Slyce: Brothers and Sistah’s, please welcome our brother, Author Chimdi Owhorji to “The Interrogation Room”!! Welcome my brother:-). Are you ready?
Slyce: What inspired you to become an author?
CO: I learned how to read and write when I was 14 years old. I worked assiduously to acquire the knowledge and the skill to read and write. I prayed to God without ceasing and made a vow to Him, that if He blesses me with the wisdom to read and write, that I’ll share and touch souls with my knowledge. God heard my humble cry and He blessed me with the gift to make ink bleed.
I decided to pursue my dream of becoming a part of the growing population of writers, but I never considered making a living out of writing. Writing is special, it’s unique and honourable to me and pursuing this dream has made me a creator of words. With my pen, I have the freedom to create any character and situation that I like, to inspire my readers. The passion, power and ability to create a world of my own and see it come to life, through the reader’s own mind’s eye, gives me a special feeling of power, devoid of greed, yet something so precious that feeds my soul and heart.
The world I create with my pen has saved and changed some lives; it gives confidence and courage when needed the most. It allows people to see themselves in the fictional character that was going through the similar experience that they once found themselves in. Whenever some readers compliment my work and shares their experiences with me, on how my poems spoke to their souls and how I saved their lives when they were about to commit suicide, I break down in tears and thank God for blessing me with the gift of encouraging word. Thus, touching souls and saving lives is all the inspiration I needed to become an author.
Slyce: What is the name of your publishing company?
CO: I’m an Indie Author.
Slyce: In what genre do you write?
CO: Poetry.
Slyce: Have you penned under another name?
CO: No, I have never penned under another name, but have been coined #BleedingInkOfTheEloquentStammerer and the #Lyrical_Libator
Slyce: You wrote a book titled, “Anchor Of My Heart”. What was this book about?
CO: “Anchor Of My Heart” is a collection of poetry collaborations between Author Tanya Deloatch and Author Chimdi Owhorji. The book brings to life the awesome and reflective creativity within two beautiful souls that derives inspiration from different places. Our pens intertwine, blending perfectly to weave a poetic flow, captured from deep within the ink wells of our collective souls.
Slyce: Is this book a stand alone or a series?
CO: “Anchor Of My Heart” is the initial poetry collaboration between Author Tanya Deloatch and Author Chimdi Owhorji and we are currently working on a sequel, which makes our works a series of poetry collections.
Slyce: How important are interviews?
CO: Interviews are important ways to know the portfolio of a writer that demonstrates his/her ability to write in a variety of formats. It tends to examine the thoughtfulness of a writer, revealing if the writer is an inquisitive researcher who makes sure he/she has a deep understanding of his/her subject matter before writing. That is, through interviews you understand how a writer influences his readers.
Slyce: How important are reviews?
CO: Book reviews left by readers are important because it makes a huge difference in the success of an author; the number of highly favorable reviews a book gets helps the author generate a promotional gold mine, which can boost sales into best-sellers, thus helping the book rankings on Amazon and other literary sites.
Slyce: What does the term, “Building a Brand” mean?
CO: Building a brand refers to an author’s emotional connection with his readers, with emphasis on what makes him unique, why he stands out from the crowd, why he gains their recognition to earn their loyalty and trust as well. If an author is to be successful in the writing industry, he/she must have the abilities to shape and manage reader’s perceptions by controlling the message.
Slyce: What steps are you taking to build your brand?
CO: First and foremost, I have identified my goals and objectives that will move people to action in the writing industry, so everything I write moves me closer to these goals and where I’m trying to take my readers to.
Secondly, I have my promotional strategies and publishing plans for my books. I’m taking advantage of the blog sites, social media, and will capitalize on the strength of audio and video to share different aspects of my brand story. I also spill ink with other authors in collaboration to build and spread my network in the industry.
Thirdly, I pay serious attention to my reader’s feedback in the form of compliments to my works. I use the feedback to continuously re-evaluate, refine and grow my brand reputation.
Slyce: What goals would you like to achieve as an author?
CO: The goals I wish to achieve as an author/poet is to birth poetry with life, poetry with passion, poetry with purpose, poetry with global bridge, poetry with heart connection, poetry with romance, poetry with morality. My style of poetry tends to create a common ground for like minds to discover our greatness and to comfort bleeding hearts and lonely souls, by penning down our hearts and bleeding out our pain.
My aim in the writing industry is to create a strong force that binds us together, using poetry to express societal awareness and offer solutions to societal ills. I want to see poetry create a strong kinship with positive impact to dissolve impossibilities. Poetry is the reflection of everything around us, and should explore the human condition, relationships, morality and spirituality.
Also, I want to expand my works to global audiences through multiple media outlets, with performances on the live stage, which I’m currently pursuing.
Slyce: What advice would you like to share with aspiring authors?
CO: Don’t struggle to write, just allow your pen to direct your ink to bleed, but most importantly, learn to enjoy the free flow of words.
Slyce: Is there anything else cooking in the lab for Author Chimdi Owhorji?
CO: Sure! I’m actually working on two individual projects, with projected release dates in November and December, 2017.
Slyce: Do you write for the passion or the profit?
CO: I still can remember, sometime in 2015, some friends told me on different occasions, to commercialize my writings, but I told one of them that I wasn’t interested in making money with my gift of writing, I’m only a cassava farmer that loves to write, to inspire my world. I authorized him to compile all my poems on Facebook and make a fortune out of it for himself, though he declined. Now I’ve gone into publishing, more a passion driven writer rather than a profit driven writer. Yes, indeed! Writing fills my soul and heart with joy, not just my pocket and ego.
Slyce: Name two authors you’d love to work with.
CO: Author Anna Waddell and Author Nia Rich.
Slyce: What is the name of your co-author?
CO: Author Tanya Deloatch.
Slyce: Was it difficult doing a collaboration?
CO: Not at all, our words just flow freely like spring waters.
Slyce: Is this your first published book?
CO: Yes
Slyce: When was/is the release date?
CO: 20 September, 2017
Slyce: Where can our viewers purchase your book?
CO: “Anchor Of My Heart” is available now on Amazon
Slyce: How can our viewers contact you?
CO:
- Author’s page on Amazon
- Facebook: Chimdi Owhorji
Slyce: I’d like to thank guest, Author Chimdi Owhorji for joining us in “The Interrogation Room”!! Thank you my brother. You were wonderful!!
Everyone, please go purchase, “Anchor Of My Heart” by Author Chimdi Owhorji. Also, remember to check out his page on Facebook at: 
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