A GUY WRITES A NOVEL…

   126    
2

I’m in awe of people who write books. Big books with important characters and brainy plot twists. I can’t comprehend that mental stoicism, to spend all your time with these characters, to feed them, pick their clothes, give them emotions, educate them (or dis-educate them) and give them spouses, put them in fenced homes with running hot water and then maybe, even decide on what gender of babies to give them. Don’t even start on where you will find a spouse for them in these dim dating times, but most definitely someone who doesn’t go to bed in underwear.

I have little patience for that level of artistic longevity. I get bored with characters too quickly and I want to be rid of them. I want to banish them to a faraway land where nobody speaks their tongue and pale people eat celery for dinner. It’s worse if they utter smart things, these well-coiffed sound bites that I can only dream of. So yes, I’m jealous of them and their triumphs and I try to withhold their rewards and quite often I put them in a position of weakness before I (reluctantly) think of how I can make them strong again. Plus I hate when characters are too happy if I’m not the one making them happy. Yes, I’m like a wife or a girlfriend.

I hate characters who just want to spend their days sitting in garden restaurants on sunny days, drinking healthy smoothies through thick straws and showing their beautiful teeth in laughter. That. Shit. Drives. Me. Up. The. Wall. I like when my characters sit quietly by windows and stare outside with sardonic looks. I love characters that eat alone -chewing their food absentmindedly, as if they are using someone else’s jaws.  I never ever want my characters to laugh too loudly either. It upsets me.

You see why it’s too demanding, too involving?

Then comes the exhaustive and completely soul waning zone where they have to market the book in person by sitting (and smiling throughout) at tables and signing those books at book signings with a handful of (mostly) curious people (ni nini anapeana? Ni bure ama tunalipia?). And then actually hope that they make some decent money off their body of work.

I have ran into authors who walk around everywhere with their books and when you bump into them in petrol stations or in the supermarket or as you stand watching your kids swing at a restaurant’s play area, they say, “By the way, have you read my book?” And you say,” No, I haven’t had a chance”, and before you can shout, “Stop swinging the baby so hard, he will fall,” they retrieve a copy from their bag and say, “Here, it’s only a1000 bob.” Then you have to buy it. How can you not buy it when you are a writer and you empathise with the very challenging process of creating? And so you support this great literal cause even though it leaves a distinct strong after-taste of affront.

To be honest, this grim part of authoring a book has never appealed to me. The idea that I might one day be ‘forced’ to ‘impose’ my book on friends and acquaintances in public spaces and hawk it from a knapsack on my back. I have always wondered, could this be my impending destiny? Will I be the writer in supermarket’s dairy section who confronts acquaintances I haven’t seen in dog years to buy my book? Is it not hard enough writing that book?

Nonetheless I remain quite impressed, proud and somewhat jealous at the brevity of these authors and their ability to try and sell these books in these unappealing and unappreciative literary conditions. But most of all I remain very fearful of spending all that mental power, sacrificing sleep, battling author insecurity and writing a book only for people to photocopy it. Or say, “Can you hook me up me with a free copy?”  This annoying Kenyan culture of people wanting to be bloody ‘hooked up’ with free shit.  More so, ‘tickos.’ Lord! *Insert whiny middle-class voice*: “Do you have free tickos you hook me up?” These are people who prefer to buy expensive drinks instead of buying a 1,000 bob ticket. I can’t think of a greater insult to an artist’s talent. Or time.

By the way, let me just walk away from this story before I get off tangent and eat into Kinyanjui Kombani’s time. You know Kinyanjui, don’t you? The banker who writes and has about 16 books to his name. Well he wants to talk about what it entails to write a book.

By KINYANJUI KOMBANI

He has been contemplating it for a long time – two years to be exact. The story has been simmering in his head all this time, and is now boiling over, threatening to explode if he doesn’t jot it down. He has conjured up all the characters, their motivations, traits, drive, emotions. He has cried with them, laughed with them, and mourned them when he had to kill them. It is no wonder that he has become a recluse, talking to himself sometimes. His spouse has been looking at him strangely.

So, now he has to write it.

It is not going to be an easy task. It has to compete with many things that he would rather be doing. Relationships will suffer. Friendships will be left to the sidelines. Family events will have to be skipped. Children may have to be pushed away, rather angrily, when they interrupt moments of intense writing. Family money will be diverted to research.

There are times he will look at the piece of paper and no words will come to his mind. And like writer Anthony Gitonga says, he will stare down the piece of paper until droplets of blood drip from his forehead onto the paper.

He will walk around town to see if something will inspire him. And he will see bookshop displays with other people’s books. ‘How does one feel to see his book on a bookshop display?’ he will ask himself. A book you have written?  And then he will find inspiration and go back to writing.

And finally, the novel will be done! He has managed what most writers never do – to actually write. He has done it! Welcome to stardom!

He will seek out publishers. He will walk importantly to publishing houses. And the receptionist will give him a look of slight disdain. The, who-are-you-to-come-here-in-your-rags look. And he will smile. It’s only a matter of time. Once his book sells millions they will give him VIP treatment. Just you wait.

Kuteseka ni kwa muda. Poverty has no roots.

And a young editorial staff will be called to attend to him. Our guy will be turned away. They do not do not accept hand written manuscripts.

Times New Roman. Double Space. Size 12. Printed on one side only. Bound.

Fair enough. Only that he doesn’t have a computer. And cyber cafés charge seven shillings a minute. And he walked all the way there. Meanwhile he knows no one with a computer.

He will go back home, dejected. So much for writing.

A few months later, a friend will see the handwritten manuscript and offer to help. The guy can come type it at the friend’s cyber café when there are no clients. Perfect.

Only that the friend’s cyber café is kilometers away. And the café is almost always busy.

It will be another year before the full novel is typed. The guy will gather a few coins, print and bind the work. Then he will resubmit the manuscript. And he will be given a slip and told to wait.

“Don’t call us. We will call you.”

He will walk back to his house, smiling and with a spring in his step.

He does not know this, but it will be a long wait. Weeks will turn into months. Finally he will call the publisher.

“Oh, that one. We have decided not to publish it. It doesn’t fit into our house style.”

“Ah, there are many other publishers”, he will say as he collects the manuscript.

And the cycle will continue.

“You know we receive over 30 manuscripts a week, we cannot publish them all.”

“The book is good. But we will not publish it.” As if that even makes sense.

And very soon hope turns into despair. He keeps all rejection letters in a file, and the file is getting bigger. Despair turns into acceptance. Maybe he wasn’t meant to be a writer. So he starts doing other things.

One day out of the blue, he will receive a call. Actually, the call will go to his older brother because he has no phone.

“We’d like to discuss your manuscript.”

Renewed hope. Mungu halali. The Lord does not sleep. He says a prayer and gets to the publisher’s office an hour before the appointed time.

“Your manuscript shows potential,” the publisher says. Our guy will be smiling, thinking of how to break the news to his spouse who, just yesterday, was asking him if he could consider another career. “We are considering publishing it so long as you change a few things.”

Fair enough.

He is given a 5-page list of things to change. The smirk on his face turns to consternation. He has to remove huge chunks, and rewrite whole chapters. And, oh no! He has to remove some characters. The characters he grew up with, and whom he has loved passionately.

It has to be done.

There will be no less than ten rewrites. And finally the book is finished. And our guy does not recognise the book at all. Characters have been added – imposters to spoil the party. Others have been removed. He has had to change the title. The publisher doesn’t like it.

Nevertheless, the book is ready. He sees the cover. He doesn’t like it much. But the book has to come out. It has been a four-year wait.

And on his walk back to town, he will stop at a motor vehicle showroom. His emotions getting ahead of him, he will step in, and ask for the price of an SUV. The sales person will laugh out loud, looking at our guy’s dusty, worn out shoes and wondering if he is mad.

Our guy will make the oath. Just you wait. I will buy this car. Cash. Let’s wait till the book is out and I am a celebrity.

But it will be a whole six years before the book is released. He will have grown tired of calling, emailing, threatening, and pleading with the publisher. The book is not ready, he will be told. The country is not ready for your book. We have no budget at this time.

And then, one day, the book will be launched. A great ceremony with family and friends. He will be elated. There will be a review of the book in the media.

He will see the book at a bookshop. And he will cry again.

And he will start to earn the respect of family and friends. He will hear the good news – a university has decided to pick the book as a study text.

Wow! He has arrived. All he ever dreamt was to see his book in print. Who had ever thought it would be taught at university? Not in his lifetime.

  1. Kelly’s song will become a favourite: Did you ever think that you would be this rich?

Only that four years later, he will be a disappointed man. Despite the successes the book has had, he has not received a single cent in royalties. And the publisher has gone underground.

Our guy is older and wiser, and knows a few more people. A lawyer will draft him a demand letter. The publisher has to give up all rights to the book, or face legal action.

The publisher does not contest the demand. He has only two conditions: that the writer buys all the books in his store, and that subsequent editions of the book indicate that his company did the first publication. Fair enough. The writer, seeing the big picture, will obtain a bank loan and buy off all copies.

Our guy will move to another publisher. He has built a few more relationships and is getting to be well known in literary circles. Exactly ten years after the book was written, it is re-launched in a well-attended function at a private university. Our guy is exultant.

The book becomes world famous. It is picked by more universities. It goes across borders. There is talk of turning it into a film. It is one of the critically acclaimed books in modern times.

This inspires our guy more. He writes and writes. He does literary festivals.

The new publishers are giving him regular reports on sales. The royalties are not as much as he would like them to be, but our guy knows that there is hope. One day, the SUV will come home. Just you wait.

And then the publisher calls a meeting of its top writers. In the meeting there is the who’s who in the country’s writing scene.  Our guy is honoured to attend. He can see people he only sees on TV.

The publisher doesn’t have very good news. The publishing industry is not thriving. Apart from competition and government policy changes, there is a real threat in piracy. Revenues are being lost to pirates who have become so sophisticated that their work is better quality than the original.

Our guy is worried. If this goes on, the publishers will redirect resources to better earning genres. Creative fiction is constantly under threat from text books. He has stuck with this publisher because he knows they have intentional investment in creative fiction.

And then our guy goes to talk at one of the universities where his book is a study text. He receives a heroic welcome. It is a grueling two-hour talk. He loves every minute of it. To see people who hang on to every word he says, who say how his characters changed their lives, is heavenly.

And then, to answer a question, he requests for a copy of the book. Nobody has it. Surprise. In other universities he has visited, the students have proudly displayed copies for him to read. Then to his horror, a student offers a photocopied version of his book.

Right then, it is revealed to him that out of the 200 students he is talking with, none has seen the original copy. It is no wonder the question they are struggling with has to do with the cover page. Nobody has seen the cover page!

It then dawns on our guy, no wonder the royalties are not coming. He does his research. It is happening in the universities right under the eyes of the administration. Only one book is being bought, the rest of the students photocopy from that book. In some cases, the photocopies are being done by the lecturers.

He is told about a copy of an autographed book making rounds in his alma mater, a copy which was given to a good friend as a complementary. Astounding. He usually has to buy copies from his publisher – only the 6 author copies are free.

It has taken blood, sweat and tears to get here. Everyone is stabbing him in the back. Et tu? He asks. Et tu?

His fists are now clenched.

Ps: The 10th Writing Masterclass is open for registration. It will be between 7th to 9th Dec. To register email [email protected]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

2
126 Comments
  1. “Only one book is being bought, the rest of the students photocopy from that book. In some cases, the photocopies are being done by the lecturers. ”
    Sadly this is what is happening in most universities. Too bad

  2. The idea that I might one day be ‘forced’ to ‘impose’ my book on friends and acquaintances in public spaces and hawk it from a knapsack on my back. No Biko, we will buy the book friends or not, do you know how many times we check on this page every Tuesday :)? www.shesatomboy.com

    1
  3. Actually it wasn’t Gitonga who said that writing is easy,all you have to do is think till droplets of blood appear on your forehead.It was Balzac.
    Good read though.

    1
      1. Actually, that witticism on the art of writing is attributable to Gene Fowler and not Balzac nor Hemmingway as someone alleges further down here.

        1
  4. Biko, good piece but isn’t it ironical that a write-up about piracy actually has a ‘pirated’ quote…that you’ve attributed to Antony Gitonga is actually Ernest Hemingway

    1
    1. Thanks for the feedback, John. Actually, that was my mistake, not Biko’s. Many apologies on his behalf. To be fair, it is not pirated – only that I heard it first from Anthony. If it was pirated I guess I would have said it was mine (not quoted anyone else).

      2
  5. It takes a writer to understand the higi-haga of coming up with pieces that can keep people reading after the first paragraph. You twist and turn at night rewriting in your head, then type it away a keystroke at a time. You stare at a blank word document. For long. You go pee then come back and stare at it some more. It is daunting. Then you finally write something. You like it. But then they read it and think its shit. So you go back and write some more. It becomes a journey of sorts. It get worse but you get better. They share your works at time and sneer at times. But you keep writing. Because it is about the art. Maybe.
    Biko I honestly feel that author. The selfcontrol it takes not to pat someone really hard on the face with that clenched fist for photocopying your sweat and blood. But then this is reality. The sad reality.

    Good read as always.

    1
      1. Mrs Mwiti!
        I once visited your blog and got lost in there. For hours! I read every post. Then I went back a few days later, nothing. A few weeks, still nothing. I hope you can start writing again. Soon.
        All the best.
        A fan.
        PS: We spent our holiday at Wileli House last year,thanks to your article. It was lovely.

        1
        1. Maco please tell her! I’ve told her enough times.
          Mrs Mwiti, I thought it was our new year’s resolution & we’re nearing the end of it

        2. Awww! How heartwarming! If I had a dime for every time I have said
          “I should start writing again…”
          I would pay for a 7 day holiday
          at some exotic destination. 😀 😀
          Challenge accepted. I am coming back soon. 🙂

    1. It takes a writer to understand the higi-hag,,,,,,i realy luv that word there, higi-haga, crinkum-crankum

      www.mwanaareginah.wordpress.com

    2. Hahahaha!
      The Struggle.

      I’m laughing but I go through this every day, so it’s okay for me to laugh.
      If I could, I’d include “Staring at Blank Word Documents” under “Hobbies” in my CV.

      Stay strong, you guy.
      People might think that your writing is shit. But you know the truth.
      And this is your truth. Come closer, let me tell you…

      *whispers* That shit cray!

      https://thispostisabout.wordpress.com

  6. But if you have done this over and over again, suffered the frustrations and triumphed, and have become a household name in your genre of writing,don’t you smile all the way to the bank? When one becomes an acclaimed writer, what are the trappings of the glory? Talk invites? Paid for seminar appearances? Or is it all just doom and gloom for aspiring writers>

    1. I feel you Frederick. It’s not all gloom and doom. I am making another post on the benefits of being a writer.

  7. And then, to answer a question, he requests for a copy of the book. Nobody has it. Surprise. In other universities he has visited, the students have proudly displayed copies for him to read. Then to his horror, a student offers a photocopied version of his book…. This is the most unfortunate situation in our institutions of higher learning, i remember back in campus this used to happen a lot with full backing of the administration!

  8. wooow. I believe that to write means more than putting pretty words on a page. The art of writing is to share a part of your soul to the world. When institutions that are supposed to support writers are the same ones robbing them off in broad daylight then something is seriously wrong. I hope Kinyanjui Kombani will get justice. He did not sweat over for nothing.

  9. Its depressing reading the trail of heartbreak.
    The better option would be to write and publish an e book, then offer it for sale online.

  10. Plus I hate when characters are too happy if I’m not the one making them happy. Yes, I’m like a wife or a girlfriend. You just had to do that!!

  11. Salute to all the author’s out there its through them that we learn the true meaning of hard work patience perseverance. Knowledge is impacted to or children’s children. They ought to be encouraged That there hardwork does not go in vain. Kenyans need to embrace the reading culture! No making copies or doing it online. its amazing what one can learn from what the author’s have hidden in their books.
    #Greatread

  12. This i very interesting.Though we need to cast away the demons of piracy.They’re realy dictating peoples fate in our society.Great read biko.

  13. This is one of the saddest things I have seen today.
    The other sad thing was a hole in my shoe. But that’s not important right now.

    Writing a blog post is hard sembuse writing a book?
    (Don’t you just love those Kiswahili words we were forced to learn but never actually use?)

    Good luck to the authors out there.
    https://thispostisabout.wordpress.com

  14. I think the universities should do like high school (I know what you are thinking) that to register for a unit that involves Literature by any Kenyan, you need to register with a new book and it is stamped to avoid one book being registered by everyone..

  15. Piracy and counterfeit stuff are killing real talent in this country. And to imagine all the energy and dedication from the writers and the artists.Lord have mercy.

  16. Our country’s appreciation of literature work leaves a lot to be desired. The corruption in the system that lays the ground for piracy and plagiarism to thrives drives in the last nails to a struggling author’s problems.
    It’s sad. We ought to set our priorities right.

    1. True..lets form a writers chama, and share and uplift each other, and maybe, maybe, we just might be able to find a solution

  17. Piracy is killing it. The motivation to write, also the dreams. There’s a need to squash it. The creative industry is on its knees.

    The Master class, is it possible to have an evening or a virtual class? Some of us would love to attend but the 8 to 5 schedule is strangling.

  18. Yep, I absolutely hate this Kenyan culture of photocopying things instead of buying the original. If you value the author and his or her work that much, make a sacrifice and buy their book. It’s a really upsetting culture we have of photocopying books and buying things that are bootleg.

  19. I am at that point.”He does not knot know but it will be a long wait.” As an aspiring Author I am seeing red with my saga.4 years writing on a borrowed laptop and still waiting for that call.

  20. I do hope to write a book one of these days, when i finally kick procrastination out of the window. And i know i will buy a SUV from the profit

  21. The last villains of Molo was a course book in our literature class and there was not knowing if it was a pirate copy, bookshop bought n all. that story broke me man. And after the post election violence I am surprised it has been overlooked as our high school text minding it’s relevance. Acha we work our way to the top we make that shit happen. Its been a pleasure to read your work.

  22. Bike, I feel so sorry for Kintail having to be shafted by those ingrates from his (and my) former alma mater. Now that he has called them out I trust they will do the needful and make his dream for that SUV achievable.

    The word ‘Brevity’ has nothing to do with being brave or as DJ Afro would say Kimonda. This is the second time you are making that mistake.

        1. I am in the ghost reader mode Kui because unlike Tahidi High Biko High needs folks to graduate and to let others to come and build up the alumni profile.
          Isn’t a good thing no one remembers me anymore? Even Jackson himself has the ‘brevity’ (see what I did? Just replace that with temerity because Jackson has apparently let his forehead to get the better of him so he doesn’t take the advice of old timers like us anymore) to mangle my name whenever he gets into one of his aud lang syne mode.

          Nice to see that you around too, and Kimutai and…(shhhhh) where’s Mufasa?

          Cheers

          1. I remember you Kidi, hard to forget one who made me read his comments with dictionary in hand. Don’t worry, i loved it. Nice to ‘see’ you back here

  23. Good read as usual and having known and watched KK or Jokin as we used to call him during our campus days toil for that first novel to be published, it is really sad that he has not benefitted from it simply because we have a habit of photocopying anything and everything. Lets hope the meeting with the Kenya Copyright Board bears fruit but we all need to change, you and me….if you like the book just buy it..its that simple

  24. It starts with the 50 bob pirated movie! My wife is writing a novel. It will be criminal to just get it at 50 bob after the hard work and sacrifice.

  25. Very sad and discouraging to upcoming writers.
    I’m guessing one has to have multiple streams of income as a back-up plan on the side as one pursues their passion.
    I’m wondering about self-publishing on amazon..how it works and if it could be an option to circumvent the tedious work of cajoling publishers to publish, and as well avoid those who don’t respect someone’s work and choose to photocopy.

  26. The same reason I tell my friends it ain’t all rosy writing a book. They keep throwing a leash on my neck pulling me into book writing, but I don’t think I’m ready for this shit. Nice read, real struggle.
    http://mzangila.com

  27. This is the gravely reward for hard work. Very sad.

    You won’t impose your book on us Biko. And when you finally start writing, please, don’t sideline us from TUESDAY.

  28. But if someone asks for an ebook version of a book, is it all gloom. I have actually bought a number of ebooks from Kenyan authors. Short stories, cook books etc
    http://www.treatsonabudget.co.ke/

  29. And others will offer to pay him with exposure. It is appalling how people don’t respect art yet the world would be one boring circle without art

  30. Another addition to my complexities of life list. And to think that I’d wish to write many books in my lifetime. Hmmmmm!

  31. Nevertheless, I’ll still write a book! I think you are paving a way for us Kinyanjui Kombani, and I will join you any way I can..when are you returning the award to KU?

    1. Hi Mercy. We have teamed up as industry players to beat the menace. I await to see how universities react to us.

  32. Piracy is a form of corruption, and corruption in this country is like cancer
    that is not even responding to Chemo; I wonder if the developed countries faced the
    the issues we have today at one point in time coz for sure I have lost hope. Kinyanjui Kombani,
    hang on, at-least you did your part, you are better than the procrastinator who is still
    waiting for tomorrow. Beautiful read, though heart breaking.

  33. Piracy is a worldwide problem not unique to Kenya. These days to get any great book all you have to do is Google a PDF copy of the book n voila.free to download at 1/16th of what the paperback costs or Amazon. Sadly this isn’t abt to change anytime soon.

  34. The law actually allows fair use. As long as it’s for educational purposes, the person who has copied has not committed an offense

  35. Proud to say I own an autographed copy of one of his books. Fighting piracy starts with just one person saying no to photocopies or downloads.

  36. Great post! usife moyo bwana Kombani. I hope that ship of photocopying pirates will be sank ASAP! Your next book should be titled ‘Haki yetu’! I’ll buy one of your books next week to replace one photocopied copy. Soldier on sir.

  37. Tafadhali Biko, write a book.I will buy the original copy..and i will read each and every word with the eagerness of a hungry child waiting for food.
    Piracy is bad…but this post has made me feel it on a diffdifferent level.
    Worth a share.

  38. Umenimulika. I consider myself an honest person in that I do not steal. But I have been lying to myself for many years. I am guilty. Mimi ni mwizi. I am an expert at downloading ebooks, music and movies (FOC of course) with no thought to the hard work that has gone into their production. It’s a tough habit to break and will not happen overnight but I vow to go into a shop and actually purchase one book and one CD per year. Hopefully this sad tale will touch many others like me.

  39. I have read kombanis book,the last villain of molo,unfortunately I lost my copy.i must say I cried reading the book .
    I hope to read more of your books

  40. Kumbe writing is not just pen on paper and then bam!!Done!
    sad how humans never look at situations from other people’s point of view

  41. I can feel you Kinyanjui. I can imagine all those years of blood, sweat and tears only for people to copy and pirate your work. It is discouraging to some of us who are aspiring writers. Is it worth it? Is it worth the effort?

  42. This reminds me of a time I went to buy a bus card in a European country and I was asked whether I was above 26 which I proudly confirmed.
    Later, I was to realize later that there are subsidized travel cards for students (Under 26).
    My point is, this class of people at this age are under funded by both parents and government. Whereas writers have invested very much to produce quality work, the clients can barely afford.
    Think of how, together with publishers and commercial institutions like banks,Registered University students can access books, soft ware and learning materials by paying a yearly subsidized access for digital contents.
    It is happening in other countries, expensive soft ware has redacted student versions. Universities also pay premiums for students to access digital content from Online libraries.
    The burden may not be on the writers to do this, but as stakeholders, awareness must be raised to have intellectual property protected.

  43. I think Kenyans enjoy doing the opposite…., almost at all times. don’t get me wrong, am a proud Kenyan but somethings we do kill the most important qualities a society can pride itself in; talent, originality, clean environment, sanity on our roads and all that. Sometimes, naomboleza kuwa mkenya.

  44. And here i am, a writter wannabe strugling to finish the first part of a novel. But at this rate, i’d rather just give up or simply write for fun if this is what it will all come to. Not worth it, is it?
    So much for wanting to be a writter

    1. Don’t give up, just change your expectations. Publish because you’ll be satisfied to see your book out but don’t expect funds from it.

  45. It’s heartbreaking to be in that situation.i once wrote a novel after high school.after 200 pages on an exercise book i read of the hardships of getting a publisher and i gave up the dream of writting altogether.

  46. Am in campus studying literature and I thoroughly comprehend this..in a semester on average I study 5 books per unit.sadly,almost all are photocopies.

  47. Haha, there’s this time I was ordered to reduce a 2000-words fiction to 1,500 words. It really distorts everything in your writeup, you have to do away with some of your favorite characters, the finer story details, plus the mood of the story totally changes.

  48. This story reminds me of the book ‘Fools die’ by Mario Puzo. Sad but true, publishing in this error requires Grace. The thought of having your manuscript stay in a dusty shelf at a random publishing house is depressing enough.

  49. So sad. At least this made me laugh:..who have become so sophisticated that their work is better quality than the original.. I pray you get a movie deal. It’ll be poetic justice

  50. The struggle is real. If only the effort spent in writing a book could be emanated to the benefits of actually getting the book out there

  51. Thank you all for the reactions to the story. Following this story (and others across other blogs), industry players are reacting by allocating resources towards enforcement and awareness. Do watch this space.

  52. @Kinyanjui Kombani.. I remember attending your book launch at Daystar a few years ago. It’s sad what’s happening at our universities. But all will be well bro

  53. he requests for a copy of the book. Nobody has it. Surprise. In other universities he has visited, the students have proudly displayed copies for him to read. Then to his horror, a student offers a photocopied version of his book.
    Right then, it is revealed to him that out of the 200 students he is talking with, none has seen the original copy. It is no wonder the question they are struggling with has to do with the cover page. Nobody has seen the cover page!…

    Actually it’s real. Most writers do suffer in this era. We, most students prefer to photocopy a book rather than buying the original copy. It’s a burden to the writers…

  54. Kinyanjui Kombani…what a read…you made me laugh…i had to laugh at myself, as this story reflects my own…And the SUV, I Love BMWs, so i see myself in one after my big sale. Oh my, am at that point where i have decided that i will not let publishers kill my writing. Self publishing is the answer to this problem way i see it…and when i succeed, i will be back with my story. Wish me luck