How to write about africa wainaina5/13/2023 ![]() ![]() Don’t get bogged down with precise descriptions. Or it is hot and steamy with very short people who eat primates. ![]() It is hot and dusty with rolling grasslands and huge herds of animals and tall, thin people who are starving. In your text, treat Africa as if it was one country. If you must include an African, make sure you get one in Maasai or Zulu or Dogon dress. ![]() An AK-47, prominent ribs, naked breasts use these. Never have a picture of a well-adjusted African on the cover of your book, or in it, unless that African has won the Nobel Price. Note that ‘People’ means Africans who are not Black, while ‘The People’ means Black Africans. Also useful words such as ‘Guerillas’, ‘Timeless’, ‘Primordial’ and ‘Tribal’. Subtitles may include the words ‘Zanzibar’, ‘Maasai’, ‘Zulu’, ‘Zambezi’, ‘Congo’, ‘Nile’, ‘Big’, ‘Sky’, ‘Shadow’, ‘Drum’, ‘Sun’ or ‘Bygone’. “Always use the word ‘Africa’ or ‘Darkness’ or ‘Safari’ in your title. From a satirical piece about the dangerously singular storylines we often create about Africa over a critical essay about international aid and politics to a philosophical story about home. ![]() In this collection of short stories and essays, late Kenyan author and activist Binyavanga Wainaina examines various topics with humor and wit. ![]()
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