Carol Ofori on International Women's Day: "We need more books that empower African kids"
Encouraging the next generation of readers comes with serving them content they can resonate with...
As we commemorate yet another prestigious year of celebrating women from all around the world, we wanted to dial in on what Carol Ofori had to share this year.
It has been a decorated couple of years for our daytime diva. And with everything going on in the outside world, it is important to take note of how to be there for the young ones.
The youth as a whole are our responsibility, and we have to make a conscious effort to equip them with what they need to have a solid future.
Carol Ofori recently shared how important it is to serve more books that empower the African child.
This after she found a gap in the children's book market and used this opportunity to create a children's book series catered for all children, but specifically African children.
Because as a child, if there is one thing that sticks with you, it's the feeling of being acknowledged.
The feeling of being accepted and feeling represented.
I’ve been very unapologetic in my career, in my drive for Africans to know more about Africa and themselves and to have a strong love for themselves. It’s so important for Africans to grow towards an appreciation of Africa and its people. We so easily see and focus on our differences that we don’t see our similarities. It is knowledge about each other that will propel us as a continent. It was absolutely intentional for me to write these books with that in mind, so that children grow up aspiring to travel to Kenya and learn more about Rwanda.
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If you are a budding author and want to know which would be better, self-publishing or signing with a publisher, then here's her advice.
For me, going with a publisher was definitely the right decision. Given everything I’m involved in, and the time needed to get the books printed, marketed etc. I wouldn’t have been able to do it by myself. I have a really good publisher who held my hand, and they were flexible enough to let me make all of the important decisions with regards to illustrations etc. I think if you have the time, the resources, and you are going to give everything you’ve got, then self-publishing could be the way to go. But if you don’t and you’re entering an industry you know nothing about, then having a publisher can make the journey a lot easier. The downside, of course, is that you have to wait for someone to take interest.
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