Criticism Sharpens My Ability To Explain Ideas Clearly, Recognise Patterns, And Understand What Makes Writing Effective - Jeff Iwu

 

CRITICISM SHARPENS MY ABILITY TO EXPLAIN IDEAS CLEARLY, RECOGNISE PATTERNS, AND UNDERSTAND WHAT MAKES WRITING EFFECTIVE - JEFF IWU

Jeff Iwu is a Nigerian novelist, poet, and playwright, and a doctoral student of African Literature at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He studied at the Federal College of Education, Kontagora, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, and holds a Master’s degree from UNN.  His research interests include African literature, gender studies, and clinical narratives. He is the author of Cold Things, Files of the Heart, and the solo play Gone with the Winds. He has received major honours including the 2017 Green Author Prize and the 2024 Akachi Ezeigbo Prize for Literature. In this interview with the ANA Interview Series, he talks about his works and writing journey.

AIS: HOW HAS YOUR ACADEMIC JOURNEY—FROM THE FEDERAL COLLEGE OF EDUCATION KONTAGORA TO YOUR DOCTORAL STUDIES AT UNN—SHAPED YOUR VOICE AS A WRITER?

JEFF: The truth is, my academic journey has really shaped my voice in a very quiet and steady way, even when I did not fully realise it. I began with English (Double Major) at the Federal College of Education, Kontagora (now Federal University of Education, Kontagora). Studying English there opened my eyes to the power of language beyond description. I learnt that words could carry emotion, preserve memory, and give structure to experiences that are often difficult to articulate. At Ahmadu Bello University, where I studied English and Education, I began to see literature not only as a creative space but as a lens through which we can explore human behaviour, including the clinical and psychological issues such as trauma, grief, and emotional conflict.

During my master’s degree in Literature at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, I discovered more on literary theories, narrative structure, style, and the psychological dimensions of storytelling.  I began to understand more that how a story is told can affect a reader’s perception, empathy and emotional engagement. Now, in my doctoral studies in African Literature, I examine issues like silence, alienation, trauma, and the human struggle for healing. These studies naturally shape my writing; they give it precision, depth, and empathy. The journey has taught me patience and responsibility, and they push me to tell stories with honesty, clarity, and a conscious engagement with the emotional and clinical realities of human life.

AIS: YOUR WORKS SPAN FICTION, POETRY, AND DRAMA. HOW DO YOU NAVIGATE THESE GENRES, AND WHAT DOES EACH ALLOW YOU TO EXPRESS DIFFERENTLY?

JEFF: I see each genre as a different way to approach the same questions about life, human behaviour, and emotion. Fiction allows me to explore characters and situations deeply, to create spaces where readers can live inside someone else’s choices and experiences. In novels like Cold Things or Files of the Heart, I look at how people respond to trauma, betrayal, and resilience, love, pressure, and the small emotional shifts that shape their lives. Fiction gives me room to build worlds that feel real but are also reflective, almost like a laboratory for human behaviour and emotion.

Poetry, on the other hand, is immediate and intimate. It distills emotion, memory, and observation into moments that are often more visceral than narrative. A single line can carry the weight of grief, love, or loss in a way that a paragraph in a novel cannot. Drama, including my plays like Verdict of the Gods or Gone with the Wind as a solo performance, allows me to bring these ideas into space and time with an audience present. It makes human emotion and conflict live and breathe in front of people. It creates a shared, almost clinical observation of how characters act under pressure or trauma. Moving across these genres lets me approach the same themes from different angles, each offering its own rhythm and way of connecting with people.

AIS: COLD THINGS AND FILES OF THE HEART EXPLORE DEEPLY EMOTIONAL TERRAINS. WHAT INSPIRES THE THEMES YOU CHOOSE TO WRITE ABOUT?

JEFF: My interest in the themes I write about comes from paying attention to how people handle the emotional and clinical sides of their lives. I like stories where the mind and the heart are connected, and where people struggle with things they cannot easily name. This is part of why Cold Things and Files of the Heart lean toward trauma, silence, memory, guilt, infertility, and the long after-effects of difficult experiences.

I am very observant. I have seen how people carry emotional wounds quietly. I have seen how those wounds show up in their behaviour, relationships, and daily choices. My academic work also plays a role because I engage a lot with clinical narratives, psychological readings of texts, and the ways literature can reflect real human conditions. This has made me more sensitive to subjects like trauma, depression, emotional fatigue, and the tension between what people feel and what they are allowed to say.

So the themes I depict come from life around me. They come from real conversations, from watching how people suffer and still try to cope, and from my own reflections. I try to write about experiences that many people live with but rarely discuss openly. My goal is to tell these stories with honesty and care, without sensationalising them, and to give readers a chance to recognise themselves or someone they know in the pages.

AIS: WINNING THE 2017 GREEN AUTHOR PRIZE FOR FILES OF THE HEART WAS A MAJOR MILESTONE. HOW DID THAT RECOGNITION INFLUENCE YOUR WRITING CAREER?

JEFF: Winning the Green Author Prize in 2018 was a turning point for me because it came at a time when I was still trying to understand my place as a writer. The prize, organised by Words, Rhymes and Rhythm Publishers in Abuja, was designed to give young writers a platform and to encourage voices that were still finding their shape. For me, it did exactly that. Files of the Heart was still an unpublished manuscript then, and having it recognised gave me a quiet sense of validation. It told me that the kind of stories I wanted to tell mattered.

The award also opened practical doors. It came with the opportunity for publication, which meant my work could finally reach readers beyond my own circle. That changed the way I approached writing. I began to take my craft more seriously because I realised people were paying attention to it. It strengthened my confidence. It  pushed me to write with more discipline, and reminded me that storytelling is not just a private act; it is something that enters the world and touches others. In many ways, that recognition helped me move from being someone who simply wrote to someone who embraced writing as a lifelong commitment.

AIS:  YOUR PLAY VERDICT OF THE GODS EARNED THE 2024 AKACHI EZEIGBO PRIZE FOR LITERATURE. WHAT SPARKED THE IDEA FOR THAT WORK?

JEFF:  Winning the Akachi Ezeigbo Prize for Literature (Drama) was meaningful to me, especially because the prize honours a writer and scholar I know. A mother I love and respect. Her contribution to African literature is immense. Professor Akachi Ezeigbo’s life, her work, her commitment to imagination, creativity, and the freedom of expression, has shaped generations of writers, even me. To receive an award named after her felt like a recognition that carries real weight.

The idea for Verdict of the Gods began with my interest in how communities interpret suffering. I have always been drawn to clinical and communal narratives, not only trauma itself but the ways people make meaning out of crisis. In many African societies, when something goes wrong, the search for answers is collective. The land, the people, and the spiritual order are understood as connected. I wanted to depict what happens when this balance breaks, when fear takes root, and when a community must confront the truth about its own actions.

The story grew from that curiosity. I imagined a land that is overwhelmed by strange afflictions. Children are born with deformities, families lose loved ones, and the king, Eze Obioha, becomes a symbol of the community’s collapse. His personal tragedy mirrors the suffering around him. Writing the play allowed me to examine guilt, silence, moral failure, and the difficult journey toward renewal. I was interested in how people face wrongdoing, how they negotiate fear, and how they attempt to heal when everything familiar feels threatened.

So the spark came from that desire to understand communal responsibility and the psychology of restoration. When I learnt that the play had won the Akachi Ezeigbo Prize for Drama, it felt like a confirmation of why stories like this matter. The prize was created to honour excellence across African literary genres, and to celebrate writers who continue to expand our imaginative possibilities. I am grateful that Verdict of the Gods became part of that vision.

AIS: AS A POET WITH MULTIPLE NSPP AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE, WHAT ROLE DOES POETRY PLAY IN YOUR BROADER CREATIVE PRACTICE?

JEFF: The NSPP (Nigerian Students Poetry Prize) was instituted by the Poets in Nigeria (PIN) organisation. Poetry was my first doorway into writing. I was still an undergraduate when my poems were nominated for the Nigerian Students Poetry Prize in 2016 and 2017, and those early recognitions gave me a sense of direction. They showed me that my voice could travel beyond the classroom and that I had something worth shaping with more discipline. The later Awards of Excellence from NSPP strengthened that confidence and pushed me to deepen my craft.

Poetry remains the place where my creative instincts sharpen themselves. It trains me to pay attention to silence, rhythm, and emotional clarity. Even when I am working on fiction or drama, the discipline of poetry stays with me. It helps me choose language with care and listen for the emotional truth of a scene. Poetry allows me to explore inner states in a focused way, which supports my interest in clinical and human-centred narratives. It keeps my writing honest and grounded, and it reminds me that every story, no matter the form, begins with a single precise moment of feeling.

AIS: HOW HAS YOUR RESEARCH INTEREST IN AFRICAN LITERATURE, GENDER STUDIES, AND CLINICAL NARRATIVES INFLUENCED YOUR CREATIVE WRITING?

JEFF:  My research shapes my writing in very direct and practical ways. I work within African literature and this keeps me rooted in the textures of everyday life on the continent: communal memory, silence, displacement, resilience, and the constant negotiation between tradition and modernity. These concerns naturally find their way into my characters and the worlds they inhabit.

Gender studies has helped me approach stories with greater sensitivity to power and the ways people, especially women, overcome restrictive social structures. It allows me to write with a clearer awareness of how gender shapes experience, not in a theoretical sense alone, but in the small, lived details that define a person’s emotional reality.

My interest in clinical narratives brings another layer. I am drawn to the emotional and psychological aspects of human life. How people process pain. How they carry memory.  And how healing happens in quiet, uneven steps. This research helps me write characters who are not merely experiencing events but responding to them in honest human ways. It teaches me to slow down, observe emotional shifts carefully, and give my characters space to feel, break, and rebuild. Together, these interests push me toward stories that are thoughtful, empathetic, and attentive to the realities of human experience, stories that respect both the cultural terrain they emerge from and the inner lives of the people within them.

AIS: WHAT DOES BEING A FINALIST FOR THE 2024 BEETA PLAYWRIGHT COMPETITION MEAN TO YOU AS A DRAMATIST?

JEFF:  Being a finalist for the 2024 Beeta Playwright Competition meant a great deal to me. My play Beneath the Garment was chosen from over nine hundred entries, and that alone felt like a confirmation that my voice in drama is growing in the right direction. For a playwright, visibility is often slow, and opportunities like this remind you that the work is reaching people, even when you are writing in silence.

It also encouraged me to keep paying attention to the kind of stories I want to bring to the stage. The Beeta platform is known for celebrating new voices and socially conscious drama, so being recognised there strengthened my confidence in the themes I explore, especially the emotional and psychological layers that shape human behaviour. It was not just an honour. It was a moment that told me to keep going, to keep refining my craft, and to keep trusting the stories that come to me.

AIS: YOUR SOLO PLAY GONE WITH THE WINDS IS UNIQUELY STRUCTURED. WHAT DROVE YOU TO EXPERIMENT WITH SOLO PERFORMANCE?

JEFF:   The idea started years ago when I was a student at the College of Education. My friends and I often argued about harmful cultural practices and the emotional damage they cause. One friend described a troubling incident he had witnessed, and another supported it with a related story. Those accounts stayed with me. I sensed there was a deeper narrative within them, and over time I felt the urge to build a larger story around those fragments.

Much later, during my postgraduate studies, there was a project to publish an anthology of Nigerian solo-plays. I began to reflect more seriously on how best to present those experiences. I was already working within the space of clinical and psychosocial narratives, so I wanted a form that could stay close to the emotional truth of the character. The solo-play structure offered exactly that. It allowed one performer to carry the memories, the voices, the grief, and the shifting identities of the protagonist in a very focused way.

Choosing the solo form also aligned with my interest in the psychological and physical dimensions of human experience. The play follows a childless woman who moves through different shades of grief, trauma and isolation. Presenting her story through a single body and voice made the emotional journey more intimate and honest. It also gave the play a flexible life, and allows it to work both on stage and in audio formats through strong visual and sound techniques.

In the end, I chose solo performance because it provided the most direct path to the heart of the story. It allowed the character’s pain, resilience and longing to speak without interruption, and that felt true to the kind of narrative I wanted to share.

AIS: MANY OF YOUR WORKS ENGAGE WITH EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL LANDSCAPES. HOW DO CLINICAL NARRATIVES SHAPE YOUR STORYTELLING APPROACH?

JEFF:   You’re right if you say that. Well, clinical narratives shape my writing; they give me a clearer way to understand how people carry pain, memory and healing. I do not approach stories only from the angle of trauma or conflict; I pay attention to how emotions move through the body, how people respond to pressure, and how silence, avoidance, shame or resilience shape their choices. This helps me build characters who feel real, not just dramatic figures placed in a plot.

Clinical thinking also guides the structure of my stories. I try to follow the rhythm of a person’s inner life instead of forcing events to unfold in a predictable pattern. I ask questions such as: What does this character fear? What are they protecting? What are they unable to say? What defence mechanisms are at work? I reflect on these things, and they push me to write with empathy, even when the characters are flawed. They also help me hold both the emotional and psychological layers of a narrative at the same time.

Most importantly, clinical narratives remind me that storytelling can be a form of witnessing. It allows me to take readers into private spaces of struggle, healing and self-confrontation. This approach shapes the tone and texture of my work. It gives my work the patience and attentiveness required to honour the full weight of human experience.

AIS: AS A DOCTORAL STUDENT, HOW DO YOU BALANCE RIGOROUS ACADEMIC RESEARCH WITH CREATIVE WRITING?

 JEFF: Balancing academic research with creative writing has become an honest rhythm for me. Academic work gives me structure and sharpens my thinking, while creative writing offers the freedom to follow emotion and imagination. I no longer treat them as opposing forces. I allow each one to lead when it needs to.

At some days the academic voice is stronger, so I stay with my research. At other days, the creative impulse is what rises first, and I follow it. Working this way keeps me grounded and helps both sides enrich each other. It reminds me that scholarship and storytelling are simply two paths toward understanding human life, and I need both to remain whole as a writer.

AIS: WHAT WRITERS OR SCHOLARS HAVE HAD THE MOST PROFOUND IMPACT ON YOUR LITERARY JOURNEY?

JEFF: Several influences have shaped my literary journey, though not in the usual sense of pointing to specific names. What has shaped me most is a steady exposure to works that take language seriously, treat human emotion with honesty, and recognise the tensions that define everyday life. I learnt early that writing is not just about telling a story. It is about listening to the unspoken parts of human experience and giving them shape.

Texts that lean into introspection, strong narrative structure, and psychological depth sharpened my sense of craft. Critical essays and theoretical works helped me understand how stories function, how silence can be as expressive as dialogue, and how form can guide meaning. My growth has also come from observing disciplined craftsmanship: how writers build scenes, how they hold a reader’s attention, how they create emotional movement without excess.

Equally important is lived experience. My academic training in literature, my engagement with cultural narratives, and my interest in clinical storytelling have all pushed me to write with more clarity, empathy, and responsibility. These influences continue to shape my voice, reminding me that every piece of writing is both an intellectual exercise and an emotional commitment.

AIS:  YOUR 2023 LONGLISTED ESSAY FOR THE SEVHAGE/EE SULE PRIZE SHOWS YOUR RANGE IN CRITICISM. HOW DOES WRITING CRITICISM ENHANCE YOUR CREATIVE WORK?

JEFF: Writing criticism sharpens my attention in a way nothing else does. When I analyse a text, I am forced to slow down, notice choices, and think about why a story works the way it does. That close reading strengthens my sense of structure, character development, pacing, and emotional tone. It also gives me a clearer understanding of craft. Criticism trains me to explain ideas with precision, to recognise patterns, and to identify what makes writing effective. These habits naturally flow into my creative work, making my stories more thoughtful, more grounded, and more intentional.

AIS:  CAN YOU SHARE SOME EXPERIENCES FROM THE IMODOYE WRITERS’ RESIDENCY AND HOW THEY INFLUENCED YOUR RECENT PROJECTS?

JEFF: My time at the Imodoye Writers’ Residency in Ilorin remains one of the most grounding periods of my creative life. The enclave offered a calm, natural environment that allowed me to slow down, listen to myself, and write with clarity. The quiet mornings, the simple routines, and the sense of retreat from everyday pressures helped me reconnect with my work in a more focused way.

What shaped me even more was the sense of community. I lived and worked alongside other writers, and we all shared the same drive, same curiosity. We had conversations. We exchanged stories. Even our small daily rituals created an atmosphere where ideas flowed easily. It reminded me that creativity is not only a solitary act; it can also be nurtured through companionship, humour, and shared discipline.

So, the residency deepened my commitment to thoughtful writing. It influenced the emotional texture of the projects I worked on afterwards. It strengthened my confidence, sharpened my process, and gave me a renewed appreciation for how supportive spaces can transform a writer’s work. I must appreciate the organiser of the residency, Dr Usman Akanbi, the president of the Association of Nigerian Authors, for what he is doing there.

AIS:  WHAT RECURRING THEMES DO YOU FIND YOURSELF RETURNING TO IN YOUR FICTION AND DRAMA?

JEFF: Across my works, certain themes keep returning because they feel true to the worlds I write about. I write about emotional pain, grief, and the psychological struggles people carry in their daily lives. In Cold Things, Verdict of the Gods, Gone with the Winds and Files of the Heart, my characters often wrestle with inner turmoil while trying to live with dignity.

I also keep coming back to how culture shapes people. Many of my stories show individuals trapped between tradition and personal desire, and how these individuals try to make sense of practices that bring both comfort and conflict. This tension allows me to explore how people search for meaning within systems that sometimes overwhelm them.

I have discovered that belonging and alienation run through my writing too. My characters often feel out of place or misunderstood, and this shapes their choices and relationships. Their struggles reflect the battles many people face when the world around them does not fully recognise their pain.

 

Finally, maybe because I am influenced by clinical narratives, the human body and mind often become central to my storytelling. Illness, trauma, and healing appear in different forms because they reveal vulnerability and strength in simple but powerful ways. These themes return because they speak to the human story I feel compelled to tell.

AIS:   HOW DO YOU ENVISION YOUR CONTRIBUTION TO CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN LITERATURE?

JEFF:  Okay, I see my contribution to contemporary African literature as a commitment to honest and thoughtful storytelling. I love it when stories are grounded in emotional and psychological truth; this guides the way I approach every project. By bringing clinical insight into conversation with lived experience, I try to create characters whose struggles, hopes, and silences mirror the realities around us. My focus remains on clarity, purpose, and the ways culture shapes inner life, because I believe these elements deepen our understanding of pain, resilience, and healing. If my work helps broaden how African narratives engage with memory and the human mind, then I feel I am offering something meaningful to the continent’s evolving literary voice.

AIS:    GENDER PERSPECTIVES FEATURE IN YOUR RESEARCH. HOW DO THESE FRAMEWORKS INFORM YOUR CHARACTERS AND NARRATIVES?

JEFF:   Gender perspectives shape the way I write. This allows me to consider the social, cultural, and emotional realities that define how people live and interact. In my work, whether it is Cold Things, Verdict of the Gods, Files of the Heart, or Gone with the Winds, I pay attention to how gender roles, expectations, and inequalities influence decisions, relationships, and inner life. These frameworks help me create characters who are fully human; I mean characters whose struggles with power, vulnerability, and identity feel authentic. When I embed gender awareness into my narratives, I aim to show how societal structures shape individual experiences, while still allowing for moments of choice, resilience, and personal growth.

AIS:    WHAT CHALLENGES HAVE YOU ENCOUNTERED IN THE NIGERIAN LITERARY LANDSCAPE, AND HOW HAVE THEY SHAPED YOUR GROWTH?

JEFF:   The Nigerian literary landscape is full of both opportunity and challenge. Indeed, there are challenges. Access to publishing, the struggle to reach wider audiences, and limited platforms for emerging voices have all tested my persistence. At the same time, these challenges have sharpened my focus and discipline. They taught me to value every opportunity to write, publish, and connect with readers. They also taught me to approach storytelling with care and clarity. Rather than discouraging me, these challenges have strengthened my resilience and deepened my commitment to producing work that is thoughtful, honest, and meaningful.

AIS:    IF YOU WERE TO ADVISE EMERGING WRITERS IN AFRICA, ESPECIALLY THOSE JUGGLING ACADEMICS AND CREATIVITY, WHAT WOULD YOU TELL THEM?

JEFF:   I would tell emerging writers to be patient with themselves and stay consistent, even while balancing academics or other responsibilities. Writing grows from both discipline and inspiration. Listen to your own voice, give yourself space to reflect, and let your stories unfold naturally. Let your scholarship inform your creativity, and let your creativity enrich your learning. I always remind myself and others: A mind that learns deeply imagines freely, and a writer who embraces both will create work that lasts.

AIS:    WHAT UPCOMING PROJECTS, ACADEMIC OR CREATIVE, SHOULD YOUR READERS LOOK FORWARD TO?

JEFF:   Well, I am working on new projects that continue to engage with the human experience and the ways we live, feel, and connect. These stories aim to capture the subtleties of everyday life and the emotions that shape us. I want readers to see themselves, their struggles, and their joys reflected in the narratives. My goal is to create literary works that lasts. I mean, works that prompt reflection and empathy. These projects seek to explore what it means to be human in all its difficulties and beauty.