Reading coach, writer, illustrator
“STAY IN YOUR OWN LANE. PAVE YOUR OWN PATH AND STAY FOCUSED ON IT”
photo: Adel Setta (Mellunman)
Hi Will, how are you doing?
I'm doing alright! I just came back from a pretty long vacation to recharge. Now I'm back at work, preparing for the upcoming season of Read & Relax and focusing on my second book.
You call yourself a reading advocate. How do you explain what that actually means to someone hearing it for the first time?
That's a good question, and pretty easy to answer. I raise awareness about the importance of literature, literacy, and language as a whole by using my platform. The problem today is that the literacy rate is declining, so I try to find ways to make reading more accessible. I also think it's important, as a Black man, to call myself a reading advocate since there aren't many in my community.
That’s very inspiring! What was the book that really got you into reading?
Sjors & Sjimmie (Robert van der Kroft) when I was a kid, and Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoevsky) when I was a teenager.
How do you convince someone who says they're "not a reader" to pick up a book anyway?
Your reading interests should mirror your personal interests. So start with books that align with the things you like, care about, relate to, or want to learn about. Don't see books as a single medium. You have books in different forms. Read comics, manga, poetry, e-books, audiobooks…
Once you've found your rhythm and the pile of finished books keeps growing, then start delving into books that are outside your comfort zone. Read fiction, mix contemporary books with classics, and read books by authors from different cultures. This is the stage where reading becomes adventurous and a real treat for the brain.
What makes Read & Relax different from a classic book club?
It's accessible. We don't force you to read; we make reading fun because we're doing it together. As a member of the community, you have the freedom to decide what you want to read, while we, as organisers, provide the time and space to read with others. Most importantly, friendships grow out of our activities. We try to facilitate those opportunities by having group chats and organising different activities that encourage people to connect with each other.
You wrote and illustrated Limbaverse yourself. Which was harder: the writing or the drawing?
The writing… easily!
It was a new endeavour where I had to tackle the most important question: How do I write a story from beginning to end that not only makes sense for a young audience, but is also engaging and interesting to follow?
That's a question that takes time to answer because it's a process. You experiment with language, confront blank pages that need to be filled with ideas, and then those ideas have to be turned into sequences that eventually become a story.
With drawing, it felt less daunting because you can get away with a lot by having a certain style. You can draw a face with incredible detail or with just a few lines that give the impression of a face. But writing for a specific audience is just different.
photo: Adel Setta (Mellunman)
Physical book, e-reader, or audiobook, and why?
Normally, physical books, always. There's something tangible about them that no other medium can compete with. Turning the pages, writing notes in the margins, closing the book… It even affects my posture in a way that helps me read with more focus and concentration. Physical books slow me down and show the journey you're making when you place the bookmark between the pages. So… yeah, physical books.
If you could be a character from a book, who would you be and why?
I'm currently reading Mythos by Stephen Fry. It's a book about Greek mythology, and the character, or Greek god, I'd choose is Hermes. He's quick-witted, cunning, and FAST! He also indirectly inspired The Flash from the DC Universe, since the character is visually and conceptually inspired by Hermes.
What can we expect from you this year?
From Read & Relax… a lot. From Limba, on the other hand… something different. I'm still working on exactly what that is, though. All I can say is: keep an eye out.
okay we’re excited! Tell us something to inspire the culture!
Stay in your own lane. I don't mean that in a bad way…it's for your own good. Pave your own path and stay focused on it. There are going to be a lot of challenges in different forms that will try to divert you from your path, and there will even be people who try to convince you that your path will lead to failure, only to pull you down to their level. You can even be a big obstacle for yourself if you don't believe in yourself, don't take care of yourself or don't listen to your inner voice.
I know that my path is to be an advocate not only for literature but for education as a whole, so I'm going to stay in that lane. And if I fall down, I'll get back up (with the grace of God, I'm a christian). I'll keep doing that until I reach my destination. You should too.