Chimamanda Adichie talks about her new book "Dream Count"

 

Renowned Nigerian author, wife, mother, and feminist, Chimamanda Adichie, has spoken about her upcoming book titled Dream Count. During her chat with The Guardian‘s Charlotte Edwardes, she talked about the long gap between writing novels. She said: ''I didn’t want to leave such a long gap between novels…When I got pregnant [with her daughter], something just happened. I had a number of years in which I was almost existentially frightened that I wouldn’t write again. It was unbearable. There are expressions like ‘writer’s block’ I don’t like to use because I’m superstitious. But I had many years in which I felt cast out from my creative self, cast out from the part of me that imagines and creates; I just could not reach it. I could write nonfiction, that was fine. But that’s not what my heart wanted.''

 Additionally, she said she didn't know she had been writing about her mother but knew ''...only when I was almost done did I realise, my God, it’s about my mother. It wasn’t intentional. I’m happy that it’s not a sad book. She wouldn’t want a sad book dedicated to her. I’m so grateful that I’m back to what I love most – which is writing fiction. But there’s also anxiety. It’s my book, and I’m sending this thing out into the world. I already had sleeping issues. But the night is also when my mind roams. Invariably, it roams to terror. That terror has to be part of the creative process. I’ve always had it. But this time it just feels more finely milled.''

Dream Count  is the interconnected stories of four women, exploring themes of identity, the immigrant experience, and societal pressures on women. Set in both the US and Nigeria, it tackles topics like the relationship dynamics between Africans and African Americans, the Americanisation of language, and the complexities of motherhood, including late motherhood.