I'm Interviewed at Guerilla Basement

Last year I met Tahirah Avosuahi at the Farafina Trust Creative Writing Workshop in Lagos. I immediately liked her self- depreciating way and her intellect. She is an exceptional and unique writer and I think you should watch out for her in the future.

A few weeks ago she asked if I would be willing to be be interviewed for the website she writes for and I very happily agreed. Below is an excerpt from the interview. Please pop over to Guerilla Basement for the rest of it.

Thanks again Tahirah!

Tahirah: What are your thoughts on the structure of short stories, what is usually the most compounding aspect of crafting one?

Lauri: For me the biggest problem writing short stories is to keep the story small without it becoming irrelevant. I see a short story as like a peek at someone’s life. You see a woman sitting in the aisle in the supermarket crying , that’s a peek. You see a man walking down the road pushing a stroller that’s a peek. Now the problem for you as a short story writer is to make that peek relevant. Don’t burden the reader with all sorts of baggage to achieve your relevancy, that is no good in a short story. You need to take a peek and make it relevant, if you do that it is a good short story in my book.