Sunday 13 November 2016

A Look Behind the Curtain

Now that you've had time to read Erase and Rewind it's time to take a look behind the scenes. A few facts that might interest you about the writing of.
First of all you might have noticed that there was some kind of foreign language in the story.


What is that?” she exclaimed in fear taking an involuntary step back.
Djab”, the sailor said falling to the ground.
Devil.

That language is Haitian Creole. I used google translate to write so I hope I got it right. Let me know if I fucked up huh?
I like to do that though. I like to mix and match cultures according to their lore and beliefs. A thing that I find is that there is a lot of intercourse between the cultural beliefs of different peoples. The people of Hispaniola who are featured in this story carried their beliefs in a boat from West Africa and then modified it from Christian beliefs, and the cultures of other peoples they came across. The thing is that ultimately, we all come from the same root.

This week is a good one to remember that huh?
There is also no escaping that mix and match that has taken place because it's like HIV. It gloms itself onto your DNA and you can't kill it without killing yourself.
Which makes me question all these so called cures people are claiming to have. If you've found the cure for HIV it means you can now cure viruses. All viruses. Because they all behave in the same way and that's why you can only manage them.

It's the same thing with supremacy. Be it white supremacy, kikuyu supremacy, wherever you find it in the world. People think it's a cure but it's not. It's a blindfold. A blindfold to assist the person donning it to escape from reality.
One thing I like about myself and it's reflected in the way I write is that escaping from reality is not in the cards. My books might give you a new way to look at that reality, a way to gain new perspectives; but not to kid yourself about it.
Some people don't like that. They prefer the 'bury your head in the sand' approach. More power to you. :)

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm eager to read the free book you offered. I come from a multicultural family so I think much the same as you.

Annemarie Musawale said...

Hi. The free book is available when you sign up for updates. It will take you to a page where you can download. Let me know if you have any trouble.