Recently I was asked by the editor of African Daydreams to do a feature article on my journey to becoming a writer.
I enjoyed doing this feature because it helped me to reflect on the past few years and how far I've come with my decision to change careers and become a writer.
You can read the whole feature here: Inspire: Beyond Daydreams
I really hope that I can inspire even one person to go out there and follow their dreams.
Have a great week!
My space for sharing stories that I write (real and made up), my thoughts, musings, reflections and happenings.
Monday, August 06, 2012
Tuesday, July 03, 2012
Pre-order my novel "Nothing Comes Close"!
Hey folks!
A lot of work has been going on behind the scenes (like several rounds of editing and rewriting) and now my novel "Nothing Comes Close" will soon be published!
If you're interested in getting the book, my publisher is offering a pre-order incentive, so register your interest today. Here's the link: http://www.accomplishpress.com/pre-orders/
Hurry, so you don't miss out! I appreciate everyone who has been so supportive of my journey thus far, and I really hope you enjoy reading the novel when it's released!
Thank you!
A lot of work has been going on behind the scenes (like several rounds of editing and rewriting) and now my novel "Nothing Comes Close" will soon be published!
If you're interested in getting the book, my publisher is offering a pre-order incentive, so register your interest today. Here's the link: http://www.accomplishpress.com/pre-orders/
Hurry, so you don't miss out! I appreciate everyone who has been so supportive of my journey thus far, and I really hope you enjoy reading the novel when it's released!
Thank you!
FLASH FICTION: Best Laid Plans - By: Tolulope Popoola
Another flash fiction piece on Radical Chic:
FLASH FICTION: Best Laid Plans - By: Tolulope Popoola
Read and comment!
FLASH FICTION: Best Laid Plans - By: Tolulope Popoola
Read and comment!
Thursday, May 31, 2012
FLASH FICTION: Covering Up - By: Tolulope Popoola
New flash fiction piece published on Radical Chic:
FLASH FICTION: Covering Up - By: Tolulope Popoola
Enjoy, and leave a comment!
Thanks!
FLASH FICTION: Covering Up - By: Tolulope Popoola
Enjoy, and leave a comment!
Thanks!
Flash Fiction Series
I'm doing a series of Flash Fiction stories for Radical Chic Magazine.
Click on the links below to read them:
FLASH FICTION - Domestic Status
FLASH FICTION - One-Way Street
FLASH FICTION - Fix My Shell
FLASH FICTION - Fertile Imagination
FLASH FICTION - Dutiful Husband
FLASH FICTION - Twin Twist
FLASH FICTION - Loneliness
FLASH FICTION - Wrong Date
FLASH FICTION - A Christmas Miracle
FLASH FICTION - The Salon
FLASH FICTION - Chasing an Illusion
FLASH FICTION - Wanting
FLASH FICTION - Platonic Friends
FLASH FICTION - Covering Up
I'll be updating the list as we add to them. Please feel free to share all the stories, and leave your comments!
Thanks!
Monday, May 14, 2012
Article - Working From Home
My recent article published in ReConnect Africa Magazine:
For many people the thought of working from home is a very attractive one. Especially if you have no choice but an over-priced, horrible ride on your commute to work in overcrowded trains, or if you have to leave home three hours early to beat the traffic just to be at work on time, or brave treacherous weather conditions daily or an unreliable bus network that gets you home late almost every day.
You might just be tempted to quit the journey and work from your living room.
Click here to continue reading...
For many people the thought of working from home is a very attractive one. Especially if you have no choice but an over-priced, horrible ride on your commute to work in overcrowded trains, or if you have to leave home three hours early to beat the traffic just to be at work on time, or brave treacherous weather conditions daily or an unreliable bus network that gets you home late almost every day.
You might just be tempted to quit the journey and work from your living room.
Click here to continue reading...
Wednesday, May 09, 2012
Interview on Emerge Review
I was recently interviewed by Chidi Ugbe of The Emerge Review, click on the link below to read ~
http://theemergereview.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/nothing-comes-close.html
Thank you!
Tolulope
http://theemergereview.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/nothing-comes-close.html
Thank you!
Tolulope
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
On Life: (Female) Family Politics
I'm a big fan of Asa and I love both her albums. I've listened to both albums over and over again. She's such a great lyricist and all the words in her song make sense. She talks about life as she sees it - whether it is relationships, culture, family problems, politics, war and so on.
One of my favourite songs on her second album (Beautiful Imperfection) is Bimpe. I love the simplicity of the music and the beats, but above all, the song tells a story. It is the story of an unnamed character, and Bimpe is her boyfriend (or husband)'s younger sister. But they do not get on at all. The narrator accuses Bimpe of overstepping her boundaries, of disrespect, saying bad things about her and of sticking her nose into her private affairs.
Now in Yoruba culture, a wife is supposed to respect all her husband's family members, even if they are younger than her. Perhaps this Bimpe takes advantage of that culture and is rude and disrespectful of her brother's wife because she knows that the wife cannot openly confront her. So in the song, the narrator is trying to send Bimpe a warning to back off and stop disturbing her relationship with her brother.
One of my favourite songs on her second album (Beautiful Imperfection) is Bimpe. I love the simplicity of the music and the beats, but above all, the song tells a story. It is the story of an unnamed character, and Bimpe is her boyfriend (or husband)'s younger sister. But they do not get on at all. The narrator accuses Bimpe of overstepping her boundaries, of disrespect, saying bad things about her and of sticking her nose into her private affairs.
Now in Yoruba culture, a wife is supposed to respect all her husband's family members, even if they are younger than her. Perhaps this Bimpe takes advantage of that culture and is rude and disrespectful of her brother's wife because she knows that the wife cannot openly confront her. So in the song, the narrator is trying to send Bimpe a warning to back off and stop disturbing her relationship with her brother.
I tried to imagine myself in that situation.Thankfully, I have a great relationship with my hubby's sisters who are lovely people. But we hear so many horror stories of wife and in-law battles, or the political games that both sides try to play to keep the peace even if they don't get on well. I have friends who are happily married, apart from the fact that they don't like members of their husband's family. And I have friends who don't particularly like the lady that their brother is dating or married to.
It also seems to be a woman thing, for some reason. I don't hear of wives having battles with their father-in-law or brother-in-law. It's usually the husband's female relatives that are hostile to his wife. I wonder why. Are we females so selfish and possessive that we feel we have to protect our "territory"? Do we see the new woman in a son or brother's life as a threat to our own position? Is there no room in a man's life for other women apart from his immediate family? Questions, questions.....
Anyway, back to Asa's song about Bimpe. Someone needs to tell her to chill and back off - that's what the narrator is saying. It almost sounds like "Your brother loves me, deal with it." I love the way the narrator even calls Bimpe out on some of her own issues - Bimpe is unmarried but she has a child out of wedlock. Bimpe has no manners, but she is looking for a husband to marry. Bimpe, fix your issues and stop minding other people's business!
My other favourite song on the album is "Ore", that's another very interesting story. We'll save that for another day....
Did I tell you I looooooooooooove Asa? Here's a photo of me posing like Asa. The photographer knew I was a huge fan, so he handed me the guitar to pose with. I wish I could actually play though!
(c) Tolulope Popoola
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Short Story - Divine Intervention
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Kunle
and I were in love. He was seventeen, and I was fifteen, and he made me happy
like no other person had before him. Not my mother who nagged me, and watched
me like a hawk, and made me do all the chores around the house. Not like my
father, the abusive man I had given up on; whose
presence was worse than his absence. While I tiptoed around my parents, with
Kunle I could be free to be myself.
Kunle
lived with his parents and sisters three houses away from ours on Adebajo
Street. Their house was the biggest and best looking one on the street,
prettied up with rows of neat flowers and hedges lining their garden. I lived
with my parents in a small two-bedroom flat behind Chief Adeleke’s house. My
mother was the cook and the nanny to the Adeleke family’s young children. They
allowed us to live in their compound so that my mother would not have to travel
back and forth.
Being
Kunle’s girlfriend made all the other girls in the neighbourhood jealous. I
heard of this from my best friend, Shade, who lived next door. She told me that
some of the other girls felt I was beneath Kunle and that he could do better.
To tell the truth, I couldn’t believe my luck either. Kunle could have had his
pick of any of the other girls, but he chose to be with me. This made me
suspicious of his advances at first. But he won me over. With his handsome
smile, his love letters and his little gifts of jewellery and expensive sweets.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Choosing My Book Cover
In the past few weeks, I have been working with my publisher, marketing director and graphics designer to come up with a great book cover for my upcoming novel "Nothing Comes Close."
The designer produced two great covers, and I was delighted with his work. The problem is, I can't choose which one I prefer! So I asked a few friends for their opinions and the votes were pretty much split down the middle.
More confused than ever, I asked my friends on my Facebook Page, and again, the votes were pretty much even.
So I thought, maybe I should ask my blog friends - what do you think? Some of you may have followed the series, read the excerpt or even received the free giveaway copies of the book. Which cover do you prefer, and why?
I would really appreciate your response!
1) Sunset Couple
2) Painting Couple
The designer produced two great covers, and I was delighted with his work. The problem is, I can't choose which one I prefer! So I asked a few friends for their opinions and the votes were pretty much split down the middle.
More confused than ever, I asked my friends on my Facebook Page, and again, the votes were pretty much even.
So I thought, maybe I should ask my blog friends - what do you think? Some of you may have followed the series, read the excerpt or even received the free giveaway copies of the book. Which cover do you prefer, and why?
I would really appreciate your response!
1) Sunset Couple
2) Painting Couple
Tuesday, March 06, 2012
Book Excerpt (1) - Nothing Comes Close
An excerpt from the forthcoming novel "Nothing Comes Close". This story is a spin-off from the popular online series "In My Dreams It Was Simpler".
Synopsis: Sassy, confident career girl, Lola meets cool, handsome, unpredictable hunk, Wole. He pushes all the right buttons for her, and sparks fly. Wole is also irresistibly drawn to Lola, and before long, they get together in a delightful romance. But Wole is not all that he seems, and he is holding back a lot of secrets.
Things start to unravel when Wole’s past starts to catch up with him and Lola has to decide if Wole is worth the trouble that threatens to overwhelm her. Will their relationship survive the trials of a murder investigation, a meddling relative and a trip across the world? Or will they give up and go their separate ways? Find out in this fantastic new book!
Synopsis: Sassy, confident career girl, Lola meets cool, handsome, unpredictable hunk, Wole. He pushes all the right buttons for her, and sparks fly. Wole is also irresistibly drawn to Lola, and before long, they get together in a delightful romance. But Wole is not all that he seems, and he is holding back a lot of secrets.
Things start to unravel when Wole’s past starts to catch up with him and Lola has to decide if Wole is worth the trouble that threatens to overwhelm her. Will their relationship survive the trials of a murder investigation, a meddling relative and a trip across the world? Or will they give up and go their separate ways? Find out in this fantastic new book!
WOLE
‘Slam dunk!’
‘Great shot!’
I retrieved the ball and
bounced passed it to my team mate Kenechukwu. We were playing basketball with
some of the other guys in the gym. I was drenched with sweat but feeling
absolutely great. I had just recovered from a grim bout of flu and it felt
great to be alive and fit again. I ran down the length of the court and threw
the ball straight up into the other team’s net again.
‘Someone is on fire
today,’ Mark grinned as he retrieved the ball. He was playing for the opposing
team.
‘For sure!’ I called back.
We played for another ten
minutes before the whistle went and our booked slot was over. I tossed the ball
towards Kenechukwu and we started going towards the showers, clapping the guys
on the back, muttering ‘good game guys, see you next week…’
Mark joined us a few
moments later.
‘Well done Wole,’ he said.
‘Did you overdose on some high energy drink?’
‘Naa,’ I said. ‘Just full
of beans today.’
‘So I see,’ Kenechukwu said.
‘What have you got planned for the rest of today?’
‘I’m going to see my
girlfriend in Kent this evening.’ Mark said
‘Not much. I was thinking
of catching up on some work.’ I said. ‘I slacked last week because of the flu.’
‘Keep the work till later,
man. Since you’re buzzing with energy today, you can be my right-hand man.’
‘What are you up to?’
‘I’ve got an album launch
and a birthday party. Plenty of opportunities to meet chicks.’
‘I’m not looking to meet
anyone.’ I said. ‘But I don’t mind having some fun this weekend. I can do my
extra work during the week.’
‘Great. Sorry you can’t
come with us Mark.’
‘I’ll survive without you
today. You’re becoming a bad influence on me anyway, Kene.’ Mark said.
‘Me? I don’t know what
you’re talking about,’ Kene replied, raising one eyebrow.
‘Don’t worry Mark. I’ll do
my best to keep him in check.’ I said.
‘Good luck with that.’
Kene said, and we all laughed.
Saturday, March 03, 2012
FLASH FICTION: 'Platonic Friends' - By: Tolulope Popoola
Here's another of my flash fiction stories on Radical Chic Magazine:
Enjoy, and do leave comments!
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
FLASH FICTION: 'Wanting' - By: Tolulope Popoola
Hi everyone! Read another flash fiction piece here -
Thank you, please leave your comments!
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
FLASH FICTION: 'Chasing An Illusion' - By: Tolulope Popoola
Happy (Belated) New Year!
Here's my first flash fiction piece for this year.
FLASH FICTION: 'Chasing An Illusion' - By: Tolulope Popoola
Enjoy and do leave your comments!
Here's my first flash fiction piece for this year.
FLASH FICTION: 'Chasing An Illusion' - By: Tolulope Popoola
Enjoy and do leave your comments!
Thursday, December 15, 2011
FLASH FICTION: 'The Salon' - By: Tolulope Popoola
Click the link below to read.
Feel free to leave your comments too. Thanks!
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