Oluwakemi Esho

My mum sowed the seed of storytelling in me as a kid. Growing up, she told my siblings and me stories, and those stories would transport us to when she was a child and bring us back to the present, and they stuck like Velcro in my mind.

But as a five-year-old, I struggled to read and write, so she made me repeat Primary 1 and taught me how to read and write. A year later, I became a voracious reader: I loved the smell of books and loved how I could bury myself in the pages. Ten years later, I discovered my passion for writing and let my imagination roam free.

One would have thought I’d study a course related to my passion at university, but I studied law instead and struggled with my grades. For three consecutive semesters, I had a 2.8 out of 5 GPA. Storytelling became my lifeboat. After qualifying to practice law, I decided to pursue my passion and obtained a master’s degree in creative writing.

Looking back and connecting the dots, I can say that I was born to tell stories, and I’d love to help you tell yours.