Joanne is 15 years old. She is a Form 2 student at Precious Blood Secondary School. She recently went to Hay-on-Wye, in the UK, to attend the Guradian Hay Festival. The trip was as a result of winning The Storymoja Hay Festival Storytelling Competition with her story about conforming to technology.

Joanne telling her winning story at the SHFK 2009

When I asked her about herself, she told me:

“Joanne is your basic average girl who has a touch of uniqueness in her, a pinch of serenity in her actions, and a dose of finality in her speech, sounds like something from a fortune cookie so I’ll make it a bit more real.

Joanne is a noisy and talkative girl who is apparently funny. [I have learnt to take being humorous as a complement though I am not aware of its extent or confines considering that when I crack a joke intentionally people don’t laugh.]

I like hanging out with friends and family. I am a proud born-again Christian. I enjoy listening to music, watching movies, singing [I agree I do not sound like Beyonce and the like but I don’t crack glasses or drop chandeliers either, so on a scale of 1 to 10 I'd give myself a 7]. I love talking, on just about anything to just about anyone but I enjoy the company of silence once in a while.

I am rational most of the time. I think deeply about matters being overlooked andtry to make sense of thing s. I like school as it is my gateway to knowledge. I want to study Law after High School.  I believe that God does not need a well known institution to make you who you need to be.

The Guardian Hay Festival was a great experience for me and I hope you’ll enjoy reading about it. I was able to see the even greater importance of reading not only for Academic purposes but also for entertainment and relaxation.

One thing I’ve learnt from this great Storymoja experience is that opportunities have their way of knocking at your door it’s just up to you to go for it. I’d like to encourage anyone and everyone who reads this to put their best foot forward at all times and to always do your best everytime. It’s never too late or even too early to achieve in what you know best. Always trust and believe in God, He never disappoints!”

Muthoni Garland of Storymoja congratulating Joanne after she won the storytelling contest.

To read about Joanne’s experience at the Guardian Festival click on the links below.

Nervous to the Airport

Throught Heathrow into Hay-on- Wye

Made for TV

6th June 2010

Beautiful Sunday morning as usual the sun is up as early. Due to the previous late night I really did not want to get up immediately… maybe a few more winks? Maybe not…I definitely wanted to see more of the Festival.

Actually most of the festival was over since it was the last day of the great 10 day relay of events. A quick warm shower, then breakfast did the trick for both Muthoni and I. We then walked to the festival which was only 10 minutes away from the hotel. We were clearly not the only ones with a longing for the final day as a slightly larger number of people than the previous day had come to mark the final day [I'd like to believe they were not trying to dodge Sunday Mass]. We got our tickets and we got set for another day of wowing!!!

My day began at 11:30 with a session about voodoo stories and conspiracy theories by David Aaronovitch who made me believe that conspiracies are many and quite deceiving! That session was quite an eye opener.

Next I went to the Sky Arts Studio for The Book Show at Hay and I am proud to say that I was on TV… maybe it’s a sign that am bound for telecasting, you can never know! Here I watched authors being interviewed including Sarah Dunant a famous author and news presenter. After the session I was quite decided on buying her books, which I did. Sacred Hearts by Sarah Dunant is a must read!

Much later into the day I went for another session by two great Zimbabwean poets who really impressed me. They performed some of their work which really entertained me. I was very pleased to be in that session just to hear how such beautiful work can come from unfriendly backgrounds and situations.

By the end of the sessions I was getting rather cold but nevertheless I decided to have some ice-cream. That indeed was a tasty decision! Once again the day had come to an end, and I had even more encouragement to read more so as to be enlightened!

Now it was time to go back home.

5th June 2010

After the 8hr flight I was finally in the United Kingdom, at Heathrow Airport. It was a little bit hard to believe considering I’d been asleep most of the flight. I thought maybe I was getting delirious.

The landing of the plane made my arrival more factual than imaginary. I also had to reset my watch which was 3hrs ahead , Kenyan time. I must say that Heathrow Airport beat my expectation. Having only Jomo Kenyatta International Airport [which is also big in its own right] in mind you could say that my imagination was quite limited in regard to my expectation of Heathrow Airport.

As it turns out Heathrow is much larger and more spacious than JKIA. It is made up of more storeys in comparison and it is more developed in terms of technology. Just to get to my luggage Muthoni and I had to take 2 or so escalators and 3 more to get to the trains that were to take us out of the airport!

Apparently, it is easier to get around London using a train than any other form of transport. Trains here are faster and more advanced. Also railway lines are more direct thus chances of getting lost are less. I found this out because we used an underground electric train to get out of the airport, we also took another one only it was over ground but equally fast. This to me was marvellous and quite memorable.

One of the limitations of railway transport is that rails are not accessible everywhere therefore complementary means of transport have to be used. In our case we resorted to using a taxi to get to the flat we were staying in so as prepare for the next half of our journey.

This short taxi made it clear to me that not only was London a huge and beautiful city but also a densely populated one! It is full of busy people going about their duties and enjoying the sunlight which is quite a rare commodity. But it is during the summer solstice where the sun is overhead the tropic of Cancer [I do not mean to brag of my geographical knowledge just thought I'd share a little bit of what I call basic understanding].

After a few minutes, exactly 45 minutes we were ready to begin the other half of our journey which was from London to Hereford by train, then to Hay-on-Wye in Wales by car. Hay-on Wye is where the Hay Festival is being held. Before the journey we decided to have some breakfast at the legendary McDonalds. For me that just ascertained that dreams do come true [fast foods are part of a teenager’s main things so don’t look at me like that].  I was more than delighted to partake of that breakfast!!!!

After a 3hr train ride we had finally arrived at Hereford. We were driven to Hay-on-Wye, the town where the festival was being held. I was more than dumbfounded maybe even tongue-tied by what I saw! Other than the roads being smooth ,the town itself was remarkably small! How could such a small town host such a huge event for 10 days concurrently?!

Hay also has 38 book shops for only approximately 1500 people!!!!!!! Now to me those are people who love reading. The festival is all about books!! Different authors had come to discuss their books. The likes of Sue Townsend and Yaan Martel[ author of Life Of Pi and Beatrice and Virgil]were all present and the sessions were all very interesting. I enjoyed myself fully and was encouraged to read more, and maybe, just maybe, I may impact as many people as these authors did through there writing. By the end of these sessions jet lag was catching up with me.

But before the end of the day we went to an Author’s party where authors were to relax and while the night away. Here I was able to make a couple of friends who I was able to talk to for a while before we left. Muthoni and I went to the Swan Hotel where we were to spend the two nights we were in Hay. That was one memorable first day!

4th of June 2010

After a hectic day of going up and down searching for what I may need during the trip, I had finally finished and it was time to go to the airport. My mother looked more nervous than I felt ; she kept on urging me to hurry up! I understood, she did want me to get late.

Living on the farthest end of Thika road doesn’t make life any easier. The fact it is being reconstructed make it even worse! Our journey to the airport wasn’t much fun, that’s for sure. The tedious traffic jam and chaotic Matatus along the road, made me very worried that we wouldn’t make it. I was more than glad when we reached the airport where Mrs Muthoni Garland the director of Storymoja was anxiously waiting for me.

After exchanging formalities my parents had to leave, entrusting me to Muthoni. After a few inspections we were through Customs and were waiting for our flight. I decided to take a stroll in the busy airport just to calm nerves. I’ve never been outside Kenya before. The place was packed full of people, especially at the terminal for flights going to Dubai. But it didn’t look like any Kenyan was in the waiting line at that particular terminal.

Time seemed to fly, and soon our flight was called. Muthoni and I went through a couple more of inspections before we could even smell the aeroplane!! Then we went through a couple more to ensure that even the 100 gram toothpaste in our bags was not a tool for terrorism; it’s standard procedure!!

Finally we were on the plain waiting for departure. The stewards were very kind and patient; showing us where to sit and answering all sorts of questions from the various parties in the plane! Their kind of job requires a lot of patience, I realised. As soon as we had settled and they had shown us basic safety measures in case of an emergency landing we were ready for take off, my favourite part of the whole flight!

But I could hardly keep my eyes open for long. It was 11pm when we took off, way past my bed time!!!

Friday, 31^st July 2009

1. Men Under Attack – with Oyunga Pala – a discussion on the changing role of men in our society

The discussion started with a presentation by Oyunga of several scenarios that today’s man finds himself in; married men; those in a committed relationship in a relationship, those who are single and unattached. He outlined the expectations that these men have of themselves, expectations placed on them by their society on a socio-economic, cultural and certainly the expectations of what a real man is, as far as women are concerned. For instance, if a man did not provide for his family or his woman, he was NOT perceived to be a real man.

If he did not perform in the bedroom, again, he was not a real man.

In short felt that these expectations from several fronts created role confusion for the men.

Chris gave his experienced based on his identity formation from the background of being an only boy in a single parent household.

This gave rise to an animated discussion where some men did aver that they did, indeed, feel under attack for their women folk because they never ever seemed to measure to the ever-shifting standards that their women placed on them.

Some of the women felt that men overrated their sexual prowess where as the men felt that the women are the ones who set the standards anyway.

It was noted that there was need for the men to have a base that would keep them centred and grounded in the face of the shifting sands that were the expectation that others have of them. It was also observed that this was a conversation that would obviously not have a resolution in the allotted 90 minutes and the one thing is to keep talking and have open forums such as the event at SHFK.

1. Ten steps to outstanding Customer Service from Kenya’s leading management consultant- Sunny Bindra

Author and columnist, Sunny Bindra, presented this event. The style was conversational and the steps were easy to understand and more so, easy to adapt. These steps, he explained, were as outlined in more detail in his book, Crown Your Customer, which is published by Storymoja.

He also talked about his book and his experience and motivation for writing it. One of the highlights of his talk was that he wanted to write a book that would be read by anyone and not a select academic few. That the wider the readership, the more his goal had been achieved. The book is written in everyday language and it implores customers make their point when dissatisfied with a service. Whatever the stumbling blocks may be for registering one’s complaints, one should not give up. Customers should communicate their complaints to those accountable in an organisation.

He reiterated we should view purchase of books as an investment rather than as a cost.

One of the most effective yet simplest tools for outstanding customer service is smiling. Smiling puts customers at ease, makes them feel valued and therefore, more likely to spend their money at an establishment.

Smiling, Sunny Bindra says, is not necessarily a natural endowment of everyone but can be learned, as skill, by everyone.

The experience of this talk was delightful. When I asked some of the participants what they thought of the event, it was unanimous that those steps were easily applicable not only in one’s business life, but also in every other aspect of a person’s life. And that it was an enlightening session for all.

1. Sudanese writers discuss the challenge of narrating stories of their homeland long associated with ethnic strife, genocide and religious conflict- Father Omollo & Joseph Ngala

This was a discussion presented by author, interpreter, politician and diplomat all rolled into one; Honourable Minister Mohamed Haroun Kafi. It was an eye-opener because for most participants- none of whom was Sudanese-the Sudan question is mainly the Arab North and the Christian south.

What is not often heard or talked about is the issue of the Nubians in who are from the Nubian mountains in North West Sudan. They are Moslem though they are not Arabs. They are Dankes. In the agreement between the Southern Sudan and the government based in Khartoum signed in Kenya, the Nubians and the people of the Western Nile Region were not considered. The assumption, he asserts is that they will go with the Arab north.

He says that the Nubians feel like they were guns for hire, since the liberation movement has turned out to be for southern Sudan and not the whole region. Southern Sudan had the right for self-determination entrenched in the 2004 Nairobi Agreement and a referendum is scheduled for 2011. Should they decide to secede, the question so and so asks, what, then, will happen to the Nubians, who clearly do not want to be clustered together with the Arab north? The Arab north does not also want to let go of the western region, which includes Darfur, Which is rich not only in oil and other minerals.

Would that mean another revolution?

He, therefore, decided to opt for the pen rather than the gun to speak for his people in Africa and beyond. It is more far reaching.

1. Editors of, ‘Unga’, ‘Surviving Idi Amin’, ‘Queer Kenya’ and ‘My Side of the Street’ discuss the challenges, and fascinating stories in Storymoja’s Testimonial Writing Series- Suhaila Cross

This event was characterised by each of the editors giving an overview of the subject of their topics and their experiences while collecting and collating the information. Storymoja would publish all the books presented.

It also involved excerpt reading of the material collated and collected form interviews and/or personal experiences.

Surviving Idi Amin with David Kaiza

This is a narrative of the Ugandans view of their country after the tyrannical reign of Idi Amin. For instance, the Asian question in post-Amin Uganda The writer narrates the impact of the Indians expulsion by Idi Amin. One of the contributors, while travelling around the world, narrates how Uganda was still only identified with Idi Amin.

One of the legacies of Idi Amin that Ugandans have to contend with is that Ugandans suffered big time in sending away the Indians. Because they, then went on to establish successful industries in the countries they now settled.

A taxi driver in South America; in a conversation with one of the contributors of the book expressed this sentiment. And indeed in the revived economy under Yoweri Museveni, the argument is raised at whether it is as a result of indigenous Ugandans’ efforts or those of the Indians who have since come back.

The editor strives to assert that there is more to Uganda than Idi Amin.

Queer Kenya – Edited by Angus Parkinson

This is a collection of Kenyan stories by Kenyan born and Kenyan based queers about everything it is about the dailyness of their lives, the good, the bad, the weird the indifferent. It is an endeavour to stake their claim as rightful citizens.

It is also about highlighting what being queer here means distinct from, say, in the west, where the very word gay takes on a whole new meaning.

What came out was that there really is nothing peculiar about queers: that their passions, needs, desires, doubts and fears are really no different from those of any other Kenyan. The spotlights that on them make them seem distinct. When one guy writes about another guy that he sees on the matatu and what goes through his mind as result of the instant attraction that he feels, is easily identifiable with any other person regardless of their sexual orientation.

Look out for this book mid next year from the Storymoja stable.

Unga with Chris Wanjala

Food and food security issues is a major news item in Kenya today.

This was not a treatise about how we should conserve food or plant hardy food or be generous. From the excerpt that Chris Wanjala read, it made for what will certainly be a food story with an exciting twist.

For instance, in some certain cultures certain people in the community ate specific parts of a slaughtered animal. Not surprisingly the men kept for themselves the most succulent pieces. Women would eat this or that. The same would go for men and children. ON e time, a story goes, there was famine in a certain community and because the animals were thin, a mother decided to sacrifice her share of a meal that was only given to expectant mothers in order to feed her starving son.

There was a misconception that he may get pregnant. Little did he realise that it was given to pregnant women simply because of its nutritional value.

My Side of the Street with Chris Lyimo

This is a soon to be a Storymoja published book written by Chris Lyimo. It is a narrative of his journey from active alcoholism to a fulfilling sobriety.

He states that it isn’t simply a journal of drinking and then stopping. It is one of showing the distinct aspects of life that spawn active alcoholism and indeed that active alcoholism aggravates. This includes parent- child relationships; sibling relationships; issues of money and property; emotional and spiritual development; abuse issues; sexuality; identity.

Interestingly, one participant indicated that there was a common theme of isolation, in one way or another, which ran through all the stories.

And there was also consensus that there was need for these kinds of testimonial stories to be told.

Saturday, 1^st August 2009

1. An honest exploration of Sexuality, and our sexual culture. Only for those twenty-five and over – Valentine Njoroge and Gitau Njoroge

This was a most lively event and all ages were represented. The relationship status of those present was as varied as the participants themselves.

The discussion was candid with both serious and humorous overtones.

Topics such as:

Whose primary responsibility to ensure that the couple use a condom?

Or

Why blame the man for getting upset when a girl he’d taken out to dinner, agrees to accompany him to his place but declines to have sex. The question men were asking was “why did you come in the first place?” Reasons such as going back home or hostel at a late hour being impractical or unsafe are lost on most of the guys.

There was an interesting contribution for a couple of participants who were in long-term relationships. A man and a woman. The man (married for 32 years) said if his wife made overtures in order to improve their sexual relationship, he would certainly be suspicious of her intentions. The way forward he felt was for his wife to talk about it in way of introduction rather than springing it as a surprise. A woman participant, also in a long-term relationship, shared that she would not even know where to start. However, the main thing was that the relationship has deepened to a level of intimacy that was beyond just sex.

1. Asunta Wagura’s amazing story of how she has dealt with the harrowing stigma of living with HIV. About ‘coming out’, writing her weekly column diary, having a baby and more! –with Kingwa Kamencu

When I got to this event, Asunta was not there. The group at this event was much smaller and, therefore, more intimate in their sharing. I found the discussion at a stage where the HIV-AIDS stigma still hinders open discussion about it. Especially talking about HIV-AIDS to our children or discussing it with our spouses and partners in general. The group also shared about the challenges that women face in discussing with their male partners the risks of contracting HIV-AIDS in a given relationship and the way forward.

In public forums, it was stressed the need to be straight in using the terms associated with HIV-AIDS. Being candid, it was decided is actually empowering in the long run.

For instance, one participant shared how in a public baraza the chief was talking about the virus is transmitted when a couple has an affair. The participant pointed out to the chief that he should actually mention the word sex rather than use ‘affair’ because this word could be misconstrued to mean something else by somebody. It would be misleading.

The audience was also unanimous that the forum was helpful in providing a conversational setting where they could share openly.

Sunday, 2^nd August 2009

1. FIDA and affected women discuss their experiences and the legal and social implications of Domestic Violence- Lorna Irungu, Wayua Muli, Dr Ssuna and a Counsellor from Amani Counselling Centre

This was an interactive discussion facilitated by Lorna Irungu, a ‘victim/survivor’ of domestic violence and Wayua Muli, editor of True Love Magazine.

The panel included a psychiatrist, a counsellor, and a representative of FIDA.

The main focus was the way forward for victims of domestic violence. Contributions were for those who had been or were in abusive relationships and how they fell trapped in those relationships for various reasons. E.g. the women in physically abusive relationships would not leave because of the children or for economic reasons; others did not know what to do.

The psychiatrist’s focus was on parenting. He said abusers usually acquire the habit for their upbringing. So parenting is crucial to forming wholesome children who will be adults with integrity. He stressed especially that fathers ought to affirm their daughters so that they do not need to seek the same from other men later, and who would take advantage and abuse them.

FIDA, were seeking tougher punishment for abusers. My personal take in this, as a contribution, was that treatment should be sought for both the perpetrators and victims of domestic violence: that punishment should only come in as a last resort.

1. Men Under Attack – Oyunga Pala – discussion on the changing role of men in our society

This discussion on this day centred on what women wanted from their man and vice versa. Again the responses were as varied as the participants present.

He must be a provider. He must be faithful and trustworthy.

I want him to support me and to have my back no matter what.

The guys wanted acknowledgement, loyalty, and understanding.

When it came to sex, faithfulness was unanimous. What was not, however, is who should take the lead in the bedroom. The consensus at the end was that both parties in the relationship were equally responsible for what they wanted to make of their sex lives.

MY PERSPECTIVE OF SHFK 2009

Volunteering at the SHFK may have been one way to ensure free entry. Though I already had complimentary tickets because of being on a panel.

But, I also wanted to have some sort of justification of why I wanted to be there ALL 3 days. What if I got bored? It was anything but. In fact I was so excited many many days before the festival and I told someone that I needed nappies if I wasn’t careful

However, I discovered that organising an event and being in the back scene was anything but glamorous. There is a lot of hard work that goes into organising an event of this magnitude. And passion. I already seen that, at times, just organising a one year old child’s birthday party has been known to cause marital strife. Now this? Must have been something else given that I was a Chris-come-lately.

And then the magenta T-shirts. Initially, they were pink, but we were gently but firmly, repeatedly reminded by Muthoni that they were magenta. They were a source of pride at times and at times, ahem ahem, you just couldn’t hide. Especially at one time I was asked, simply because I was in a pink, sorry, magenta T-Shirt; task the folk dancers on stage to stop performing because an event in a nearby tent was still going on. Now these guys were biiig, many and loud. And they did not want to stop because as far they were concerned. They were going as per the programme. They were slotted to perform at that time. Anyway, the t-shirt, my charm and also because artists are great like that they agreed to stop. I didn’t push it because the request was actually to tone the sound down.

Oh, I even had the privilege of taking the Nigerian High Commissioner round. Now, this made find out exactly what was going on in every tent that I would not have otherwise gone into. And that feeling of usefulness was awesome. Now, I get why the PM’s bodyguards behave the way they do.

I presented an event with the Oyunga Pala and it was just amazing being in the presence of a celeb who acts so kawa .In fact that is the sense I got form all the creative celebs I met at the festival. They were all so human or is it normal and more than that, they seemed so at home at the festival.

The main thing I got for myself is that the creative community is great to be around and I am so so so convinced that they are the next agents of change. And next is HERE and NOW. I am biased, prejudiced, totally subjective in my opinion and bila any apologies about that observation.

It was indeed a privilege to be at SHFK 2009.

I am tempted to write about something that went wrong for me at the festival because believe me it would give you a good laugh. But, I will take the advice of my esteemed MD who once told us that people on the outside should only see the bike moving and not the cycling making it move. So allow me to show you the moving bike.

Guests mingle and talk at the Storymoja Hay Festival

Organizing a 3-day literary festival for the first time is a very difficult thing but it is more difficult if you have never attended such an event. It was therefore a great surprise to ourselves when we pulled off the biggest literary event in East Africa. You may wonder what made it such a success. Well according to me, we had some of the greatest thinkers in Kenya and Africa and I got to interact with most of them but do I say? We also had some very esteemed international authors at the festival, and I had a lot of fun with them.

Say Vikram Seth for example, the guy who most media guys really wanted to interview but were afraid to approach because he can really blast you yaani, give you a piece of his mind. He likes PROPER interviews, one that has been arranged before, one where he has been told who the interviewer is and one where he has been told the profile of the media house. So when one newspaper reporter approached him for ‘a couple of questions’ was given 2 minutes to ask his questions, asked the colour of his toes and was asked if his dimples are infectious all in one sentence.

Just to show you how ‘at home’ this best selling author of ‘The Suitable Boy’ felt at the festival, he volunteered to man my registration desk at the green room so I could run around and make other guests comfortable.

One of the most famous authors on this planet enjoyed the festival and would love to come back to Kenya, so my bike really moved. Just don’t ask me about the cycling.

The inaugural edition of the historic Storymoja Hay Festival finally opened at the Impala Grounds, along Ngong Road. The Impala Grounds have in the last 15 years increasingly grown in stature, made popular by the annual Safari Sevens rugby tournament, but that is a story for a another day.

As I was saying, The Storymoja Hay Festival kicked off yesterday, and the biggest and the best, the literary and artistic community has ever witnessed in Kenya, will be stomping the grounds, harder than the rugby maestros have ever done in a single event.

Before I embark on my story, it’s a hats off to Muthoni Garland, and her tireless team of Storymoja team, who have made sure that this event actually takes off. And I mention names here, Carol Gaithuma, Sheila Ongas, Millie Dok – she actually went to Scotland – Martin Njaga – he of the Brethren of Ng’ondu – Sitawa Namwalie – Cut off my Tongue – Joshua Ogutu – In the Land of the Kitchen – among others.

How Storymoja managed to convince Hay to partner with them, is something Muthoni will have to tell me. What is it they have done differently? After all the Hay Festival is not your daily Migingo, Mau Forest or Hague for that matter.

So I check in a bit late – 3.30 pm – and the car park is almost full. Er, I came in a matatu, if you must know. The first vehicle I notice is Lawrence Njagi’s SUV. Njagi is the young CEO of Mountain Top Publishers, and the chairperson of the Nairobi International Book Fair. He is here to be in the panel of publishers discussing the sticky subject of whether Kenyans read. Do they?

On my way inside I notice Annette Majanja, the diminutive former Kwani? publicist. I last saw her in September last year, and try as I could I could not get her to tell me where she is working nowadays.

Once inside, the first person I notice is Moraa Gitaa. She can really tell a story, this Moraa. Her book, Crucible for Silver and Furnace for Gold, a mouthful, I must say, is on sale at the Savani’s Book Stand. She tells me that my Friend Onduko bw’ Atebe is also in the house. Atebe’s first book The Verdict of Death won the inaugural Wahome Mutahi Prize for literature in 2006, a really tight book, I must say. Why do I get the feeling that this is one writer, whom the Kenyan literary crowd is yet to appreciate? Maybe Kenyans don’t read after all.

Onduko Atebe, second in from right, talking with other writers

Atebe is with John Mwazemba, the publishing manager of Macmillan Kenya limited, who is also a prolific writer in the papers. He is chairing the discussion on the reading culture. Moraa had told me she was itching to put Mwazemba on the firing line, and I made a mental note of being there when her shot goes off.

Mwazemba is on the phone talking with Tony Mochama, the Smitta. Apparently, Smitta, who is launching his book, The Road to Eldoret, at the Goethe Institut today – will I make it for the launch really – has been promising Mwazemba he is coming to the Festival for the last four hours. Cheeky Smitta.

Its rather chilly – its July anyway – and there are not that many people on the opening day, maybe due to the fact that it is a weekday. I am sure place will be teeming with humanity today and tomorrow, what with all the hype and publicity that has surrounded the event.

People look rather subdued, perhaps due to the cold, but Mburu Kimani, the movie man is just in shirt, something to do with his bodybuilder’s physique. After promising to give me an exclusive of his forthcoming TV series, Mheshimiwa, I move on to the Kenya Burning tent, where they are exhibiting images of the post election violence. I have a copy of the picture book, done by Kwani? and the Godown Arts Centre, but I can’t resist going inside.

The Kenya Burning Tent

There, the pictures, of the various events that accompanied that dark period are hung on the wall, not looking frightening at all. I could not help but notice that most of the pictures tell the story of ODM and PNU, and how its supporters set the country on fire, both literary and metaphorically.

Isn’t it interesting that barely a week ago, Kibaki and Raila, all exuding lovey dovey camaraderie, shared lunch in Raila’s Bondo home, yet their infantile quarrel over votes led to the deaths of more than a thousand Kenyans, shame on them. Oh and Raila and Ruto, his lieutenant then, are not in speaking terms, but for how long?

At the end of the room, I notice that there is an adjoining room, and I can almost guess what is in there. I hadn’t seen any frightening images. It is then that I see the notice, “Viewer Discretion” pinned at the entrance to the small room.

Inside there, I am met by some of the most foul and disturbing images I will ever set my eyes on. All of a sudden, the room gets cramped and stuffy, and I feel sick in my stomach. It’s like a morgue, and yes there is a picture of people viewing bodies inside a morgue. I can almost feel the stench. I am brought back to the present by gasps of horror from the other people watching the images from hell.

These are Kenyans who turned against their fellow Kenyans, all because politicians told them to. My mind rushes back to the day’s headlines. NO Tribunal, Hague – The Standard. Split Cabinet gives up on a special tribunal – Daily Nation. Pictures of Kibaki alongside Raila feature prominently. It is getting increasingly clear that the victims of the post election violence will not be getting any justice any time soon.

I get out of the tent feeling nauseated and angry. My “foul mood” – ala Kibaki – is soon lifted when I see Carol of Storymoja. She has been working tirelessly seeing to it that I am completely updated on the Festival and its refreshing to see her.

She is in the rather shabby looking media tent – I am comparing this with last year’s media tent which came complete with a free tea/coffee and snacks corner. To all ye journalists expect no such freebies this year.

Carol accompanies me and soon we meet Wachuka Mungai, the managing editor of Kwani? Kingwa Kamencu, the writer – To Grasp at a Star – cum literary activist is also there looking absolutely smashing. She promises to buy coffee later. Billy Kahora, the Kwani? editor too is here, and he wants to know if I still remember today’s event, where I am in the panel interviewing Malindi-based visual artiste Richard Onyango.

Around the corner we meet a harassed Muthoni Garland, she’s just been from the main stage making announcements. Surely there should be other MCs helping her out in this event.

Leaving Muthoni behind, we meet James Murua, who had been running a session on Internet dating, accompanied by my two favourite poets, Njeri Wangari, aka the Kenyanpoet and Eudia Kamonjo, They are also bloggers. They are also running their own shows at the Festival. Apart from running his social Nairobiliving.com, Murua is also a columnist with the Nairobi Star, now The Star.

Ngunjiri, left chats with Eudiah Kamonjo

James Murua, far right, Njeri Wangari, centre and Ngunjiri, far left.

I also see Oyunga Pala, the man behind the popular Man Talk column in the Saturday Nation. He has been running a session on Men Under Attack. He is a former editor of Adam magazine.

Oyunga Pala, right, chats with Njeri Wangari

From then on my eyes get to behold the various personalities in the literary and art scene, I am somewhat overwhelmed. I can see Parsalelo Kantai, a two time Caine Prize nominee. Mukoma wa Ngugi, also nominated for Caine this year. And why is no one mentioning that he is Ngugi wa Thiong’os son? Or is it that he has come of age and can stand his own? Hmm…

I can also see Ugandan David Kaiza and his compatriot Doreen Baingana, she of Tropical Fish, Movie maker Judy Kibinge, writer Rasna Warah. I also espied Petina Gappah, the Zimbabwean lawyer whose collection of short stories An Elegy for Easterly – a wonderfully written story – is just out. Eh and Richard Onyango is also there. Why did I always conjure up images of him as a tall and muscular person? Well, he is tall alright and er… rather skinny.

Zimbabwean writer Petina Gappah

Remember, there is also Hanif Kureishi, a renowned filmmaker and author, and bestselling author Vikram Seth. What more could one wish for? Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka was supposed to have come, but he didn’t. I will tell you that story another day. Our very own Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai will be there.

Its time to get into the whether Kenyans read forum and apart from Mwazemba, Njagi and Baingana, there is also Bibi Bakare, who runs Cassava Republic Publishing house in Nigeria. I must have missed Moraa’s firing shot as Billy Kahora calls me to the beer tent to meet Richard Onyango.

I also meet events cum fashion show organizer Leakey odera, who is all geared up to stage a cat walk later in the evening. I later meet him, looking rather downcast and he tells me that authorities have decreed that everything should close down after 6.30 pm, the killjoys!

It is time go home and Atebe gives me a lift in his Subaru. We discuss business, and heatedly debate Michela Wrong’s controversial book Its our Turn to Eat.

I’ll be back tomorrow.

Go here for Joseph Ngunjiri’s reports on the Kenyan writing world.

ALL PICTURES ON THIS POST COURTESY OF KENYANPOET.

I arrived at the airport when the program was just about to start so I really did not mind that the taxi was going a bit fast. At the Nyayo stadium round about, the driver took the wrong lane and most foolishly tried to evade the traffic policemen when they waved him down. They seemed more livid that he did not stop when he was waved down than the fact that he was breaking traffic rules. Anyways, the guy needed to be ‘booked’ and so of to the police station we went with one of the police officers. The driver tried to bribe the guy to no avail, mainly I imagined, because he did not know who the person in the back seat was. At the police station, the driver got away with the bribe but had kept me waiting for what seemed like an eternity, twenty minutes. Then we joined a beautiful traffic jam on Ngong Road.I finally got to Impala Club and got my complimentary ticket (I was second in the on-line short-story competition….but do I say!) and dashed to listen to African authors at the British council pavilion. I was so late that I only got to listen to Toni Kan. I was fleeting about all morning trying to be everywhere. I wanted to see everything and in the end saw nothing. Lesson: greed does not pay. I was going to decide on only one thing at a time and sit through it like a good girl.

I came to the Storymoja-Hay festival with several aims: Get my manuscripts critiqued, meet published authors to listen to their experience and learn as much as I could about writing. My fears were that published writers would have their noses in the air, consider themselves more special than mere unpublished mortals and talk in ways I could not relate to. What a joy it was to find that not only did the festival fulfill all my expectations but that all the authors I meet were super encouraging. I left the festival with ideas streaming out of my ears and feeling very positive about the potential of being a writer at this moment of time in Kenya, despite the hurdles.

Guests mingle and talk, Picture Courtesy of www.kenyanpoet.blogspot.com

The first pages of my manuscripts were scrutinized by John Mwazemba, the Publishing manager of Macmillan Kenya and Stephen Partington; a teacher and poet. There comments were a great boost and are already being put to good use.

The ‘writing for children workshop’ run by Doreen, Faith, Edwin and Joan was packed with practical advice on how to go about writing for children. We learned about plot, character development, and setting. Each section was accompanied by an exercise which we, the participants, shared among ourselves. We all agreed that it is a niche that badly needed to be tackled but I imagine with more of these workshops, we shall cease to say this.

Listening to Vikram Seth and Hanif Kureishi at the British council Pavillion was pure entertainment. Seth talked about the way his obsession to know how his stories would end have kept him going, claiming that he was ‘lacking in both determination and discipline’. He joked about taking eleven years ‘not to finish his Phd’ and seven years to finish ‘A suitable boy’ which he wrote while sponging of his parents. Being successful as a writer he said, was also a matter of luck. Honest and refreshing. I found Kureishi’s talk very stimulating as his son was there and asked some insightful questions for one so young, which Kureishi answered with the same earnestness that he answered the other questions from the floor. I cannot lie that I appreciated that bond, such a fine example of how the craft can be passed so seamlessly within the family.

I can fault the festival with only one thing. Too many good things packed in at the same time. How were we to choose? I don’t know how many people were like me on the first day, helter-skelter, wanting to be everywhere at once. I can not exaggerate the value this festival has had for all budding writers. The place may not have been packed, but everyone there was just truly crazy about writing and it was so good to be immersed in that rich broth if only for a few days. Well done Storymoja! You have no idea what good you are doing for this nation.

Go here for more pics on the KenyanPoet’s site

Painting

There was an artist displaying some of his artworks, and the best part of it was being given brushes and an opportunity to paint. It was fun! The bad news is –I CANNOT paint to save my life. My human looked more like an alien – sad!

Kenya Burning

I think this was the most visited tent in the grounds. I had heard of this exhibition-when it was at the Joseph Murumbi Art gallery but had been unable to attend.

The photos are gruesome. They’re stark, they hide nothing. A charred body here, a headless body there, people crying, and worst of all, a mob of men sinking a panga into another man’s head-how the photographer managed to capture that, I don’t know. What strikes me is that the people captured on film are real. they’re not monsters, they’re human beings, doing indescribably inhuman acts. I know I’ll never forget what I saw.

What’s in a name? Discussion group led by Lorna.

Everyone had an opinion on names. From the meaning of a name, to whether your name decides your destiny, to why women have to discard their names and take up those of their husbands. The discussion was intense and very lively. The moderators barely got a word in edgewise!

“When I asked my Dad why he’d called me Lorna, he just shrugged and said, ‘Because I liked the biscuits.’ ” (In the UK there was a book written on a mythical woman – Lorna Doone-which was very popular and there were also biscuits which went by that name.)

-From Lorna, the moderator.

“So my parents named me Bedford. I started calling myself Benford……then shortened the name to Ben. I even tried to get it changed at the AG’s office but that didn’t work out.”

-From a participant.

“You are not really Mwenda. You are a physical representation of Mwenda.”

-One participant’s theory on names.

Sexuality- with Valentine Njoroge

Valentine Njoroge, in centre, at the SHFK.

This was one of the last activities. We opened with a very interesting topic “How does your sexuality change as you grow older?” Very interesting insights from the audience, which included Vikram Seth, Oyunga Pala, Agatha Verdadero of Master Publishing, among others. Everyone had something to say, from the single to the married to the divorced. We moved on to other topics, outrageously funny comments being made, heated debate and then all too sadly, it was already time to leave.

“I have lived with a number of college girls over the years and at least once, for each girl, I have had to get into my car in the middle of the night and pick her up from some guy’s house because she was in a situation where she no longer felt safe.”

-From a participant

(The discussion was on why women get themselves into potentially dangerous situations-esp. college girls – go for a date with a guy and because he has a car, you assume that he will drop you home at the end of the day and don’t even carry enough money for your fare back home. So when he decides NOT to take you home but to his place, then you are in trouble.)

“After getting out of a long term relationship – a marriage in fact – I’ve had to re-discover everything about myself and it’s sometimes painful. I’ve even had to re-discover my taste in curtains…Because I’d changed so much to please this person I was with.”

(From a lady in the audience. The discussion was on long-term relationships, and how to keep the sexuality alive in them. )

How my outlook changed.

I was impressed by some of the participants in the discussions I attended. They were so open, willing to take in all different types of views and challenge them. These are not people who just quietly accept things but challenge them. maybe because of the nature of my work – sitting alone in an office all day from Monday to Friday, I don’t interact as much as I should, so listening to people debating and having so much fun arguing challenged me to be a more critical thinker.

Go here for another comment on the SHFK by Jan Blake on the UNEP site.