“Sorry we won’t be able to publish your articles monthly… you know this is not a psychiatry magazine”. These were the words I was told after my first article was published in June edition of Genevieve 2008, and I was trying to push for a second publication. Some people suggested I should publish in any of the health magazines (for heaven sake, how many people even read that…I don’t…and I’m a doctor), many other lifestyle magazines kept turning me down and I must confess I sometimes felt discouraged.
It all started with an idea or should I call it a dream in 2007. I had come to the conclusion that there was a great dearth of information regarding mental health in the general population in this part of the world. My resolve was to be an agent of change by enlightening people so I started scribbling my thoughts and experiences into articles hoping that someday it will be published in a nationally renowned lifestyle magazine-precisely, Genevieve.
During all the times I was turned down by various magazines including my dream magazine the words of Otunba Gaddafi, one of Nigeria’s thriving entrepreneur, kept ringing in my heart; how he had persisted with his mobile toilet idea… so I persisted.
Someone read one of my article and felt it was good enough so he introduced me to blogging where I could post my thoughts without being harassed by any editor and make some dough (cash) while at it…did you really think this was strictly for charity?
Anyway the main gist is, I look back and in the last 4 months from March till this month in 2009, my articles have consistently been published in Genevieve and I was recently told along with some columnist of the magazine to send in articles monthly… even though I’m not yet a columnist o! At least so they said. I don’t know any other definition of columnist if your articles are being published monthly? Abeg I claim it jare!
I may not have it all…yet! But the Journey is the Joy, it may look fuzzy and hazy sometimes but it pays to persist and keep at it, who knows, if only you just took one more step, the fruits of the whole waiting process would have been harvested.
In closing I want to give props to Linda Ikeji (I hope you get around to read or at least hear about this) and Tobenna of Shirak! (a blog) who have inspired me and keep inspiring me in this blogging business. Also I really do want to appreciate aunty Betty Irabor for the priceless opportunity through Genevieve magazine as a platform to inspire right perspectives towards mental health and a more fulfilled life in general.
To all my fellow bloggers, especially all up-coming artistes like me… keep at it; you are indeed making a difference…whether good or bad (lol).
Thanks for the commendation!
ReplyDeleteOne of the tricks to driving traffic to your blog is visiting other blogs and letting them know you were there by commenting. Constantly updating with brilliant posts helps too.
So, target well visited blogs (there are a number of them) and other not too well visited and regularly drop comments. They will reciprocate.
We are actually like one BIG family that know a lot about ourselves except how we look like :P
I will introduce in my next post.
Not sure when that will be though.
Keep it coming!