AS PART OF THE EFFORTS to improve the reading and writing culture among young people, many people are coming on board with innovative ways to aid in the process. Among them is Joselyne Nzisabira, who has purposed to help writers showcase their works through ‘Write and Inspire Series’, a program that started in November 2020. For the 20-year-old, the aim of this program is to amplify the voice of writers, poets, essayists, as well as anyone else interested in using literature as a tool to impact lives. A poet herself, Nzisabira stressed that with the platform, different writers across the world are invited and given an opportunity to talk about their experiences and tell their stories. The platform targets all writers (novelists, story writers), researchers, essayists, poets, artists, motivational speakers and social media influencers, depending on their content and mostly uses Instagram and Facebook lives sessions, as well as zoom webinars depending on what works best for the invitee. “We usually host live sessions every fortnight, mostly in the weekends. The program is open to all writers in the world although I decided to start with Africa and expand later,” she said. These live sessions, she further explained are about the writing experiences of the invitee, and that the program is aimed at amplifying the voices of writers, and persuading upcoming writers. Additionally, the program is intended to impact the lives of the younger generation through storytelling but to also build the power of confidence and courage. Her team consists of 10 committed writers from different parts of Africa, majority of whom are Rwandans and Nigerians, who help in organising the live events. Nsazibira started writing short stories when she was in Primary five, began writing poems and is currently the process of writing novels. She has written poems such as “Niwe nabaye”, “Kuki njye”, “Enlightened by Mom”, “That child”, “She took her life for it”, among others. One of the many reasons that she decided to start the program is the lack of support she needed showcase she work. This is because most organsations and writers podcasts cant host writers or even support their work unless they are popular or pay a certain amount of money. Her program, however focuses on writers supporting writers and writers learning from each other. Nobody pays to get hosted, and yet they support each others work in different WhatsApp groups, and give feedback for their literary growth. Her dream is to grow the program into a YouTube podcast, which can financially benefit the members and the invitees. About Nsazibira Apart from writing, Nzisabira, a second year student pursuing a Medical health (MBBS/MGH) degree at the University of Global Health Equity (U.G.H.E), is currently interested in global health, orthopedics, global surgery, gender equity, and poetry therapy. In 2020, she co-founded the Intare Surgery Interest Group at U.G.H.E with the aim of creating and stimulating interest in global surgery among medical students and anticipates to use her medical, and writing skills to impact lives. “I personally have been more inspired to write from the small stories, quotes, and essays my primary and secondary colleagues wrote. I realised how inspirational people can be, irrespective of their level of fame. I was surprised to talk to them after graduation and realised that they gave up on writing. If only they knew how much they impacted my life. I decided to start this program to give a voice to those who have a story to tell but are still unknown, heal from those who already made a name, and inspire those who need the motivation to keep writing. I learned that writing is more of a skill you learn, than just a talent in case you have the motivation,” she stated.
