TAKE 5: Anne Moraa

Anne Moraa is a storyteller, writer, performer, poet and editor curious about black/Kenyan womanhood and otherness. Her work has been published in Short Story Day Africa, Brainstorm, Jalada and the Wide Margin.

Her performances have taken her from Nairobi to Edinburgh, Scotland and Gwang Ju, South Korea. She most recently co-wrote, produced and performed in the critically acclaimed, "Too Early For Birds: The Brazen Edition", a stage play that made visible invisible women in Kenya's history.

An Amplify Fellow and Mawazo Novel Writing Fellow, she is currently at work on her debut novel.

1. You've donned many hats in your career as a creative - poet, writer, theatrical actor - which is your favourite hat?

I don't have a favourite hat because I think each medium plays a different role. Poetry cuts through the noise and goes into the heart of it.

Fiction is a great truth-teller and explorer while performance allows you to lose yourself and connect to the audience with your body.

Aleya Kassam, (performer) has this phrase, "promiscuous creative" which describes a creative who dabbles in and explores a number of forms. I tend to call myself a storyteller above all else.

Telling stories in whatever form works best. My favourite part of my performance is when the story lands, and clicks in the reader's or audience's eyes. It means you did the work.

2. It's hard enough to get work out, much less to get out a whole book, or collection, so to speak. What are you working on, and what do you find most difficult about getting to the next level of your craft?

You're telling me! I am currently working on my novel after completing the Mawazo Novel Writing Fellowship. Coming from short forms (poetry, comics and short fiction), I am realising the stamina required to complete a full book is astounding. It's a marathon.

The hardest part is that this process isn't paid, like most storytellers in Kenya, you are constantly hustling. I am currently freelance editing and writing, and this can be very fulfilling, but not having concerns such as rent while working on a big piece of creative work would help.

3. What is the most helpful advice you’ve gotten or what is the most helpful advice you would give someone starting out in your area of expertise?

Recently, Sitawa Namwalie (Kenyan poet) taught me how to take compliments on my work - a simple and heartfelt thank you instead of shying away from it. Any creative, especially a novice creative, struggles to see the worth in their work.

This is more apparent in women because we have been socialised to be shy and doubting of our power. It's a small shift, but being able to take that compliment, to recognise the value you bring and own it, frees you.

I would also advise one to learn how to take criticism. Listen to solid, constructive criticism because even if you don't apply the recommendations, it is an opportunity for growth. Critique can be negative or positive, whatever form it comes in, it builds skill and confidence.

4. "Too Early For Birds - The Brazen Edition" changed the way many people think about history, and women, and erasure. Are you writing another? Whose stories do you think should be told next?

We, (Laura Ekumbo, Aleya Kassam and I, and they will kill me for saying this), are working on another production. It should be out next year and is around the concept of diviners.

Still very early days, so more details will come as we go! We are also figuring out how to bring back "Brazen" in a sustainable way because that show was transformative for us too.

That said, many more stories should be told. For the "Brazen Edition", we focused on only six women. Six. We had so many stories that we had to shelve because of the limits of that particular production.

I want women to write themselves into history because, frankly, we were written out of it.

Tell the secret stories of famous women. Tell the uncomfortable parts, the parts that make people worry that women are doing too much these days.

Tell the stories of unknown women. Of ordinary women because every woman has an extraordinary story.

Tell the stories of your grandmother and great grandmother. The stories are infinite. I want this to not be a genre any more, I want women's stories to simply be stories, as deserving of any page or stage as anyone else’s.

5. How do you deal with writer's fatigue - when the words just won't come and nothing is inspiring at all?

I struggle with this a lot, especially after completing a big project. Some writers can just power through, but I am finding that I have to understand why things are stuck before I can move on.

Sometimes you're just tired: after "Brazen" I was exhausted and had to take some time just to process and release.

Other times, I can't figure out how to fix a piece of work - leaving the house and working in a different space or working on a different piece of work, helps.

Recently, I have found that writing in the company of other writers works wonders.

A few writers sitting together minding their own business but knowing they are all working on something is surprisingly effective. It helps knowing that you are not alone.

Just try and remember the words are there. They are always there, waiting for you. Sometimes you just have to call for them a little louder.

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Connect with Moraa on Twitter @tweetmoraa.