When Moonbeam reading turns dirge for Evelyn Osagie

Rovingheights Bookstore, Lagos recently turned out an emotional one for some of Nigeria’s arts and culture journalists as they shared memorable moments they had with one of their own, Evelyn Osagie of The Nation newspaper, who succumbed to ill-health on August 17, 2025. Osagie passed away without setting eyes on Moonbeam: An Anthology of Short Stories by Nigeria’s Arts and Culture Journalists, a project that was a product of her ever fertile creative imagination. Six out of the 15 culture journalists and stakeholders gathered in Lagos for the reading and signing of Moonbeam, with contributors using the platform to reflect on their creative journeys, the challenges of publishing, and the evolving nature of storytelling in Nigeria.

The event was organised by Moonbeam publisher, Narrative Landscape Press. It also doubled as a memorial for late journalist, photographer, textile artist, performance poet and contributor Osagie, whose inclusion in the anthology fulfilled a long-held personal ambition.

Editor of the collection, Anote Ajeluorou, found the moment a time to truly mourn Osagie, when he was overwrought with emotions and shed tears for her late colleague. He said the idea behind Moonbeam was to create a unified body of creative work from arts journalists whose writings are often scattered across newspapers, magazines, blogs and social media platforms. He noted that despite decades of documenting Nigeria’s cultural landscape, many of these writers rarely have the opportunity to present their creative voices in a single, cohesive format.

When a Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) expert and culture promoter Olatoun Gabs-Williams asked how he came about the title, Ajeluorou said growing up he’d consumed a lot of folktales both from his own beloved mother Obafaaruho and other elders and playmates and thought to replicate same in modern formal media that a book presents. He then explained that Moonbeam replicates moonlight tale village setting, where various persons tell tales to willing audience, noting that his colleagues on the project, a gathering of culture journalism playmates regalling each other with their various tales and the readers providing the willing audience listening to 15 voices telling tales in moonlight-tale-fashion in a modern medium.

He also explained that assembling the anthology required persistence particularly in an environment where writing is not always financially rewarding and publishing opportunities are limited. Ajeluorou disclosed that an earlier attempt to publish the manuscript in 2017 stalled after he received a production cost of nearly one million naira from a prospective publisher, forcing him to shelve the project.

The breakthrough came in 2023 when he encountered a submission call from Narrative Landscape Press. Encouraged by fellow contributor Mr. Terh Agbedeh, he submitted the manuscript and received a positive response, although the publisher indicated a two-year production timeline. Ajeluorou said the eventual release of the book marked the culmination of years of effort and collaboration.

Speaking on his contribution, Okechukwu Uwaezuoke said his story was inspired by his early professional experience in advertising, where he worked as a copywriter between 1992 and 1994 before transitioning into journalism. He described the advertising industry as one marked by urgency, creative intensity and, at times, frustration.

According to him, teams often worked under intense pressure, sacrificing sleep and personal time to develop ideas, only for clients to reject them—sometimes without fully engaging with the material. He recalled instances where completed presentations were dismissed or cancelled abruptly, including occasions when teams were informed via dispatch riders not to proceed after days of preparation.

Uwaezuoke said these experiences informed his story, ‘All for Nothing,’ which explores the concept of effort and futility. By shifting perspective to the client’s side, he sought to examine the pressures faced by decision-makers as well, presenting a more nuanced view of the creative process. He added that while the story is rooted in past experiences, he introduced elements such as BlackBerry devices to bridge generational gaps, despite their absence in the period being depicted.