This stay at home order is doing a number on me. Honestly, it got me imagining things on the regular and my already creative mind is on overdrive. As if it didn’t paint enough mental pictures and make-believe scenarios before the lockdown, now the juices flow unabated and I see a story in everything. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, I even imagine the conversation my neighbour’s dogs are having in their house. Let me tell you what happened this…
![[SHORT STORY] This Thing Called Love By Olukorede S. Yishau](https://michaelafenfia.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Love-Abstract-670x350.jpg)
I resumed at Wells Petroleum Development Company's Warri office two months after I returned to Nigeria. The ambiance was good. The office environment was great. The residential area was out of this world. And my colleagues were great. A car was practically waiting for me before I inked the pen on the acceptance letter. All these had absolutely nothing to do with my father, who by then had unfortunately vanished. The circumstances of his disappearance, I assumed then, would haunt…
![[Short Story] The Sales Assistant By Rex Dogood](https://michaelafenfia.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/stressed-black-woman-400x295.jpeg)
"I gave you a thousand naira, and my balance should be six hundred and fifty naira," blared Francis in an angry voice. "Sir, please calm down; it hasn't gotten to that yet," replied the lady behind the counter. "Don't just patronise me. You want me to calm my voice when I'm being defrauded? Is that how you do things here? I want to see your superior." "My brother you should," came a voice from another customer behind him. “I've had…
Late last year, I announced a call for entries into the JB Afenfia Flash Fiction Contest. And as expected, entries came from everywhere. The stories were so good that it was tough for the judges to pick top 10. However, of the lot, these ten made it and were formally announced on the first day of 2019. (Check the call for entries here.)
Read and please let me know which is your personal favourite.
The day after Tunmininu died, Mama Demola called Lydia to break the news to her. The two of them had been in constant touch since Demola's death. She screamed and was close to tears. The thought of anything happening to Demola jnr, her only hope, made her cringe with fear. Long after Mama Demola dropped the call, she was still troubled, not by Tunmininu's death, but by a fact she recently stumbled upon. Demola jnr had been sick and she…
![[SHORT STORY] The Fatal Accident By Rex Dogood](https://michaelafenfia.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/pexels-photo-1161268.jpeg)
It was a pleasant Saturday morning characterised by the usual harmattan chill and mist in the ever busy and noisy Agofuri Park in Warri. Despite the chaos, her ringtone stood out. "Hello, Phebe. How are you?" she spoke into the receiver of her phone with a smile "Aunt Laye, there is a problem," came the tensed voice from the other end of the line "What again?" Laye asked "Uncle had a terrible accident. His car got crashed into a truck…
This season, you can WIN BIG with your creativity! Just write an original, unpublished story starting with “Mondays are like that” and share as a comment/reply to my post either Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Entries on Facebook and Instagram must not exceed 100 words, and 280 characters on Twitter. Entry opens on Saturday, November 17, 2018 and closes by 11:59 pm on Saturday, December 22, 2018. All participants MUST like or follow @MichaelAfenfia on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram. Top 10…
![[SHORT STORY] Otapiapia By Olukorede S. Yishau](https://michaelafenfia.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/photo-1517010343526-1e18dfc5eecd-500x350.jpg)
It was her first holiday from Abeokuta. Idera was excited to see Lagos again, but she was not prepared for what she saw on entering the new two-bed apartment into which Aunty Rebecca and her husband had moved. She knocked at the door and waited a few minutes before she turned the knob. The door creaked open only for her to behold a man and a woman scrambling to cover their nakedness. The woman was her precious Aunty Rebecca, her…
It was afternoon when they came in a large cloud of dust swirling to the rumbling of unfeeling engines. In frenzied disarray, the market was left bereft of business and in haste women herded their children to safety like grazing animals. The men with their machetes and hunting guns confronted the settling cloud of dust and wailing went up like a tidal wave. As we hurdled deep in the bushes, Mother clutched me to her bosom. I could hear her…
With episode 20, I will be wrapping Season 1 of#MechanicsOfYenagoa on 2 September, 2018. You won’t believe the final twist – does it end with a bang or a whimper? Meanwhile, one lucky fan would win N20k. That person could be you! For Season 2, I’d like to introduce an entirely new character suggested by a fan. To win the prize money of N20,000, get in the comment section of Episode 1 and leave your name, email address, the name of…