22 November 020 - EWOMA OKAH-AVAE - GUEST BLOGGER AND AUTHOR

EWOMA OKAH-AVAE

 - GUEST BLOGGER & AUTHOR -

G'day folks,

Today, I interview a very talented blogger, author and environmentalist from Nigeria.

Welcome, Ewoma ...

1.   TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOUR BLOG’S JOURNEY.

I actually started blogging in 2015. Prior to that time, I was looking for a medium to write on a frequent basis. And so I got talking with a friend about my passion and he advised I should start a blog, which I did, and the rest is history.    

2.       WHAT IS THE AIM OF YOUR BLOG?

My aim is to address environmental issues and concerns, and to create awareness about the maladies plaguing our environment. Also to educate the public about the various ways we can protect and manage the environment.  

3.       WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO CREATE A BLOG?

Like I said, I needed to let out my passions to write. Blogging was the perfect way to do it.

4.       WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT BEING A WRITER?

I enjoy being able to let out my passions and concerns by penning down words.

5.       WHAT IS THE HARDEST THING ABOUT BEING A WRITER?

The hardest thing for me is when I am out of pen and paper or there’s a glitch in internet connection that prevents me from writing, blogging and publishing my work.

6.       WHAT WERE YOU IN A PAST LIFE, BEFORE YOUR BLOG?

I have always worked in media as an editor, writer, correspondent and marketing and sales. At a time, I even taught in a culinary school.

7.       WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT PROMOTING OTHERS?

I enjoying helping others discover their talents and gifts to help them fulfil their purpose in life.

8.       WHAT ARE YOU WORKING ON AT THE MOMENT?

I am preparing manuscript for my third novel and also promoting my new podcast on environmental matters.

9.       WHAT INSPIRES YOU?

The Holy Spirit is my greatest inspiration.

10.   ARE YOU A WRITER?

Yes

11.   WHAT GENRE DO YOU WRITE?

Inspirational romance fiction

12.   DO YOU HAVE ANY TIPS FOR NEW WRITERS?

Yes. As a budding writer. You must be relentless in the pursuit of your dreams.

13.   DO YOU SUFFER FROM WRITER’S BLOCK?

No. never had.  

14.   DO YOU HAVE A PREFERRED WRITING SCHEDULE?

Most preferably early in the morning from 8.00am.

15.   DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE WRITING PLACE?

Not really. I use my bedroom most times.

16.   WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST JOY IN WRITING?

Finding expression to my thought processes and imaginations.

17.   WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE AUTHOR AND WHY?

Debbie Macomber. I just love her simplicity and the chaste way that she writes.

18.   WHAT’S THE GREATEST COMPLIMENT YOU EVER RECEIVED FROM A READER OF YOUR BLOG?

Amazing.

19.   WHAT WAS THE WORST COMMENT FROM A READER?

Haven’t received any.

20.   WRITERS ARE SOMETIMES INFLUENCED BY THINGS THAT HAPPEN IN THEIR OWN LIVES. ARE YOU?

Yes. Pretty much.

21.   OTHER THAN WRITING, WHAT ELSE DO YOU LOVE?

Reading. Cooking and baking, dancing, singing, travelling and working with the less privileged.

22.   IF YOU HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO SPEAK TO THE ENTIRE WORLD, WHAT WOULD YOU SAY?

I would say; strive for excellence in all that you do and never give up on yourself and on your dreams.

23.   DESCRIBE YOUR PERFECT DAY.

My perfect day is when everything I need to work is promptly available.

24.   WHAT ARE YOUR GREATEST ASSETS AS A WRITER?

Patience and perseverance.

25.   IF YOU WERE STUCK ON A DESERT ISLAND WITH ONE PERSON, WHO WOULD YOU LIKE IT TO BE? WHY?

Jesus. Because with Him it will never feel like you are in a desert.

26.   WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE?

First of all, I plan to produce my scripts and screenplays into movies. Secondly, I hope to open a top notch restaurant. And finally, I hope to work with United Nations as ambassador for the environment. 

27.   WHAT FIVE BOOKS WOULD YOU TAKE TO HEAVEN?

My Bible, Around the world in 80 days by Jules Verne, Then came heaven by Lavyrle Spencer Heidi by Johanna Spyri, Mary Queen of Scots by Antonia Fraser.

28.   ANYTHING YOU’D LIKE TO ADD?

I just want to thank you for the opportunity to talk about my writing journey.

BLOG 

BLOG 

AMAZON

BOOKS

Clancy's comment: Well done, Ewoma. You certainly have been busy in so many ways. Good luck, and keep up the good work.

I'm ...

 

15 January 2015 - RACHEL CARSON

RACHEL CARSON

G'day folks,

Welcome to some background on a woman who was ahead of her time.

Known for: writing Silent Spring, motivating environmentalist movement of the late 60s and early 70s

Dates: May 27, 1907 - April 14, 1964

Occupation: writer, scientist, ecologist, environmentalist, marine biologist

Also known as: Rachel Louise Carson

Rachel Carson Biography:

Rachel Carson was born and grew up on a farm in Pennsylvania. She dreamed of becoming a writer, and had her first story published in St. Nicholas when she was 10. She attended high school in Parnassas, Pennsylvania.

Carson enrolled at the Pennsylvania College for Women (which later became Chatham College). She changed her major from English after taking a required biology course. She went on to complete an M.A. at Johns Hopkins University.

Early Career:

During summers, Carson worked at Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory in Massachusetts, and taught at the University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins. In 1936, she took a job as a writer with the US Bureau of Fisheries (which later became the US Fish and Wildlife Service). Over the years she was promoted to staff biologist, and, in 1949, chief editor.

First Book:

Rachel Carson's father died in 1935, and she supported and lived with her mother from that time. In 1937 her sister died, and the sister's two daughters moved in with Rachel and her mother.

Carson began writing magazine pieces about science to supplement her income. In 1941, she adapted one of those articles into a book, Under the Seawind, in which she tried to communicate the beauty and wonder of the oceans.

First Bestseller:

After the war ended, Carson had access to formerly classified scientific data about the oceans, and she worked for several years on another book. When The Sea Around Us was published in 1951, it became a bestseller -- 86 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list, 39 weeks as the top seller. In 1952, she resigned from the Fish and Wildlife Service to focus on her writing.

Another Book:

In 1955, Carson published The Edge of the Sea. While successful -- 20 weeks on the best-seller list -- it did not do as well as her previous book.

Family Matters:

Some of Carson's energies went into more family matters. In 1956, one of her nieces died, and Rachel adopted her niece's son. And in 1958, her mother died, leaving the son in Rachel's sole care. She never married.

Silent Spring:

In 1962, Carson's next book was published: Silent Spring. Carefully researched over 4 years, the book documented the dangers of pesticides and herbicides. She showed the long-lasting presence of toxic chemicals in water and on land and the presence of DDT even in mother's milk, as well as the threat to other creatures, especially songbirds.

After Silent Spring:

Despite a full-scale assault from the agricultural chemical industry, which called the book everything from "sinister" and "hysterical" to "bland," the public's concern was raised. President John F. Kennedy read Silent Spring and initiated a presidential advisory committee. In 1963, CBS produced a television special featuring Rachel Carson and several opponents of her conclusions. The US Senate opened an investigation of pesticides.

In 1964, Carson died of cancer in Silver Spring, Maryland. Just before she died, she was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. But she was not able to see the changes that her helped produce.

After her death, an essay she'd written was published in book form as Sense of Wonder.

Clancy's comment: Mm ... With all the discussion and conjecture about climate change, I bet she would be rolling over in her grave today.

I'm ...