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FEMI KAYODE
The thriller author shares the books that shaped him as a writer
Born in Nigeria and now based in Namibia, Femi Kayode trained as a clinical psychologist and has had successful careers in TV and advertising. His debut thriller, Lightseekers, is published by Bloomsbury and he is currently doing a PhD at Bath Spa University.
My debut crime novel, Lightseeker, was my MA thesis in Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, so for quite a long time, it was more of an academic exercise rather than one meant for commercial release. The story itself was inspired by the necklace killing of four undergraduates in a university town in Nigeria and at first, I pitched the story as a non-fiction novel, having just done a critical analysis of the brilliant In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. The realities of living in Namibia, studying in the UK and writing a factual account of a crime in Nigeria proved too much for me, so I reconsidered approaching the story from a fictional point, especially since the idea of creating a crime series appealed to me.
‘My writing routine has been much the same for over three decades. My day job in advertising means I can only write at night. Over the years, I have gotten quite used to sleeping just before 9pm and waking up as early as 2am to write. I generally put in about three hours of writing before going to the gym. I walk about 7km to and from the gym, and during this time, I use a voice memo app to record my thoughts on the story I am working on. Before going to bed, I listen to the playback of my recording to prepare my mind for the next round of writing.