The moment he stepped into room 415 and saw Jennifer Lennox sitting behind the polished mahogany table, Wale Ademola knew he was a dead man. He shut the glass panelled door behind him with a click and glared. It had to be an illusion. He checked again. Nope. This was for real. She was here. What on earth was his ex wife doing in his office?
“Good morning Wale.” The woman sitting next to Jennifer spoke first. Her name was Coleen something from HR. She’d interviewed him only last year, at the start of his job as a temp administrator. She peered at him. “Is something wrong?
He started to come forward, stumbled and bumped into a stationery cupboard. “Sorry. I… I must have the wrong room. I am here for a promotion interview for the trainee project manager position.” It had to be the wrong room.
Coleen waved a piece of paper at him. “You didn’t get the confirmation email?”
He nodded. His mind swirled with questions and he tried his best to look relaxed. Had Jennifer traced him to London? Or was this a nightmare?
Coleen gave a reassuring smile. “It will be over before you know it.”
My life will be over before you know it. “Uh-huh.”
Jennifer gave nothing away with her expression, and when she glanced at him it was like she was looking right through him. As though he wasn’t even there. She shifted in her seat and the aqueous floral scent of her perfume smacked his nostrils. He coughed, spluttered. He’d given her the fragrance for her twenty- eighth birthday last year… a day before he – should he say left her? He dropped his gaze to the table.
“You look a tad bit uncomfortable,” Coleen said, concern brimming on the edge of her voice. “Take a seat.” She gestured at the only vacant chair in the room.
In front of Jennifer? God forbid bad thing. He sagged into the chair like an invalid. “Thank you.”
Beads of perspiration beneath his armpits prickled. Trouble had landed in his backyard. Jealous enemies from his village in Nigeriahad chosen the best time to strike their juju, African black magic. Wale mentally sent a curse in return. Thunder fire them all. Including Jennifer Lennox.
Jennifer tossed a stray lock of curled blond hair away from her face and held out her hand. Obviously, his curse did not work. “Mister Ademola,” she said. “An absolute pleasure to meet you.”
Mister? Her performance deserved a standing ovation. He sat up straight with a tight grin, convinced his expression must look like one on a mug shot. “Same here.” His hands remained on the table, numb. If Jennifer noticed, she didn’t react. She turned to Coleen. “Ready when you are.”
Flourishingflorida: Hi, Abimbola. Quickly, could you tell us what stories The Small Print had to tell?
Abimbola: The Small Print essentially tells the story of God’s unwavering and determined love for us. It also tells a story of one man’s immigration struggles, adultery in marriage and a woman’s deadly obsession. It focuses on three individuals – Jennifer Lennox, Wale Ademola and Sade Williams. Two of the characters- Wale and Sade are Nigerian. Jennifer is a white, British woman. Each one has a need for something and in their search for the fulfilment of that need, several things happen that shake their worlds.
– Excerpt from The Small Print
* * * *
Flourishingflorida: How long did it take you to write The Small Print, from idea conception to publication?
Abimbola: Gosh… two years? The idea came after I had a nasty issue with the UK immigration many years ago (a mistake in my application that led to a need for an appeal etc – all solved now by the way. LOL) and I conceived the idea of Wale’s immigration problem. Also, at that time, sham marriages were dominating the UK news world and I decided to include that spin into the story as well- enter Jennifer Lennox. Sade’s marriage was added just because I am not great at writing about one character through out a novel. I do better at multiple POV’s and varying characters. I threw Sade to tackle that issue.
Flourishingflorida: Is The Small Print available on print (paperback)?
Abimbola: It will be available in a few weeks- I expect from 2nd week in December, by God’s grace. The e-book is out now on Smashwords (PDF, Nook, Sony e-reader, Kindle etc) and on Amazon Kindle. I urge readers to join my fan page for a chance to win a free e-copy and also for updates on when the paper back is out.
Flourishingflorida: You wrote The Small Print while you were a new mom. I was a new mom as well when I began serious work on my WIP, and I have to say, it was no small feat. How did you do it?
Abimbola: Oh gosh. You are so right. It is no easy feat. I remember breastfeeding and typing over the baby’s head. LOL. I had my mother-in-law around so I’d use every possible moment to steal away to write. I started the small print when I was pregnant, completed it just after my daughters second birthday. LOL.
Flourishingflorida: Is your husband a writer too?
Abimbola: Writer?! He can’t compose a one page email without screaming for help. LOL. He’s a great pianist though. Short answer? No. he’s not a writer.
Flourishingflorida: How does he cope living with a writer who needs her alone time to create like she needs air?
Abimbola: LOL. Many times, when I am in the middle of writing a scene and I suddenly snap my head up with an exciting idea for a twist, I can see my husband groaning internally as I ask him for his thoughts. I know that my writing takes me away from home a lot (I write better in the library or at night), and sometimes it does affect our relationship, but I try to balance it out- sometimes, I have a no writing day, but generally, he is very supportive of my writing and he is a master at twists (from watching too many Hollywood movies), so he is very helpful in that aspect as well.
Flourishingflorida: Self publication versus traditional publishing. If it was entirely up to you, which would you chose and what advantages do you see with your choice?
Abimbola: Great question. First thing I’d like to say is, regardless of which stream you pick, a writer should ALWAYS write as though they would be pursuing the traditional route. Having this at the back of her/his mind, a writer will strive to deliver the best possible manuscript s/he can. That said, for me, I chose to self publish, even after I got two offers from traditional publishers because of my genre and need to “own” my work. I write Christian fiction, and this is a genre that doesn’t have any big publishers in UK and is virtually non-existent in Nigeria- (apart from church specific publishing companies). The genre is also very specific in the US (African America/Amish/contemporary Christian fiction). The small print is African (Nigerian) Christian fiction. I found myself in a difficult situation when I presented my work to an American publisher because my book couldn’t fit into their markets. Taking my book on would have been a gamble for them- and also I’d have had to be confined to their publishing contract. I also wanted to own my work- having a traditional publisher severely limits that ability. I work for a major UK publishing house, and from my experience, and the one thing that makes a traditional publisher better is marketing (book tours, signing events etc), editing (a whole department practically works on your novel) and excellent quality (but you pay for those with little royalty percentages). You also get the “respect” of newspapers and review groups if a publisher supports your work. I am not looking for a prize (many of the literary prizes will not consider self published novels), or recognition (not to say that those who publish traditionally are, but you will stand a better chance of a literary prize if you publish traditionally). I just want to share my faith with words. It is the only way I can. But, if you can achieve that same level of quality, marketing and editing on your own, then there is no reason why you shouldn’t self publish.
Flourishingflorida: What would you say was the toughest aspect of writing this book?
Abimbola: I’d say having to connect all the dots, and ensuring consistency. I hate writing books with predictable ends. If I start reading a book and the end is so predictable, I’d dump it. Because of my desire to throw in different angles to a story, I found myself fighting to maintain consistency.
Flourishingflorida: I read one of the excerpts you have on your blog and was shocked to see a Nigerian woman, Sade, who lives in London where we are made to understand laws exists to protect women, being subject to much the same treatment as what Nigeria women living in Nigeria where no such laws exist or at worst are not enforced. It makes me think that it isn’t as much as the environment as it is the woman. Is that what your work is trying to say? That women owe it to themselves to be strong for themselves?
Abimbola: You know what, you are right in that there are laws to protect women, but the truth is, not a lot of women want to be protected by this law, neither do many women exercise this right. Regardless of nationality, many women find it very difficult to seek help, or ask for protection of the authorities over an emotionally/ verbally abusive partner. It is a physiological thing, this need to protect their spouses. But that’s not what the small print in really about. As it is a Christian novel, the small print focuses on the power of forgiveness and ultimate trust in God.
Flourishingflorida: Even just from reading the first chapter I was very interested to know more about the ex-couple, Wale and Jennifer/Andrea. I see love still alive on her part. Well, maybe love and revenge. Of course, I may be wrong. Without giving too much of the plot away, tell us why those two shouldn’t or should be together. If I would be honest with you, I really want to see them reconciled.
Abimbola: You do? Huge grin from me. Hmmm… want a real, honest answer? Read the novel! I’d love to reply, but I am so crap at not giving away what happens in the end that the best way to answer you is to ask you to find out.
Flourishingflorida: How far do you reckon people will go just to get their papers?
Abimbola: Seriously? LOL. People marry their sisters/ brothers/ cousins. People do sham marriages (like Wale) and many other things to gain papers. I did a lot of research for TSP, and I also watched the UKBORDER force (a docu-drama about immigration), and I was quite amazed at the extent to which people are prepared to go to enter the UK or to gain residency. I can’t blame these people though. Everyone wants a better life for their families. Whether coming to the UK in its own can achieve that… is another story for another day.
Flourishingflorida: How much of The Small Print is totally fiction and how much is culled from real life experiences, yours and other people you know.
Abimbola: 60% real life. 40% fiction.
Many thanks to Abimbola Dare for being so gracious with this chat.
P.S: I promised Abimbola that I’d review The Small Print once I’ve read it, so watch this page for more on the story.
P.P.S: You all don’t want to miss what I blogged about at Daily Times, believe me.
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