"Fiction reveals truth that reality obscures." These words spoken by the American essayist and philosopher, Ralph Waldo Emerson, resonate perfectly with the events of the day in Kenya.
The turbulence in the economy and political restlessness coupled with the half-truths served to the public by the media can be too much sometimes.
Fiction can be the medium through which we filter through this murky waters and find our contemporary reality. And Kenyans are already doing exactly that. Statistics say more and more Kenyans are taking to Amazon and other bookselling platforms to pick their favorite books. Just recently when a Kenyan author Joe Khamisi had
his book leaked online, it caused a massive debate online that trended for an entire week. This goes a long way in saying just how much Kenyans love reading.
We are witnessing a new frontier in the writing space with young and budding writers putting their feet in the dirt. These writers are largely responsible for the thriving publishing scene which has seen a steady rise over the past few years.
Daily Updates has chosen a list of five authors worth watching. This list of both fiction and nonfiction authors was assembled by our team through a lengthy process of selection that was, to say the least, draining but fulfilling nonetheless.
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| Joan Thatiah |
Joan who is a journalist describes herself as a non-conformist. She is most known for Things I Will Tell My Daughter and Letter To My Son.
You can get her books here.
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| Alfred Orero |
Alfred is an author of exciting
contemporary romance and
witty poetry. He’s a last-born son, statistician, poet and a sports enthusiast. He does his best writing in planes, in his house on slow weekends and in faraway destinations that he likes to keep secret. Alfred loves to play intimate storyteller, taking his readers to places where a lot that is unthinkable here on earth is possible.
His poems derive their power and influence from the freedom he gives words when he writes them. Alfred gives stories new angles and unleashes creativity in the reader too, as he challenges them to understand why the multiverse might be a thing after all. He lives in Nairobi, Kenya, where when he is not writing, he makes numbers and data tell stories.
Alfred is moving into uncharted waters like never seen before in the next phase of his writing career; mathematical poetry. During a recent interview with a local daily, he intimated that his coming books will combine the two fields he is most passionate about to yield poems with swag and stories that observe mathematical laws.
All his books can be found on his website www.alfredorero.com
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| Troy Onyango |
Troy is a Kenyan writer and lawyer. His works include The Transfiguration, For What Are Butterflies Without Their Wings?, This Is How It Ends among others. He has been published in Ebedi Review, Caine Prize Anthology, Brittle Paper, Afridiaspora, Kalahari Review, Cosmonauts among others. He won the Nyanza Literary Festival Prize and was shortlisted for the 2016 Miles Morland Foundation Scholarship.
You can find his books and publications on his website troyonyango.com
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| Khadija Abdalla Bajaber |
The Mombasa born poet and novelist recently won the inaugural Graywolf Press Africa price of Ksh 1.2 Million for African Literature. She becomes the first African to win the price that will see the Italian publishing house publish her book in 2020. Her manuscript The House of Rust was chosen from nearly 200 submissions.
You can check the announcement
here.
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| Abigail Arunga |
The poet who is former digital editor for zuqka.com quit her well paying job to become a
freelance writer. She has contributed to several magazines such as Home and Living and Saturday Magazine published by the Nation. The lady started off as an intern at StoryMoja and also was the scriptwriter of Lies That Bind.
Find her work on her website www.akello.co.ke/
