Africa Entertainment News of Friday, 26 March 2021

Source: Dela Ahiawor, Contributor

Meet Clinton Ikechukwu the young Nigerian literary genius tipped to be the next Chinua Achebe

Clinton Ikechukwu, Young Nigerian Literary talent Clinton Ikechukwu, Young Nigerian Literary talent

Long before he dived into the digital ocean of the internet (Facebook) to share his musings-young Nigerian Literary talent, Clinton Ikechukwu used to write inspiring stories at the back of his college notebooks.

No wonder, he has emerged as a passionate and prolific storytelling genius with a very fertile imagination in the last couple of years.

His eloquent short stories and superlative wordsmithery tend to sweep readers off their feet, earning him lofty plaudits.

Presently, Clinton Ikechukwu doubles as an engineer by day and a literary genius by night, assiduously working on manuscripts of his debut novel and regular short stories for his growing readership.

In 2019, Clinton graduated at the top of his class, Department of Mechanical Engineering, at the University of Port Harcourt in Nigeria. A feat that further proves that he was also good at crunching numbers from his college days.

Endlessly solving maths problems in his notebooks. Clearly, there would always be that moment of conflict where numbers would have to wrestle with words for space as Clinton appears to be shuffling between the life of an engineer and a genius storyteller.

The writer believes knowledge is progressive, and so he does not shy away from presenting a different perspective on the world. This, in itself, makes his stories irresistible because of the way he tackles uncomfortable truths and subsequently runs them through his furnace of justice, love, and humanity.

Two things always shine in his writings: his creative play on words in sketching a world beaming with fleshy characters where his readers travel and would become totally immersed and his irresistible fluency on words which creates vivid images in the minds of his readers.

Clinton Ikechukwu has a big quarrel with how the world has been constructed to function, so he relentlessly questions it, armed with his unique art of storytelling because he believes stories can change the world.

He lives in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, Nigeria. At the moment, the writer is an associate operations engineer at Bonitas Engineering and Equipment Company.

Many believe the writer is a scribe par excellence and it would only be a matter of time before we see the reincarnation of Chinua Achebe or Camara Laye, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in the person of Clinton Ikechukwu. Again only time will tell as we await the release of his debut novel: "When the veil of innocence drops"