Tolu Ajayi

Toluwalogo Ajayi (born 1946) is a Nigerian poet and writer of fiction

Quotes

• An award is a landmark for any writer, because it shows that it is a measure of a standard that you have improved in your writing.
  • Tolu Ajayi: How BBC short story prize transformed my LIFE, THE SUN (Nigeria), 2018

• When I was in secondary school, I was good in both English, Literature and Biology, and most parents wanted their children to become doctors, engineers or lawyers in future. I scored high marks in class, and was marked by my teachers as a potential doctor. At the same time, I enjoyed poetry so much. After my secondary school, I studied Medicine in London, but was sad that I left my poetry for a while. Sometimes, I would go to the library to read books on poetry during my spare time. Poetry kept on coming into my head and one day, (March, 1967), I got up in the middle of the night to write poems in a book, which I still have till now
  • Ajayi when asked what time he began creative writing and his motivation behind it

• Poetry exists as a song, that is, lyrical poetry; and it also exists as a puzzle (imagery poetry). The average Nigerian doesn’t understand imagery poetry, but are used to lyrical poetry. I would say that Images of Life is a collection of poems for everyone. It is very simple and lyrical in nature. It is about love, every day things, which anybody can pick up to read. While Motions and Emotions is imagistic poetry: it is for poets and intellectuals. I deliberately separated them so that Nigerians will not be discouraged when they look at one poem which they don’t understand; they will pick the other book to read.
  • Tolu Ajayi being asked what inspires his collection of poems Motions and Emotions and images of life