Anietie Isong

Anietie Isong is a Nigerian/British author of poetry and short stories. Quotes I may have gone another route, but the work of these professionals taught me the importance of using innovation to find creative and practical solutions to everyday issues. My parents had strong aspirations of me becoming a successful engineer growing up, a common desire in many Nigerian families because it’s primarily seen to enhance job prospects. As much as I wanted to fulfil my parents’ wishes, however, the learning curve was steep, and I soon hit a brick wall when they sent me to a science college. I found calculus impossible, trigonometry was like reading a foreign language, and in statistics, I was merely average. My laboratory work didn’t fare much better; I was accident-prone. One day, while carrying out thermal decomposition of calcium carbonate, I mistakenly tipped the tripod over, and the Bunsen burner missed my face by a whisker. Despite my deficiencies, I persevered and passed all my science subjects. My parents were elated, but their happiness rapidly evaporated when I insisted on studying communication instead. I went on to become a writer, starting out by writing scripts for radio. My family’s perception of creative careers only changed when I started receiving accolades for my work while working at Radio Nigeria in the early 2000s as a scriptwriter, producer and reporter. Although I never became an engineer, I have deep respect for the engineering profession, and in the course of my writing career, I’ve been fortunate to meet many talented Nigerians in this noble field. Like Isiaka Abbass ― a former sound engineer with Radio Nigeria. After years of struggling to grasp the intricacies of engineering, some of the fundamental concepts of sound I had learnt at science college became even clearer through working with Abbass. In those days our recording studios lacked the technologies to create and store sound effects digitally; we had to improvise using a variety of materials and tools we had around us. The sound engineer taught me how to think outside the box. My experience at the radio station later formed the basis of my first novel, Radio Sunrise, which tackles the commodification of journalism, depicting a young Nigerian journalist’s attempts to remain ethical in a country where corruption is rife. It was one of the most fulfilling and formative periods of my career. I was intrigued by Ochije’s invention in electrical mobility, developed while he studied for his masters degree at the University of Cambridge. Ochije created a controller for mobility scooters to ensure a smooth transition during an acceleration. He improved upon this innovation during his PhD at Leicester, and the final product was a high-speed generator that ensured an even smoother ride. I was very proud when an engineering firm in the UK acquired this new technology and commercialised it. Ochije later moved to the University of Edinburgh for his post-doc, where he developed a patented machine that is currently being used in wind turbines in the UK. Ochije taught me the importance of pushing boundaries. It’s a lesson that I apply in my own writing. I am constantly finding new ways to push the boundaries of the literary genre, and to showcase the voices of those not usually heard.