Sade Adeniran (Nigeria)

Sade Adeniran, Commonwealth Writers' Prize Best First Book Winner Africa Region for her debut novel Imagine This, was born in London and moved to Nigeria , where she spent her formative years before returning to the United Kingdom. Adeniran's Commonwealth win was all the more remarkable considering that the novel was self published. 

She is a graduate of the University of Plymouth and also spent time as an exchange student at the University of Massachusetts . After graduating with Honours she had a brief stint as a marketing executive for a telecoms company. When she was unexpectedly made redundant her bitterness towards her boss prompted her to start writing a revenge story instead of, in her words “running him over with a car, which was my first thought. Luckily enough I didn't own a car at the time.” However, one hundred pages into the story, she realized that protagonist Lola's diary entries were much more intriguing than her revenge quest. That was the beginning of Imagine This.

Adeniran's foray into writing began with a radio play – Memories of a Distant Past – which was her final year project at university. Sent to the BBC on a whim it was subsequently produced as part of BBC Radio 4's First Bite festival. Adeniran has also written various pieces for theatre and had her work performed at the Lyric, the Bush and the Riverside Studios.   She comments: “I can't say I really have an approach to writing. The way it works for me is that I'll get an idea and let it percolate, when it's ready it just comes out. That's the hard part though, because I never like what I write. It grows on me, I'll go back years later and think, wow! did I write that. However my fi rst reaction is always YIKES!!!”  

Adeniran lives and works in London , and is working on her second novel.

“Imagine This does not necessarily make for thoroughly comfortable and light-hearted reading but Adeniran's sensitivity and the intimate nature of the writing make for a compelling and ultimately rewarding fi rst novel.” – Tola Ositelu in Pambazuka News.

Bibliography Imagine This, SW Books, 2007  

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