit across the table from each other and resolve our grievances without resorting to the destructive force of arms.

LLR: What is your writing process? How do you do it? How do you pick your topics?

I’d say my writing process is, actually, a non-process. Like most other folks, the constraints I have on my time—family, work, school, community,—do not afford me the luxury of establishing a set routine for writing.  I write when I write. I write in my home basement office mostly at odd hours: early mornings when the kids are off to school and the wife is gone to work and I have time to spare before I go off to teach my first class. During late nights when my family is fast asleep and the whole house is as quiet as a mouse.  Or just whenever and wherever the bug hits me and I have a few minutes or hours to burn and with writing implements of any sort within reach, I write.

My topics so far have revolved around my life and the life of my country—Liberia. I truly believe there is so much to be said in this regard. "In addition to my memoir, Musings of a Patriot: A Collection of Essays on Liberia, my self-published work, contains, as the title gives away, insights into the workings of government in Liberia documented over a decade, one commentary at a time.  

I hope, however, to move beyond Liberia as a subject matter and take on other cultures and peoples in due course—when I am convinced that I have ‘cut my teeth’ sufficiently. 

LLR: Let’s talk books. What are your favorite Liberian books? Why do you love them?

I’d have to say first among equals, for me, would be Bai Tamia Moore’s 'Murder in the Cassava Patch.' I love this work for its simplicity of language and the manner in which the author skillfully sewed into its basic fabric a plethora of Liberian expressions without turning the novella into total Liberian-speak. Even as a sixth grader many, many years ago, I appreciated this book for the lessons of the story it tells, for the language, and for its entertainment value.

But as I say, it is only first among equals for I like other Liberian books very much as well. Among them, Wilton Sankawulo’s 'Marriage of Wisdom' and 'The Rain and the Night' for I delighted in reading these too in Junior High School.

As I cannot list all the Liberian authors I enjoy reading for the want of space, I will suffice it to say I am a great fan of them all, if for nothing else, for their effort in putting us on the literary map.

LLR: As a Liberian author, what advantage/disadvantages are there?

The wealth of untapped angles to interpretations of Liberian culture and subcultures, I’d say, is both the advantage and disadvantage for the Liberian author.  There is so much there to write about. However, being able to delineate and focus on a coherent theme, without taking the bait of using a broad brush that could muddle the narrative and lose the reader, is the ultimate challenge.

How has Liberia influenced your works, and what do you think of the future of writing in Liberia? Where do you think it is headed?

I have made no secret of how Liberia and Liberians form the basis for my writings so far.  In that way, there has been no bigger influencing factor for me. I really believe there is something good that is going to happen for Liberian writing and Liberian writers as we progress into the future. With strong commitment not just to writing for writing sake, but also to learning the craft of writing—insofar as mechanics, context, content, and so on,—we can only be headed in one direction, upward.

LLR: What are the greatest challenges for a modern Liberian writer especially in terms of publishing, distributing and promotion, in just getting out there?

Getting noticed! Because we (as a country) are not particularly known for our writing culture, it is a lot harder for us to get the level of exposure necessary to make waves out there initially. Having said that, however, I still believe that if done right, over time, the resources will avail themselves and the rest, as they say, will be history. Sweet history at that!

LLR: What do you think of the future of writing and publishing in Liberia?

Like I have said, I harbor not a doubt that the future holds great promise for writing and publishing in Liberia. This, though, will take a commitment of Liberian writers, Liberian investors, the Liberian government, and the Liberian people to work in concert to invest time, energy, and financial resources in this industry.  Liberian writers must use Liberian publishers when available, for example. We must coalesce and work together to make a headway. The efforts at the Liberian Writers Network, for instance, could be a great starting point in this direction.

LLR: What do you think of digital media in general?

I think the world of digital media. I hope it flourishes. In sort of a way, it eliminates most of the hurdles associated with traditional brick and mortal media. It, without much trouble, expands exponentially in many cases, the reach of a media entity or an individual author. If utilized with caution—for all things have their downsides—it could represent a true renaissance (or does it already?) in information dissemination.

LLR: What is your view on E-books and self-publishing? Have you used either?

Yes, both of my works, in fact, do have E-book versions. I have also self-published. I believe if used appropriately, these are avenues necessary to give new authors a foothold, a readership, and much needed notice in the ever-toughening publishing industry.

LLR: Would you advise writers [published/aspiring] to use E-book or Self-publish?

Yes, I would but with a caveat. No matter what, put your best foot forward. The channel utilized in getting your work out there should not lure you into complacency, into creating a substandard product as that could totally ruin your chances of ever making it to the mainstream.

LLR: What advice would you give aspiring writers?

Be life-long learners; do not ever get swollen-headed. We all can always improve. Seek the professional input of more ‘tried and tested’ writers in your midst. Pay attention to details; do not settle for mediocrity; master the craft of writing in recognition of the fact that merely filling up page after page with words does not necessarily mean you are a writer.

Finally, don’t give up, keep at it; be persistent, for the journey of writing, like so many undertakings in life, is not without its fair share of difficulties.

LLR: What are you currently working on? What are some of your future projects?

At the moment, I am working on my maiden novel which I have tentatively titled: 'Forgotten Legacy‘. Set in a fictional clan akin to where I come from in the heart of Lofa County, the story is knitted around the myths, conceited traditions, and intrigue attending to the life and times of the young protagonist who survives grave dangers to become a person of eminence among his people only to lose it all once again. Without giving away too much, I’d implore you to keep an eye out for this work by year’s end (hopefully).

As (God willing) I will be at work on my doctoral dissertation for most of 2016, writing for fun will not be a big part of the equation for a while following the publication of ‘Forgotten Legacy’.