Shadreck Chikoti
Someone I didn’t even know messaged me on Facebook, saying they wanted to talk to me because CNN, the Cable News Network, wanted to interview me. I knew about CNN, of course, but the request came so unexpectedly that I could hardly believe it. CNN is a major global news network that covers stories from places like Iraq, the United States, Israel and Palestine, China, and beyond. It’s a company that interviews presidents like Obama, Trump, and others. And now they wanted to interview me? What mistake had I made?
Back in 2013, I had posted a video on Facebook where I shared my views as a writer. At the time, as is now, I strongly believed that Chakwera was the right person to vote for. I wasn’t alone in that belief; if I remember correctly, the late Lucius Chikuni also endorsed him, along with others. Could CNN be interested in asking me about that? Even if it was about politics, I was just a small part of the story, merely a supporter. Above all, I was simply a writer expressing my opinion and exercising my rights as a citizen of Malawi. Everyone has the right to choose whom they support, and that right should never be crushed or silenced.
Before all this, I had the privilege of meeting one of the writers I admired most, the late Binyavanga Wainaina, at a conference in Germany. He once told me how he had rejected an award because he believed it was disingenuous. Remembering that conversation, I decided to agree to the CNN interview, fearing I might miss an opportunity, but I accepted with some hesitation.
The CNN team told me they wanted to travel to Malawi to interview me. Their crew was in Kenya at the time, and if I was available, they were ready to come.
“Why are you coming?” I asked.
“Just to interview you,” they said.
“That’s it?”
“Yes.”
“All the way to Malawi?”
“Yes.”
They gave me a date, and sure enough, they arrived, with cameras, reporters, and a full production crew.
When they got here, they first spoke to a few people who had been asked about me. Some told them,
“Wait, there are others in this country you should interview, maybe not this one.”
But CNN explained that they were looking for someone who had sparked major international interest. They said my writings were being read globally because I was helping change the narrative, not just about Malawi, but about African literature as a whole.
To cut a long story short, they did the interview, and their team later featured me among seven African writers CNN recommended as “new voices” worth reading.
The lesson? Sometimes we don’t realize how far our words can travel or whom they might reach. But the most important thing I’ve learned is this: when you do something, don’t wait for others to applaud you, and don’t assume no one is paying attention.
I’ve also learned that some people do recognize your talent, skill, or potential, but choose not to acknowledge it, perhaps out of fear, jealousy, or insecurity. Don’t let that discourage you. And don’t be fooled into thinking that others who seem less skilled or less capable are surpassing you just by luck or chance. Sometimes, real talent and skill intimidate people. But keep going.
https://edition.cnn.com/2014/08/05/africa/gallery/contemporary-african-writers/index.html
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