Just imagine if we could read the thoughts and learn the real experiences of our ancestors. We would understand how events in history unfolded and how they felt to ordinary people as well as get the inside story on those who have made history.
Writing a memoir gives you a voice. It is your chance to pass on your wisdom, opinions and traditions to a modern audience. In many cultures and especially those from Africa if these traditions are not recorded by ordinary people they will be lost for ever.
Everybody has a book in them, as the old saying goes. Writing your memoir is a great way to free up your creativity and to revaluate your past. It can be a painful experience if you have had tough times in your life but it can be a healing process too.
If you approach the writing process with total honesty you may relive a difficult past but will be able to understand more clearly your part in the bigger picture. It helps future generations understand how they got to where they are now.
For the reader a memoir is important. It provides an authentic voice from their own history and develops greater understanding of events that they may have only heard about. The problem is that oral stories are soon forgotten whereas a written record lasts forever.
If you write a memoir you record your history.
Some parts of history are unrecorded. After all the word history is derived from the words HIS story and is usually recorded by the winners of society. But what about the people who actually live through an experience?
What about the women who have rarely got a voice in events? What about the men who acted as foot soldiers rather than the generals, both literally and figuratively? What about the families who were forced out of their homes to resettlement camps, losing everything overnight?
All these stories deserve to be heard and will provide an authentic voice from the past. They give readers a way of understanding their own history and culture and to reconnect with their traditions.
The importance of recording the history of disenfranchised people
Black Americans have a long history based on an often complex society and culture that started way before their ancestors were sold into slavery. But because theirs was an oral tradition most Afro Americans have no understanding of their roots, their tribal history or even where they came from.
This creates a disconnect that has wiped out the memories of an entire nation of people leaving a void for anything that took place before the rise of slavery in the mid 17th century. Thousands of years of history have been lost.
We cannot let this happen again yet if nobody leaves a written record now for events which have happened within living memory, they will soon be forgotten and lost to future generations.
Today with greater levels of literacy across Africa I encourage every tribe to check that their cultures, migration, and history are documented, and if not, what are you waiting for?
How will children who grow up in various camps connect to your cultures if nothing is written? How will they track their ancestral home or land of origin if you do not guide them?
The tragedy of South Sudan
In South Sudan, history is being lost at an alarming rate. I wish we could have recorded memoirs of people like Gen Lual Diing Wol, Gen William Nyuon, Gen Peter Cirillo, Gen Ageer Gum, and many more. These brave souls have passed away now and with them their histories are lost.
For veterans who are still alive, the Africa World Books Office asks you to put pen to paper with immediate effect and write your own memoir of the past.
All authors are part of current and future history; 30 years of bush experience needs no research, and many veterans have a wealth of tradition and knowledge about the past that needs to be recorded.
Writing your memoir helps you build African history
You may feel that you are not a writer so would never be able to write a book. This is not so. Remember that everyone has a book in them and Africa World Books can publish anything, including even if you only manage to write five pages.
The mission of Africa World Books is not to create the latest bestseller. It is to fight illiteracy and record the oral culture amongst our people.
When "Dinka histories" was sent to a publisher elsewhere, the author was asked to pay $8000 US dollars upfront. Today we have made publishing available to all authors with Africa World Books. There is no upfront payment required because we know that this is important work that needs to be heard.
All authors are given equal opportunities regardless of status, race, or religion; our aim is to set down an authentic record of events in our troubled continent. We love our nation, and our people should be proud and appreciate the efforts exerted.
What if people criticise your memoir?
If you are worried about writing your memoir and suffering criticism for your efforts, try not to worry.
Some people may criticise – after all it is always easier to criticise other people’s efforts than it is to do them yourself. However a more likely result is that your friends and family will be extremely impressed and interested in what you have to say.
Remember that your words will add to the historical record of our nation, so it is important to bear this in mind if you lack confidence in your abilities to write. If you just imagine you are talking to someone and use your everyday language to tell your story, you can do this as well as anyone else. You can do this!
For now we send our congratulations to all authors and readers across South Sudan and beyond. This is a fantastic achievement that deserves recognition and will help our nation build a valuable resource of contemporary history.