From an early age we hear the phrase,
"When you grow up you should do well
and then you could go overseas."
What is this overseas that we hear so much about?
Those who come from there seem to have so much money to spend,
they buy cars and build houses,
but, in the end, do they tell the truth about this overseas?
From morning to night, if you are lucky,
you get to work like a stupid monkey,
you are at their beck and call,
afraid of losing that bad job at all,
because the next one would be harder to get
because your skin is not the right shade, or your
words don't sound right or you just don't fit.
No time to rest, no time to play,
no time to see your children,
no time
no money to send, but you do it anyway,
after all what would your friends and family say?
You are lucky, You have a permit,
hell is for those who don't,
dodging police, and sleeping on friend's floors,
when there are guests around you are sent outdoors.
Finding all means to marry a woman to stay,
a woman who will make hell a better place to be.
After many years when you finally get settled,
someone dear to you dies over the seas from where you came,
you take a bank loan; make the trip, and come back home,
and the cycle starts again.
They think you are rich, you pay the bills,
you smile and laugh but you know the
hell you will go back to when the plane lands
overseas.
The bills are waiting for you,
the debt collector is on your door,
a delayed plane means no job.
You owe more than when you came
and yet people here look with envy.
When you fly away on a plane,
to the place of their dreams…..
overseas.
Showing posts with label Mariska Taylor-Darko. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mariska Taylor-Darko. Show all posts
Author Profile - Mariska Taylor-Darko
Biography:
Five Questions with Mariska Taylor-Darko:
Contact Mariska:
Mariska's Past Profiles:
Issue 1.30, October 14th - 19th, 2007
Issue 1.20, August 4th - 10th, 2007
Born in Manchester, England in 1956, Mariska attended Holy Child Secondary School in Cape Coast and St. Mary's Secondary School, Mamprobi, Acccra. She then returned to the UK and attended Beresford College of English and Commerce, Margate, Kent and later Harrow College of Further Education, Harrow, Middlesex. She has a PhD in Life.
She has two sons, Niinoi and Kwame. She is a motivational speaker, poet, writer, beautician, fire walker and lover of jazz, blues, reggae and old time highlife.
Five Questions with Mariska Taylor-Darko:
1. "Overseas" uses rhyme sporadically. What is your general opinion on rhyme in poetry, and why did you choose to use it as you did here?
I feel that the use of rhyme makes words flow and gives a feel to the words. When I was writing I felt it made it easier on the ear. I didn't plan it, it just happened, and I took advantage of it.
2. "no money to send, but you do it anyway," is a very powerful line. Could you discuss it in more detail? Have you experienced such a situation yourself?
Africans who do a lot of low paid work overseas know what it is like when they work three jobs, pay tax, transport, accommodation, food and clothing, etc. and at the end of the day they have just enough to keep their heads above water, yet at the end of each month they become overdrawn on their bank accounts just to send money home to their family (children's fees, parents hospital bills, etc.). How can they explain that they are working and yet broke? The families will call them selfish and never fully understand even if they try to tell them.There is no compassion when a person comes back home with nothing to show for his or her time spent abroad.
I think that nearly everyone working and studying abroad has experienced a situation where demands from home have been made at a time when finances were tight.
3. Having experienced life "overseas" and now back living in Accra, how do you treat fellow Ghanaians who return from elsewhere differently than you would have in the past?
I understand them better now that I am older as well. I know that their frustrations abroad can have an effect of their behaviour. Some are arrogant because they want to create an impression now that they have been abroad, some are impatient, because things work at a slower pace and are less organised, some are tight fisted because they know how hard they worked for their money and wont give it out easily, some are afraid to resettle because of the fear of the unknown and the absence of a social structure that would cushion them when times get hard. I don't see them as the rich "johnny come home".
4. This poem echoes in many ways the sentiment of "Animal" by Prince Mensah, featured on this site last year. Did "Animal" have any influence on your writing "Overseas"? If so, how?
Overseas was written in 2004, long before I read "Animal", but when I read Prince's poem I immediately understood where he was coming from.
5. In our last round table discussion, you mentioned that "The Universities should invite outsiders to participate in events regardless of their educational background." Do you feel that the Universities right now are too insular, and don't effect the community enough? Likewise, do you feel that the Universities need to play a central role in the rebirth of poetry in Ghana?
I do feel that the Universities are very insular. They stick to themselves and the only time you hear of events involving non-graduates is when a corporate body is organising an event, or when their Arts department is having a showing of plays. Participation of "outsiders" is a very rare thing. They keep their knowledge within instead of imparting it without.
They should play a role in the rebirth of poetry through the professors and graduates of this fine art, but at the same time I think the present poets should be the ones to play a central role. The freelancers, the untrained and the lover of poetry and verse are very important, too.
Contact Mariska:
Email: mariska.taylor(at)gmail.com
Alternate Email: arabataylord(at)yahoo.co.uk
Websites: African Woman's Poetry, Mariska's MySpace Page
Mariska's Past Profiles:
Issue 1.30, October 14th - 19th, 2007
Issue 1.20, August 4th - 10th, 2007
OGOV Roundtable Discussion #2 - Africans Abroad
For the second time here at OGOV, in lieu of a poem this week we will receive the privilege of "listening in" on a conversation on poetry held between some of Ghana's (and Africa's) brightest up and coming poets, moderated by One Ghana, One Voice's own Julian Adomako-Gyimah, and featuring Prince Mensah, Martin Pieterson, Emmanuel Sigauke, and Mariska Taylor-Darko. So please have a read, and be sure to use the comment section to join the conversation yourself!
Julian Adomako-Gyimah:
As Ghanaian (and Zimbabwean) writers living abroad, how best can we promote writing amongst Ghanaians at home?
Emmanuel Sigauke:
This question applies to the idea of what African writers in general should do to promote writing back home. If we go back to the classical argument of the writer as teacher, visionary, voice of the people, we find ourselves subscribing to a type of thinking that associates writing with advocacy or social responsibility. So, having lived away from home, I find myself seeking a true definition of self, culture and belonging through my writing.
But at one time I was a writer based in Africa, concerned about the importance of my Africanness to me, but there was also the temptation of departing from home artistically, wooed by schools of writing associating themselves with radicalism, individualism, loneliness. This applied to all forms of artistic expression, for instance, music -- I remember my generation's general attachment to foreign music, but once I was away, I started to rediscover the beauty of art produced at home. Not everyone enters exile in order to discover the necessary artistic self hood, so it is the duty of the ex-pat writer to share the renewed (sometimes just new) vision with the artists back home.
One best way of helping writers back home is to take advantage of the access to resources that being an exile often provides to help out the talented but often disadvantaged writers back home. One way I have offered to help writers back home (in my case Zimbabwe) has been to start a literary journal that the writers can submit to. But I have noticed that since the journal is internet-based, it has not yet reached those most in need.
So I have been thinking of ways in which I can work with writers groups to provide access to needy writers. This is no easy task, which is why a forum like this one will definitely help us brainstorm (and act on) the various ways we can help.
Prince Mensah:
Powerful point, Emmanuel.
There has to be a concerted effort with foreign-based African writers, local universities and stations (TV and Radio) to encourage writing among our people. There is an over-emphasis on ways to get rich quick. Even the smartest people get caught in this tyranny of becoming 'rich' by any means necessary. This is the bane of our countries. There is so much poverty that the only tangible thing to do is to hustle. Our countries are caught up in the illusion of unrealistic sitcoms and movies that are nothing but fiction. The fact of life is that you have to work and work hard at anything worth having. Our people also have to be taught to not only work hard, but work smart.
We, as writers in other countries, must challenge the status quo by becoming leaders on issues we talk about. For the sake of writing in our countries, we can apply for grants, collectively or individually, directed to providing an intellectual infrastructure wherein literary institutions and competitions can be established. There has to be several steps taken in making the writing and appreciation of poetry, novels, plays and essays an accepted norm in our societies. Local radio and TV stations can become partners in the creation of programmes that reward writing efforts.
In Africa, a huge chunk of the general readership is semi-illiterate or illiterate. This makes an interest in written and spoken English extremely difficult. We have to adopt towns or areas in our home countries where we can channel resources in the forms of books and study aids. These things do not have to come out of pocket, necessarily. All we have to do is raise interest in the foreign countries where we live in, by writing to libraries, publishers, schools and literary organizations.
In Ghana, slapstick shows, popularly known as concert parties, have more patronage than theatrical productions. The sad thing is that inasmuch that concert parties are popular, they have no marketability to outside markets. Our literary efforts must enable our local writers to attain marketability to the outside world as well. There is a dire need for us to do something in 2008. A campaign to world literary circles would not be a step in the bad direction. We need to unearth the great stories that lie hidden in the minds of our people.
Emmanuel:
Let's do something in 2008. We could become one of the groups that writers back home can rely on at different levels of support. Something as simple as contributing resources (a little bit of money, publicity, etc) will go a long way in helping writers back home. Often we look to other people's endowments as sources of support -- what if we could provide one. We as a group can start a fund that helps writing activities back home. I have always had visions to fund a poetry contest through one of the writers' groups back home. What we need to bear in mind, though, is how to ensure that the money, the support, goes to help those it's intended to support.
Prince:
A monthly literary prize of $50 will not be bad. However, that $50 should be in the form of books that assist with writing. A quarterly prize of $100 can be organized to not only give books but to assist the writer with stationary for their manuscript. An annual prize of $500 can be given to a writer who has completed a manuscript and needs a publisher to complete the project. The numbers are all suggestions and emanate from conservative projection. We have to agree to everything as a group.
Martin Pieterson:
In my opinion, writing in Ghana can be promoted by setting up writing clubs in communities and in schools (primary, secondary and tertiary). Not only do we need to set up these clubs, we need to ensure they are run professionally. Especially in the 1st and 2nd cycle institutions, writers must be made to know all that goes into the craft such as finding markets, analyzing the publications to submit work to, approaching the various genres (short stories, poetry, articles, religious writing, travel writing etc..), using grammar and punctuation, finding inspiration, handling writers' block, and much more.
Some writers clubs have sprung up in the past in Ghana but many haven't worked because people don't see what they gain from them. One of the problems up-and-coming writers face in Ghana is the issue of getting published. Many submit pieces to publications without analyzing what kind of work the publication accept (if it's sports, leisure, travel, politics, etc.), length of articles, style of writing etc.., and when they aren’t published they give up entirely on writing. I believe if people know some of these things they will do things correctly and thus stay in the craft.
I would like to take this opportunity to request all poets who have been published on OGOV to begin thinking of setting up writers' clubs in their communities so that we get this professional approach into our writing. Writing has so many benefits: apart from making us advocates, it also helps us to sharpen our skills of observation and communication. The latter is very important for us Ghanaians and Africans now that the world has become a Global Village. It also helps us improve on our vocabulary and thus become more confident.
Another point is that every fun activity that is done in the running of these clubs should be that which will add to the competence of the writers. During excursions to places of interest, for example, writers should be told not only to go and have fun but also to observe everything and report. In this way, we can help produce many travel writers.
In addition to setting up writers' clubs and running them professionally, there is the need to have more publications. One of the joys of writing is getting published, and this is why I would like to commend OGOV for making it possible for many talented Ghanaian and African writers, who may otherwise have had difficulty in getting published, to get published. OGOV has shown us that we have more quality and great writers than we thought. I believe there are even many more to emerge once given the opportunity.
I would like to suggest that OGOV begins a corner for teenagers and kids or 1st and 2nd Cycle institutions so we can get the spirit into them. Many of them would love to see their poems published. [ed. note: we currently have a call out for poems by children and youth - visit the Submission Guidelines page for more details]
Congrats Julian for your help in getting Ex-pat writers published. Let's do the same for many of the great writers in Ghana. Prince and Emmanuel, thanks for your wonderful ideas as to how we can sponsor writing events.
I am sure if we organise ourselves properly, there could be a time when people could even take writing as a full-time job in Ghana, we just have to start discussing the business side of it. We can begin to organize poetry evenings first free of charge and later charge a little money depending on the interest and then we can move to other literary events. KSM did it with his shows; we can also do it with writing. We just need to begin talking.
Friends, I see a great hope for Ghana and Africa from this corner. I see we are the generation to make Africa what it is supposed to be. Let's keep this spirit. And after our forums, let's move on to implementing our decisions. This is what our present leadership is not doing. And as a generation of hope, let's begin to do this.
Prince:
Great idea, Martin.
There is the need for a multiple-pronged approach to this issue. Writer's clubs are definitely the way to go. We need to identify people and organizations who share this vision. We have to build the foundation so that when the real job is done, it won't collapse. Let's brainstorm, brethren. The world is watching.
Emmanuel:
Working with writers who are serious is a prerequisite to successful literary promotion. Clubs are a good starting point, and sponsoring contests, and helping writers gain access to publishers and agents would be a great step in this process. Although we all live in places where publishing resources are available, it is not always easy to break our ways into publication since the issues we deal with may not appeal to publishers here. There is thus the issue of which publishers and promoters should be involved in the nurturing of talent back home.
Mariska Taylor-Darko:
Hi all of you.
First of all I must say that it was only after being abroad that I saw what other countries do to promote the work of their writers. Apart from the intellectuals in Ghana and among the ex-pats, the average Ghanaian only heard of poetry when they were in school - for Literature lessons. As a writer who commutes between countries I feel that one of the ways we could help would be to organise poetry readings, get published in the media, get some good PR, have competitions among the youth and try to get sponsors interested in writing of all forms with attractive rewards for talent. The Universities should invite outsiders to participate in events regardless of their educational background. The TV and Radio stations should also give exposure to the up and coming writers with fun programmes - not the serious heavy events that have been seen.
In Ghana it seems that poetry (I mention this because its my area of interest) is not given much regard outside the tertiary establishment, although a few poetry reading sessions are being organised - all late at night and in venues that are not easily accessible. We have to make events more accessible to the masses and get more youth interested.
Emmanuel:
Mariska, the issue of access, as you pointed out, is very important. Most writers nowadays self-market on the internet through forums like Myspace and Youtube. While I am happy about the proliferation of online poetry journals, I am aware that some talented young writers in Africa do not have access to a computer, or cannot afford the rates of the internet cafes. So to ensure access, we need to help in the provision of resources, without waiting for the "generous Western sponsor" of writing. Of course, access is not everything; trainers would need to identify interested and talented writers who can be helped to realize their dreams. As you stated, Mariska, writing contests, conferences, excursion, etc. would help.
Mariska:
Emmanuel, I agree with you also. The lack of access to the electronic world would be a hindrance to a lot of budding writers. I think we all agree that closer interaction between writers would be a major development, as we’ve mentioned wanting locally organised programmes in nearly all our comments. So now, how do we start? The biggest hurdle would be the funds to set up these programmes. Where do the youth meet a lot? In clubs, churches, sports grounds, etc. Clubs could, on days when they have not much patronage, arrange poetry reading sessions to bring exposure. Meeting the youth groups in churches and organising such events would also be a possibility. Making use of the churches weekly bulletins and monthly magazines is another outlet. These are just a few ways we could start without depending on any Western sponsors...
This way the talented writers would gain acknowledgement, a following of friends and like minded persons and the encouragement to continue with their dreams.
For those of us who can speak pidgin or local dialects, poetry recitals could be organised in these dialects to reach a wider audience. Even mixtures of good English and pidgin would make things more interesting.
We should show our love for what we do to the point that it touches and awakens the feelings in others. We should be vocal and vibrant in our delivery of both written poetry and spoken word and let other writers know that just because they are not living outside of their own countries does not mean that they do not have much to offer. They do have much to offer, and should be passionate about it without fear of criticism. It is better to keep on trying than never try at all.
Emmanuel:
Yes, Mariska. As we assume this task of inspiring others, we are called upon by that responsibility to lead by example: we have to demonstrate that we are writing and publishing works. The fellow writers back home are not just recipients of our encouragement, but partners in this effort. What I remember working with young writers in Zimbabwe in the 90s was the passion they had; we had the passion, but persistence was another matter.
As Mariska pointed out, the passion has to turn into persistent writing that does not get easily discouraged by criticism or rejections. As most us would attest, publication is difficult even here (especially here, where sometimes the editors turn down our works because they don't seem to address a familiar world). So let there be a balance in approach: we should inspire and encourage each other without so much as hinting that this is an easy process. We also don't want to give false impressions about art and livelihood, or to steer aspiring writers towards a disabling dependence policy. Often, we feel, as aspiring writers, that we are the chosen few, but, really, writing demands great effort, knowledge (if not respect) of your market or readership, and realistic goals.
Prince:
Writing, like any other human talent, gets better with use. The rubber band principle must be applied wherein we stretch ourselves to a point in our careers where we have exhausted everything we are capable of producing. This enables us to accommodate the happiness and heartbreaks of a career in writing.
I think action must be 75% with us and words be the rest. In as much as we serve hope as breakfast, reality must be served as lunch. We have to sponsor groups in our country, by exposing their works to people and groups we know. We must give our people an audience. Most of us have personal websites, why don't we get poetry from a bunch of good, but struggling, writers from our countries and post them on our sites? Why don't we organize a monthly newsletter that will give our people a list of places they can get help from? Why don't we use our network of friends to promote our brothers and sisters? The concept of community, as we are doing now, can be inculcated in our sibling-scribes at home.
Leading by example, as Emmanuel suggested, can start by all of us agreeing to do something and sticking to it. If it is funding, let us agree on a ball park figure. If it is logistics, let's figure a solution out. Remember, a problem is an opportunity wrapped with rags.
Let's get going on our plans because not only is African suffering from economic and intellectual dysfunction---our people are living under an iron sky. It is up to us to let them believe in themselves once again. The world is respectful of one who knows his destination.
Julian Adomako-Gyimah:
As Ghanaian (and Zimbabwean) writers living abroad, how best can we promote writing amongst Ghanaians at home?
Emmanuel Sigauke:
This question applies to the idea of what African writers in general should do to promote writing back home. If we go back to the classical argument of the writer as teacher, visionary, voice of the people, we find ourselves subscribing to a type of thinking that associates writing with advocacy or social responsibility. So, having lived away from home, I find myself seeking a true definition of self, culture and belonging through my writing.
But at one time I was a writer based in Africa, concerned about the importance of my Africanness to me, but there was also the temptation of departing from home artistically, wooed by schools of writing associating themselves with radicalism, individualism, loneliness. This applied to all forms of artistic expression, for instance, music -- I remember my generation's general attachment to foreign music, but once I was away, I started to rediscover the beauty of art produced at home. Not everyone enters exile in order to discover the necessary artistic self hood, so it is the duty of the ex-pat writer to share the renewed (sometimes just new) vision with the artists back home.
One best way of helping writers back home is to take advantage of the access to resources that being an exile often provides to help out the talented but often disadvantaged writers back home. One way I have offered to help writers back home (in my case Zimbabwe) has been to start a literary journal that the writers can submit to. But I have noticed that since the journal is internet-based, it has not yet reached those most in need.
So I have been thinking of ways in which I can work with writers groups to provide access to needy writers. This is no easy task, which is why a forum like this one will definitely help us brainstorm (and act on) the various ways we can help.
Prince Mensah:
Powerful point, Emmanuel.
There has to be a concerted effort with foreign-based African writers, local universities and stations (TV and Radio) to encourage writing among our people. There is an over-emphasis on ways to get rich quick. Even the smartest people get caught in this tyranny of becoming 'rich' by any means necessary. This is the bane of our countries. There is so much poverty that the only tangible thing to do is to hustle. Our countries are caught up in the illusion of unrealistic sitcoms and movies that are nothing but fiction. The fact of life is that you have to work and work hard at anything worth having. Our people also have to be taught to not only work hard, but work smart.
We, as writers in other countries, must challenge the status quo by becoming leaders on issues we talk about. For the sake of writing in our countries, we can apply for grants, collectively or individually, directed to providing an intellectual infrastructure wherein literary institutions and competitions can be established. There has to be several steps taken in making the writing and appreciation of poetry, novels, plays and essays an accepted norm in our societies. Local radio and TV stations can become partners in the creation of programmes that reward writing efforts.
In Africa, a huge chunk of the general readership is semi-illiterate or illiterate. This makes an interest in written and spoken English extremely difficult. We have to adopt towns or areas in our home countries where we can channel resources in the forms of books and study aids. These things do not have to come out of pocket, necessarily. All we have to do is raise interest in the foreign countries where we live in, by writing to libraries, publishers, schools and literary organizations.
In Ghana, slapstick shows, popularly known as concert parties, have more patronage than theatrical productions. The sad thing is that inasmuch that concert parties are popular, they have no marketability to outside markets. Our literary efforts must enable our local writers to attain marketability to the outside world as well. There is a dire need for us to do something in 2008. A campaign to world literary circles would not be a step in the bad direction. We need to unearth the great stories that lie hidden in the minds of our people.
Emmanuel:
Let's do something in 2008. We could become one of the groups that writers back home can rely on at different levels of support. Something as simple as contributing resources (a little bit of money, publicity, etc) will go a long way in helping writers back home. Often we look to other people's endowments as sources of support -- what if we could provide one. We as a group can start a fund that helps writing activities back home. I have always had visions to fund a poetry contest through one of the writers' groups back home. What we need to bear in mind, though, is how to ensure that the money, the support, goes to help those it's intended to support.
Prince:
A monthly literary prize of $50 will not be bad. However, that $50 should be in the form of books that assist with writing. A quarterly prize of $100 can be organized to not only give books but to assist the writer with stationary for their manuscript. An annual prize of $500 can be given to a writer who has completed a manuscript and needs a publisher to complete the project. The numbers are all suggestions and emanate from conservative projection. We have to agree to everything as a group.
Martin Pieterson:
In my opinion, writing in Ghana can be promoted by setting up writing clubs in communities and in schools (primary, secondary and tertiary). Not only do we need to set up these clubs, we need to ensure they are run professionally. Especially in the 1st and 2nd cycle institutions, writers must be made to know all that goes into the craft such as finding markets, analyzing the publications to submit work to, approaching the various genres (short stories, poetry, articles, religious writing, travel writing etc..), using grammar and punctuation, finding inspiration, handling writers' block, and much more.
Some writers clubs have sprung up in the past in Ghana but many haven't worked because people don't see what they gain from them. One of the problems up-and-coming writers face in Ghana is the issue of getting published. Many submit pieces to publications without analyzing what kind of work the publication accept (if it's sports, leisure, travel, politics, etc.), length of articles, style of writing etc.., and when they aren’t published they give up entirely on writing. I believe if people know some of these things they will do things correctly and thus stay in the craft.
I would like to take this opportunity to request all poets who have been published on OGOV to begin thinking of setting up writers' clubs in their communities so that we get this professional approach into our writing. Writing has so many benefits: apart from making us advocates, it also helps us to sharpen our skills of observation and communication. The latter is very important for us Ghanaians and Africans now that the world has become a Global Village. It also helps us improve on our vocabulary and thus become more confident.
Another point is that every fun activity that is done in the running of these clubs should be that which will add to the competence of the writers. During excursions to places of interest, for example, writers should be told not only to go and have fun but also to observe everything and report. In this way, we can help produce many travel writers.
In addition to setting up writers' clubs and running them professionally, there is the need to have more publications. One of the joys of writing is getting published, and this is why I would like to commend OGOV for making it possible for many talented Ghanaian and African writers, who may otherwise have had difficulty in getting published, to get published. OGOV has shown us that we have more quality and great writers than we thought. I believe there are even many more to emerge once given the opportunity.
I would like to suggest that OGOV begins a corner for teenagers and kids or 1st and 2nd Cycle institutions so we can get the spirit into them. Many of them would love to see their poems published. [ed. note: we currently have a call out for poems by children and youth - visit the Submission Guidelines page for more details]
Congrats Julian for your help in getting Ex-pat writers published. Let's do the same for many of the great writers in Ghana. Prince and Emmanuel, thanks for your wonderful ideas as to how we can sponsor writing events.
I am sure if we organise ourselves properly, there could be a time when people could even take writing as a full-time job in Ghana, we just have to start discussing the business side of it. We can begin to organize poetry evenings first free of charge and later charge a little money depending on the interest and then we can move to other literary events. KSM did it with his shows; we can also do it with writing. We just need to begin talking.
Friends, I see a great hope for Ghana and Africa from this corner. I see we are the generation to make Africa what it is supposed to be. Let's keep this spirit. And after our forums, let's move on to implementing our decisions. This is what our present leadership is not doing. And as a generation of hope, let's begin to do this.
Prince:
Great idea, Martin.
There is the need for a multiple-pronged approach to this issue. Writer's clubs are definitely the way to go. We need to identify people and organizations who share this vision. We have to build the foundation so that when the real job is done, it won't collapse. Let's brainstorm, brethren. The world is watching.
Emmanuel:
Working with writers who are serious is a prerequisite to successful literary promotion. Clubs are a good starting point, and sponsoring contests, and helping writers gain access to publishers and agents would be a great step in this process. Although we all live in places where publishing resources are available, it is not always easy to break our ways into publication since the issues we deal with may not appeal to publishers here. There is thus the issue of which publishers and promoters should be involved in the nurturing of talent back home.
Mariska Taylor-Darko:
Hi all of you.
First of all I must say that it was only after being abroad that I saw what other countries do to promote the work of their writers. Apart from the intellectuals in Ghana and among the ex-pats, the average Ghanaian only heard of poetry when they were in school - for Literature lessons. As a writer who commutes between countries I feel that one of the ways we could help would be to organise poetry readings, get published in the media, get some good PR, have competitions among the youth and try to get sponsors interested in writing of all forms with attractive rewards for talent. The Universities should invite outsiders to participate in events regardless of their educational background. The TV and Radio stations should also give exposure to the up and coming writers with fun programmes - not the serious heavy events that have been seen.
In Ghana it seems that poetry (I mention this because its my area of interest) is not given much regard outside the tertiary establishment, although a few poetry reading sessions are being organised - all late at night and in venues that are not easily accessible. We have to make events more accessible to the masses and get more youth interested.
Emmanuel:
Mariska, the issue of access, as you pointed out, is very important. Most writers nowadays self-market on the internet through forums like Myspace and Youtube. While I am happy about the proliferation of online poetry journals, I am aware that some talented young writers in Africa do not have access to a computer, or cannot afford the rates of the internet cafes. So to ensure access, we need to help in the provision of resources, without waiting for the "generous Western sponsor" of writing. Of course, access is not everything; trainers would need to identify interested and talented writers who can be helped to realize their dreams. As you stated, Mariska, writing contests, conferences, excursion, etc. would help.
Mariska:
Emmanuel, I agree with you also. The lack of access to the electronic world would be a hindrance to a lot of budding writers. I think we all agree that closer interaction between writers would be a major development, as we’ve mentioned wanting locally organised programmes in nearly all our comments. So now, how do we start? The biggest hurdle would be the funds to set up these programmes. Where do the youth meet a lot? In clubs, churches, sports grounds, etc. Clubs could, on days when they have not much patronage, arrange poetry reading sessions to bring exposure. Meeting the youth groups in churches and organising such events would also be a possibility. Making use of the churches weekly bulletins and monthly magazines is another outlet. These are just a few ways we could start without depending on any Western sponsors...
This way the talented writers would gain acknowledgement, a following of friends and like minded persons and the encouragement to continue with their dreams.
For those of us who can speak pidgin or local dialects, poetry recitals could be organised in these dialects to reach a wider audience. Even mixtures of good English and pidgin would make things more interesting.
We should show our love for what we do to the point that it touches and awakens the feelings in others. We should be vocal and vibrant in our delivery of both written poetry and spoken word and let other writers know that just because they are not living outside of their own countries does not mean that they do not have much to offer. They do have much to offer, and should be passionate about it without fear of criticism. It is better to keep on trying than never try at all.
Emmanuel:
Yes, Mariska. As we assume this task of inspiring others, we are called upon by that responsibility to lead by example: we have to demonstrate that we are writing and publishing works. The fellow writers back home are not just recipients of our encouragement, but partners in this effort. What I remember working with young writers in Zimbabwe in the 90s was the passion they had; we had the passion, but persistence was another matter.
As Mariska pointed out, the passion has to turn into persistent writing that does not get easily discouraged by criticism or rejections. As most us would attest, publication is difficult even here (especially here, where sometimes the editors turn down our works because they don't seem to address a familiar world). So let there be a balance in approach: we should inspire and encourage each other without so much as hinting that this is an easy process. We also don't want to give false impressions about art and livelihood, or to steer aspiring writers towards a disabling dependence policy. Often, we feel, as aspiring writers, that we are the chosen few, but, really, writing demands great effort, knowledge (if not respect) of your market or readership, and realistic goals.
Prince:
Writing, like any other human talent, gets better with use. The rubber band principle must be applied wherein we stretch ourselves to a point in our careers where we have exhausted everything we are capable of producing. This enables us to accommodate the happiness and heartbreaks of a career in writing.
I think action must be 75% with us and words be the rest. In as much as we serve hope as breakfast, reality must be served as lunch. We have to sponsor groups in our country, by exposing their works to people and groups we know. We must give our people an audience. Most of us have personal websites, why don't we get poetry from a bunch of good, but struggling, writers from our countries and post them on our sites? Why don't we organize a monthly newsletter that will give our people a list of places they can get help from? Why don't we use our network of friends to promote our brothers and sisters? The concept of community, as we are doing now, can be inculcated in our sibling-scribes at home.
Leading by example, as Emmanuel suggested, can start by all of us agreeing to do something and sticking to it. If it is funding, let us agree on a ball park figure. If it is logistics, let's figure a solution out. Remember, a problem is an opportunity wrapped with rags.
Let's get going on our plans because not only is African suffering from economic and intellectual dysfunction---our people are living under an iron sky. It is up to us to let them believe in themselves once again. The world is respectful of one who knows his destination.
Read Previous Roundtable Discussions:
#1 Politics and the Power of Poetry (Issue 1.32)
OGOV Roundtable Discussion #2 - About the Participants
Julian Adomako-Gyimah:
Julian is an alum of Presby Boys Secondary School, Legon. He holds a B.A. in Business Studies at the Kensington College of Business, London, a Diploma in Journalism at the Writers Bureau College of Journalism, Manchester, UK, Executive Diplomas in Strategic Management and Management, a Diploma in Management Studies and an Executive MBA at the Huddersfield University, UK. He has worked as a Financial Controller at Brook & Whittle, after working as an Accounts Manager at Ryder Plc, both in the UK. Additionally, he is a Chartered Manager and a member of the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), also in the UK.
Julian is also the proud author of two bestsellers, namely Smile Africa and Recall, which are both available on amazon.com, bn.com, borders.com, and in major retail outlets around the globe.
Julian is a co-founder of One Ghana, One Voice.Prince Mensah:
Prince was born in August 1977 to Dr. Louis and Rose Mensah. He attended Adisadel College, Extra Mural Academy, African-American HIV University(USA) and Mediation Training Institute(USA). He has written an extensive body of work including plays that have been staged at the Arts Center in Accra.Martin Pieterson:
Martin holds a BSc in Business Administration from the Central University College, Accra, a Post-Graduate Certificate in Public Administration from GIMPA (Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration), Accra and a Masters in Media and Communication from the International University in Geneva, Switzerland.
He did his National Service at the Ghana National Commission on Children and continued as an Assistant Administrator in the same organisation for two years. He then left to the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research where he worked as an Intern/Project Assistant for one and a half years.
He is currently a Research Consultant at the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research Department of the WHO in Geneva.Emmanuel Sigauke:
Emmanuel Sigauke was born in Zimbabwe, where he started writing at the age of thirteen. After graduating from the University of Zimbabwe with a BA in English, he moved to California, where he completed graduate studies. He teaches English at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento, where he is an editor for the Cosumnes River Journal.Mariska Taylor-Darko:
Born in Manchester, England in 1956, Mariska attended Holy Child Secondary School in Cape Coast and St. Mary's Secondary School, Mamprobi. She then returned to the UK and attended Beresford College of English and Commerce, Margate, Kent and later Harrow College of Further Education, Harrow, Middlesex.
Mariska currently resides in Accra. She has two sons, one married and living in London, the other attending Golden Sunbeam Montessori School, Adenta, Accra in JSS1. She is a motivational speaker, poet, writer, beautician, fire walker and lover of jazz, blues, reggae and old time highlife.
The Dancer - Mariska Taylor-Darko
The dancer moved to the drum beat
His expression full of heat
His neck moved in unison with his feet
His hands told a story
His eyes spoke of things past, present and future
The beauty enough to move you
His feet moved gracefully
His body twisted and turned
Like a leaf in the hot sun
His muscles rolled and jerked
To the pulsating rhythm of the drum beat.
Every so often his cloth slid down his hips
And graceful fingers pulled it back in place
The movement so slight you hardly noticed.
The drummers drummed in trance
Their rhythms vibrating up the soles of our feet
The dancer kept on talking with his body
Sweat ran down his dark muscular flesh
Only to fly off him and land at his feet when his movements jerked
There was a silence, then a shout when the dance ended
Women with brightly coloured scarves wiped the sweat off the dancer
To acknowledge the beauty of the dance
The dancer's glazed eyes sparkled
His lips turned up in a smile
His spirit came back inside him.
The spirits of his forefathers came to him
During the rhythms of the beautiful dance.
His expression full of heat
His neck moved in unison with his feet
His hands told a story
His eyes spoke of things past, present and future
The beauty enough to move you
His feet moved gracefully
His body twisted and turned
Like a leaf in the hot sun
His muscles rolled and jerked
To the pulsating rhythm of the drum beat.
Every so often his cloth slid down his hips
And graceful fingers pulled it back in place
The movement so slight you hardly noticed.
The drummers drummed in trance
Their rhythms vibrating up the soles of our feet
The dancer kept on talking with his body
Sweat ran down his dark muscular flesh
Only to fly off him and land at his feet when his movements jerked
There was a silence, then a shout when the dance ended
Women with brightly coloured scarves wiped the sweat off the dancer
To acknowledge the beauty of the dance
The dancer's glazed eyes sparkled
His lips turned up in a smile
His spirit came back inside him.
The spirits of his forefathers came to him
During the rhythms of the beautiful dance.
Author Profile - Mariska Taylor-Darko
Biography:
Five Questions with Mariska Taylor-Darko:
Contact Mariska:
Mariska's Past Profiles:
Issue 1.20, August 4th - 10th, 2007
Mariska currently resides in Accra. She has two sons, one married and living in London, the other attending Golden Sunbeam Montessori School, Adenta, Accra in JSS1. She is a motivational speaker, poet, writer, beautician, fire walker and lover of jazz, blues, reggae and old time highlife.
"The Dancer" was inspired by watching Ohenenana Kwabena I.A. Boakye Yiadom perform.
Five Questions with Mariska Taylor-Darko:
1. A growing number of poets featured on One Ghana, One Voice have, or have begun establishing, websites for their writing. What has having a personal site done for you, and do you have any recommendations to other poets looking to do the same?
Having a personal website has increased my knowledge in the art of preparing presentations for global exposure. It has made me more aware that what I write should be understood not only by one type of person but by people from all over the world. It has given me feedback from far away places and that feedback has made me realize just how interested other nationals are about things happening in Ghana. I would recommend all who can, to set up a personal site. Its best to start with the free sites or Blogger sites and make sure anything you put on it is copyrighted to protect yourself, then the world will be your oyster.
2. How has spending you life living both in England and Ghana informed your perspective of your homeland?
I thank God that I have the privilege to jaunt between the two countries and in fact the more I have traveled away from Ghana the more I have loved Ghana. There are some things that I think we really must sort out and despite the slow development, or none at all in certain areas, I always look on the bright side of life in Ghana. There is a freedom that cannot be compared, and I have a desire to leave something good behind when I join my ancestors.
3. Your poems profiled so far on this site, "Sway" and "The Dancer," deal heavily with the idea of rhythm - both in the rhythm of the poems themselves and in the movements of the subjects described in the poems. How much thought do you put into the rhythm of your poems, and do you see a connection between the rhythm of your writing and the rhythms of Ghana - dances, street life, etc.?
When I write I just close my eyes and recall every detail of things I have seen and put them down as they come to me. I feel the drums, the movement of the feet and the expressions all around in everyday life. Maybe I just live the rhythm because I do not plan what to write, it just comes to me. I love the beauty I see around and I constantly make notes of things that touch me. I see a connection between the rhythm of my writing and the rhythm of what I observe around me. I just "photograph the feeling."
4. You spoke quite a bit in your last profile about poetry being a vehicle with which to communicate feeling. You also seem to have great respect for other arts - in the case of this most recent poem, dance - and their ability to communicate strong emotion. What common bonds do you see between the various arts? What drew you to poetry over other forms of artistic expression?
The effectiveness of communication is both verbal and non-verbal. We have not lost that naturalness of non-verbal communication, although with the strong influence coming from the West, we are likely to loose much of the originality that is so attractive and unique. The communications you see in the written word, the woven basket, the Adinkra cloth, the decorated mud huts, the traditional music, the dance, the movement of the body, the Kente design, and the carvings and paintings, are intertwined with each other - everything sends a message to someone somewhere. These are the common bonds.
I love art but I am not patient enough nor do I have the skill to create something that will touch someones heart the same with all the other arts, so I chose to describe the art of others in a way that would tell the story to touch the heart.
5. In you last profile, you brought up Nkrumah's quote that "The degree of a country's revolutionary awareness may be measured by the political maturity of its women". You also spoke a bit about Ghana's current political woes with misguided and/or corrupt leaders. Do you feel that the quest to fix Ghana's political problems can be lead by women? If so, how? If not, what do you think that says about Ghana's political maturity?
A lot of our political problems could be fixed by women. I would not say that all problems can be fixed, or by all women, but I feel that the sensitivity, patience, understanding and tolerance that women have in general, make us better leaders. We are on par with the men educationally and in many aspects of everyday life the women come out tops, but as long as the majority of men secretly fear the power of women - "a global trait," we will be held back. I can say that 90% of Ghanaian female politicians have delivered, which is more than the men can say for themselves. Ghanaian women are becoming more politically mature and in time we shall see the changes in the country. Women's politics starts from the home, the marketplace, the workplace, the local assemblies and onto the higher areas of governance. Men's politics start from the tertiary environment to a business career and then onto governance. Who gains the most experience on the way?
Contact Mariska:
Email: mariska.taylor(at)gmail.com
Alternate Email: arabataylord(at)yahoo.co.uk
Website: http://arabataylord884.spaces.live.com
Mariska's Past Profiles:
Issue 1.20, August 4th - 10th, 2007
Sway - Mariska Taylor-Darko
Sway, Sway,
The movement the young girls made when going down the street,
Their cloth tied around their waists could not hide the beauty of the movement and swaying of their hips and juggling of young breasts.
The shape of their bodies, the outline of their waist beads,
Youthful as they came, young, immature and fresh.
Sway, Sway.
Their chests heaved up and down in unison with their walking,
with their laughter with their singing.
Sweat glistened on their exposed skin giving them a glossy look.
They were girls in their prime.
Suddenly they stopped.
A beautiful full-bodied woman came towards them.
She was very curvaceous; her breasts hung lower, her hips broader,
Her stomach was much rounder, but there was something about her movement that was different.
Her waist was thicker with ripples and mounds,
Her arms fuller and her back firmer.
She was a woman in her prime.
Who could beat that?
The girls look on as she passed by and said to themselves "one day we will be like her"
The envy showed in their eyes as the proud woman went by,
Balancing her goods on her head.
She was the most sought after woman in the village,
Widowed two years ago she had mourned deeply and now blossomed as the dark clothes were removed from her.
She had confidence, knowledge, wisdom and the experience of love, pain and loss.
She could weather all storms that came her way,
But right now she just lived for herself and loved her family.
When she walked by there was something erotic about her.
That was the mystery about her that got the young girls staring,
The young men anxious and the old men nodding their heads as the beautiful woman passed by swaying, swaying, swaying.
The movement the young girls made when going down the street,
Their cloth tied around their waists could not hide the beauty of the movement and swaying of their hips and juggling of young breasts.
The shape of their bodies, the outline of their waist beads,
Youthful as they came, young, immature and fresh.
Sway, Sway.
Their chests heaved up and down in unison with their walking,
with their laughter with their singing.
Sweat glistened on their exposed skin giving them a glossy look.
They were girls in their prime.
Suddenly they stopped.
A beautiful full-bodied woman came towards them.
She was very curvaceous; her breasts hung lower, her hips broader,
Her stomach was much rounder, but there was something about her movement that was different.
Her waist was thicker with ripples and mounds,
Her arms fuller and her back firmer.
She was a woman in her prime.
Who could beat that?
The girls look on as she passed by and said to themselves "one day we will be like her"
The envy showed in their eyes as the proud woman went by,
Balancing her goods on her head.
She was the most sought after woman in the village,
Widowed two years ago she had mourned deeply and now blossomed as the dark clothes were removed from her.
She had confidence, knowledge, wisdom and the experience of love, pain and loss.
She could weather all storms that came her way,
But right now she just lived for herself and loved her family.
When she walked by there was something erotic about her.
That was the mystery about her that got the young girls staring,
The young men anxious and the old men nodding their heads as the beautiful woman passed by swaying, swaying, swaying.
Author Profile - Mariska Taylor-Darko
Biography:
Five Questions with Mariska Taylor-Darko:
Contact Mariska:
Mariska has two sons, one married and living in London, the other attending Golden Sunbeam Montessori School, Adenta, Accra in JSS1. She is a motivational speaker, poet, writer, beautician, fire walker and lover of jazz, blues, reggae and old time highlife.
Five Questions with Mariska Taylor-Darko:
1. How long have you been writing poetry?
I seriously started writing poetry after the death of my husband in 2002. In my period of mourning a spirit was released and poetry poured forth. There is no other way to explain it.
2. Who are your favorite poets? Which poets have most inspired and informed your work?
I have my favourites but the ones I like are Maya Angelou, Mutabaruka, Homer (the Iliad), T.S. Eliot, Ayi Kwei Armah, and Ama Ata Aidoo. I read any poetry that I like and ones that touch me. I also regard Bob Marley as a poet whose works are poems to music. They all inspired me but my work comes from my heart.
3. What do you hope to accomplish with your poetry?
I would love people to read my poetry and feel what I feel and see what I see without even being there. I would like to let black women know that it is all right to mourn, laugh, cry, express themselves and be proud of being black and of their culture and traditions. Men have been expressing themselves in many diverse ways and now women are expressing our feelings.
4. Do you believe poetry can play a role in altering Ghanaian politics? Ghanaian culture? If so, how?
Since we have freedom of speech, one way of hitting the nail on the head without offending is to put it in poetry. Sometimes a point put in rhythm and rhyme can touch a person more than just writing a passage. Poetry should be given an open stage and all politicians invited for a day of enlightenment where poets voice out their feelings but get the message across without pointing fingers at any one person. This would (I hope) cause them to ponder about what they are put in positions of power to do - hear the voice of the people as seen through the eyes of a poet. It is said that the pen is mightier than the sword. A sword can touch one person but poetry can touch millions.
With regards to culture, it is a treasure we have that we must keep and the only way to make people aware of what they have is to put the beauty down in poetry. Of course there are some bad cultural practices that have to be written about too and this awareness will bring on change one day.
5. Why do you think Ghanaian poetry appears to be so dominated by male writers?
In the past poetry was reserved for the intellectual Literature and Language Graduate, and until recently men in the publishing world did not take women seriously. They dominated the arts and women were pushed into the background. Also, Ghanaian women have been afraid to express what is in their hearts. Good poetry is not about the surface things but what is felt deep down. If Ghanaian women were to truly write about life as women, their experiences around them and their experiences with men, there would be a revolution. Women are also sensitive to what people think about them and hold back. I say to women, criticism can not kill. No one but women can tell their stories and it is their stories that present and future generations must hear. Get the pens rolling. And to men - publish your sisters, wives and daughters and you will be surprised what will happen. As the late Dr. Nkrumah said, "The degree of a country's revolutionary awareness may be measured by the political maturity of its women"...
Contact Mariska:
Email: mariska.taylor(at)gmail.com
Alternate Email: arabataylord(at)yahoo.co.uk
Website: http://arabataylord884.spaces.live.com
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