Oyindamola Shoola: discovering developed and developing Nigerian writers and broadcasting them

I am the co-founder and resource manager for Sprinng Literary Movement. Sprinng Literary Movement is a literary society for the promotion, revitalization, and improvement of the New Nigerian Generation in writing and literature. It is an online platform that aims to discover developed and developing Nigerian writers and to broadcast them for recognition. Despite being young, the impact of Sprinng Literary Movement is increasing and it is fast becoming a primal reference point for a recognizable online literary and writing movement in the most populous country in Africa; Nigeria. We aim to enhance the culture of reading among Nigerian youths by promoting great Nigerian books through book reviews and by advocating for books to be more affordable. Through the book reviews, we revive the lost culture of literary criticism which magnifies Literature’s glamor. We also aim to popularize Nigerian writers through interviews, profiling, and guest writing on our website. We create and promote literary contests that explore and expose brilliant Nigerian writers. Within the span of a year and half, we have accumulated a community of 175 writers, we have also run 2 nationwide writing contests and in January 2018, we will be starting a Mentorship program for selected writers. We plan to expand our team members and to create more programs, including ones that inform writers of their choices when publishing their works on small and large scale of audience.

How did you come up with your business idea?

My longtime friend, Kanyinsola Olorunnisola, came up with the idea and immediately I set my eyes on the idea that he sent via text message in May 2016, I pitched my plans of how his ideas can be executed. I told him that we could start with a website, connect with writers through social media and all that. I appreciate him for trusting me and for giving me a chance to work with him. In the first 6 months, only 2 of us ran Sprinng Literary Movement but as time went by, we added more people to our team. We are now a team of 8 people and we hope to expand further in the upcoming years.

Success means... beneficial results.

Three adjectives that deserve me are... committed, kind, and hardworking.

You can’t run a business without... commitment.

In the next 10 years I will be... a best-selling author. (I hope!)

How far are you willing to go to succeed?

I am willing to go as far as being vulnerable to failing, to succeed. One thing that I am proud of, about the Sprinng Literary Movement team members is that we try new ideas, and tactics. When our ideas work out, we celebrate ourselves, but when it does not work out, we try again differently. By trying out new ideas for this movement, we hope to succeed but we also make ourselves vulnerable to failing. This vulnerability keeps us humble and hopeful for better opportunities and results.

Who is the one super successful person you look up to? Why them? Can you share their quote/ideology that inspires you the most?

I look up to Mark Zuckerberg, the co-founder of Facebook. In a speech that he gave at Harvard University, he said;

"Ideas don't come out fully formed. They only become clear as you work on them. You just have to get started. If I had to know everything about connecting people before I got started, I never would have built Facebook."

I always keep this quote in mind when planning with the Sprinng Literary Movement team members. When we have an idea, we start regardless of how small it may be. We save any ideas that we don’t currently have the ability, time, or sufficient resources to execute, for a later time.

How do you generate new ideas to stay relevant on the market?

The Sprinng Literary Movement team members generate new ideas by constantly reflecting on the needs of Nigerian writers. While generating new ideas, we also consider the accessibility of our services to Nigerian writers through the use of social media and other means online. An example is the creation of the 2018 Sprinng Literary Movement Mentorship Programme that will begin in January. The team concluded that from the previous publications of poetry and short-stories on our website, many writers, dedicated to this movement, need guidance to develop their writing and creative skills. We also had conversations about how we could make this mentorship programme highly beneficial and convenient for both the Mentor and the Mentee. We agreed that this program will be an intensive 14 days online session that will involve exchange of emails between the Mentors and the Mentees. The mentees will receive feedback on their works, have the opportunity to read at least 2 Nigerian books and excerpts of brilliant works that inspire growth and creativity. The mentees will also be assisted in developing their biographies, and they will receive tips on how to build their online presence to support their writings.

The Sprinng Literary Movement is its own competition. We always aim to beat our previous records in contest submission, website views, social media outreach and so much more. Most importantly, we collaborate as much as we can, with other Nigerian online writing and literary platforms.

 What sacrifices have you had to make to be a successful entrepreneur?

I have sacrificed a lot of my time as an entrepreneur. Particularly as a young person, with this responsibility that I have chosen, I do not always have the time to relax and to do the things that many people of my age do. On the bright side, I have learned time management and how to maximize opportunities that have limited time or resources allocated to them.

 If you were a book, what would your title be and why?

I have written myself already. I just published my second book titled “To Bee a Honey” in August 2017. The title of the book is the translation of my first name “Oyindamola.” “Oyindamola” is short for “Oyin” and “Oyin” means 3 things; honey, bee, and honey comb.

I titled that book “To Bee a Honey” because it reflects a lot of things that I think about the beauty and pain in womanhood. I am becoming a woman and that is very important to me.