The Architect of Tension - Michael Awogbemi

Michael Awogbemi is a Nigerian writer whose favorite genre is mythology. He is the author of “Oluse: The Genesis,” the foundational installment of a broader fictional universe known as the “Oluseverse.” This universe is a richly woven narrative inspired by Yoruba mythology and Jewish folklore, blending cultural depth with imaginative storytelling to create something both original and globally resonant 

Hello Michael, can you tell me about your journey into art? 

My journey into art started when I was about 9 years old. I would listen to music and let

My imagination flies. Moments when I’m in the car, staring out the window, listening to

songs, and pretending my life’s a music video.

How has your background, culture, or upbringing shaped the way you create?

 My childhood was pretty fascinating. I was raised in Lagos, Nigeria, and New York, USA.

Both are a potpourri of culture and different races and ethnicities of humans, so that

really helped, from music to art (graffiti on walls) to the way of life of people. I’m also

part Sierra Leonean, so I have storytelling and culture in my D.N.A. Art is just an outlet of

It.

Do you see yourself as an “African artist" or simply an artist who happens to be African?

I’m an artist who happens to be African. Art is a global force, a spiritual language. I just

happen to descend from Africans.

Tell us about a story you wish someone had written differently. Why?

 Children of blood and bone. Now, this is not me hating on Tomi Adeyemi, but I feel certain research will have helped her connection to the motherland. E.G. Snow falling in Ilorin? Or the name of the main character of the franchise starting with a ‘z’. There is no ‘z’ in the Yoruba alphabet.

What makes a piece of writing unforgettable to you?

A writeup becomes unforgettable to me when I can relate to a character and I can get lost in the world the writer is building.

Write a 150-word scene about a crowded bus stop without using the word “crowded.”

The bus stop pulsed with movement beneath the fading evening sky. Hawkers weaved through clusters of impatient commuters, balancing trays of roasted corn, bottled drinks, and plantain chips on their heads. Engines rumbled endlessly as danfo drivers shouted destinations in hoarse voices, each trying to lure passengers before the next bus arrived. A woman adjusted the sleeping child tied to her back while arguing over transport fare. Nearby, two students laughed loudly, their uniforms wrinkled from the day’s heat. The sharp scent of petrol mixed with sweat, dust, and fried food drifting from a roadside stall. Horns blared without pause. Shoes scraped against the cracked pavement as people squeezed forward whenever a vehicle slowed near the curb. Above the noise, a sudden burst of rain threatened from darkening clouds, yet no one moved away. Everyone remained fixed in the restless tide, waiting for a way home.

How do you balance beauty in writing with clarity?

Clarity comes first because it’s the structure that holds everything up. If a sentence forces the reader to pause and decode it, the rhythm is already broken. Beauty should sit on top of that structure, not replace it. So, you want vivid words, but they should still point directly to something concrete. “The sky cried profusely over the rooftops” works because it’s clear what’s happening, even if it’s stylized. But if imagery becomes layered to the point that the reader has to interpret it twice, clarity is slipping.

What kinds of stories are you naturally drawn to?

I’m naturally drawn to fantasy and afro-mythology works. Anything on “Gods, Curses, chosen one, Taboo?” I’m sat!

Describe your writing style in three words.

I’d describe my writing style as : Cinematic, Visceral and evocative.

What Nigerian writer or journalist influences your work most and why?

No one has influenced my writing style.

How would you turn a boring event into an engaging story?

An engaging story comes from perspective specificity and tension. From the reader’s perspective, when there is a hidden message, something boring will be interesting. In the universe I’m creating : the Oluseverse, even rituals or conversations become engaging when they carry hidden motives, prophecy, betrayal, or emotional cost beneath the surface.

Write an opening paragraph for a story about a city losing its memory.

The first thing the city forgot was its river. People still crossed the bridge every morning, still leaned against its rusted rails during traffic, but beneath them flowed only an empty stretch of cracked earth no one questioned anymore. Soon, buildings began losing histories. Cathedrals stood without architects. Graves carried dates with no names. Men returned home to apartments filled with photographs of strangers smiling beside them. At night, sirens echoed through sleepless districts while citizens wandered the streets clutching notebooks filled with reminders: Your mother lives on the third floor. Your wife likes jasmine tea. Your name is Daniel. But each dawn stole more than the last. Even the city’s clocks began stopping at random hours, as though time itself could no longer remember how to move forward. And somewhere deep beneath the underground tunnels, behind locked doors the government denied existed, a machine continued humming in the dark.