New Year resolutions for Nigerian writers, readers

A new year is here. 2019 has arrived as a blank book and a pen in your hands for you to write whatever you please. While you decide what to do with this year, we have prepared this list of 9 resolutions we hope you can make yours in the next 12 months. These resolutions, which mainly wish to encourage you to write more, read more and actively promote Nigerian writing/writers, will help you as a writer/reader, as much as those around you and the Nigerian creative/literary industry in general.

Finish old manuscripts:  Start new ones. Publish with us

Revisit your old manuscripts and clean them up, finish your pending manuscripts and begin new ones. Whatever you do, just make sure you write more in 2019 than you did in previous years. And then you are done, look for those that would help you publish your book.

 Read. Read. Read More (Nigerian) Books Than Last Year

Make a conscious decision to read more in 2019, and this is not limited to books – anything with information is good to read. But ensure that you read more Nigerian books than you did in previous years.

 Add more books to your personal library (buy or ‘borrow’)

This is the year to add new books to your library and organize the old ones you have. It is a crime to pile up books in one corner of your room like a truckload of sand waiting to be used to fill a hole. Your books will feel more comfortable in bookshelves. PS: growing your books can be done by buying new books (which we recommend) or ‘borrowing’ from your friends, without intention to return (which we don’t recommend).

 Tell people about good (Nigerian) books you’ve read

Don’t be selfish when you discover a new good book. Try as much to tell your friends about them. This can be via face-to-face conversations, group chats or social media posts. It can be simple photo and brief comments or full reviews on blogs. Just do it. It helps both the author (in sales) and the readers (in helping them find books).

 Add books to your gift packages. They are always in season

There is no greater gift than one which helps the receiver improve in one way or another and books – more than anything else, can help anyone improve. So wrap up used and new books as gifts to people this year. That way you will encourage them to read (and improve).

 Read to children. It helps them develop literacy skills

If you are not aware, please be informed that reading books aloud can help children develop key literacy skills and help them develop a love of reading for life… which by extension makes them better than their peers. So, read to children this year.

 Help a writer with constructive feedback

You can help writers, especially the young ones, get better by giving them constructive feedback on their work. Make time out of your busy schedule to be available. A simple comment (not passing comments like ‘good’, ‘poor’, ‘nice’, ‘rubbish’ or ‘beautiful’) that points out the good or bad in a piece of writing will go a long way.

Write to your favorite author (letter, email, tweet etc)

This year, write as many mails as you can to your favorite authors – either as electronic mail, surface mail, tweets, Instagram posts or Facebook comments. Not many people have done this, but this gesture means a lot to the average writer because a writer’s greatest desire is to be read, understood and appreciated.

 Revisit your old books, enjoy the nostalgia (or not)

This is the year to dig up the old books in your collection, reread them and decide if you still want to keep them or pass them on to others. You will appreciate the nostalgic feeling some of them will give you. You will also discover that you no longer have a need for some of them.

Source: Words Rhymes & Rhythm Publishers

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