Sentilong Ozukum officially released his fifth book and fourth novel at Urban Hub Cafe, Mokokchung Town on 1 December.

Shashank Pratap Singh, IAS, Deputy Commissioner, Mokokchung after launching the book said Ozukum’s Teacher Man is an honest and sincere effort from the author to inspire people through fiction and to bring changes in a speedy manner. He added that Teacher Man is not fiction but a harsh reality stating that the system we live in is built by us and all are responsible for the sorry state of affairs.

Bendangrenla S Longkumer, Assistant Professor, Department of English, Fazl Ali College, in her review of the book praised Sentilong Ozukum as a legendary author of contemporary Naga writer in English.

She also mentioned that Ozukum is known for his use of accessible and relatable language in his writings. Longkumer said Teacher Man is one’s quintessential coming of age story sprinkled with a heavy dose of realism where Shisa the protagonist takes on a journey to discover his purpose and meaning in life.

Furthermore, she said the protagonist’s journey in the novel speaks of contemporary Naga society and contemporary youth trapped in a system that seem to work only against their aspirations and dreams.

Bendangrenla remarked that the novel is a much-needed clarion call. Teacher Man offers a very close look at contemporary Naga society specially at the mandate and the everyday life.

“A reader who had absolutely no idea of the context of Naga Society upon reading the novel conjured an idea of Naga way of life containing its material culture,” she said.

At the event, the author also had a conversation with Dritishree Bordalai.

Limasenla Jamir was the host of the occasion while the dedicatory prayer was pronounced by Rev Dr Tekatemjen Ao.

Sentilong Ozukum in conversation with Dritishree Bordalai.

Sentilong Ozukum talks about his new book and what went into it in an exclusive interview with Nagaland Tribune.

NT: Can you give a brief description of what the novel is about?

SO: It is about a man, a fugitive in a world where he was sent to serve, finding meaning and purpose in the last place on earth he could think of.

NT: What led you to write this book?

SO: During the summer of 2020 when the entire country was under lockdown, my good friend and director of Dreamz Unlimited contacted me over the phone and told me about this amazing web series he has watched on Amazon Prime called Panchayat set in a village called Phulera and told me if I could write a story in the lines of Panchayat because he envisioned to make a movie in the future based on the same. This novel is an outcome of the conversation.

NT: How long did it take you to write? Were there challenges involved in writing it?

SO: Although it took me only three months to write the novel, the painful process of editing, designing and publishing the novel took over two years.

NT: Have you always been keen on writing? How do you go about choosing topics for your books?

SO: I have been fascinated with written stories and the art of oral storytelling as a kid. Writing came later. I choose a central character and slowly build the story around him.

NT: Do you have plans for writing more books in the future? Would you be able to share your ideas?

SO: Right now, I’m working on a novel based in Mokokchung Town. There are plans for graphic novels in the future.

NT: Which was your first novel? How did publishing your first book change your process of writing?

SO: Campus Blues was my debut novel, one that I wrote when I was still in college and published in 2010. It is a satirical novel on the education system of the country where the protagonist, Moluti Jamir, takes the readers on a journey of love, friendship and self-discovery.

Two years after Campus Blues was published, I wanted to burn the book because I realised it was a horrible piece of work and it was immature of me to publish such a novel without much literary merit.  I vowed that I would never ‘put literature in a bad light’ by publishing another immature work. For the next few years, I read a lot, and wrote some more immature novels but didn’t publish them.

Then I started writing short stories. A friend of mine convinced me to publish some of those stories which in late 2017 became Sincerely Yours.

Encouraged by the positive responses I received on Sincerely Yours, I started working on the sequel to Campus Blues and that is how Dreams & Chaos took on a life of its own in 2020. Then I published The Case of Longti Village in 2021 and now Teacher Man in 2022.

NT: Mention some of your favourite authors from which you draw your inspiration. If any.

SO: I enjoy reading the works of Haruki Murakami, Khaled Hosseini, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Mitch Albom and J D Salinger

NT: What was one of the most surprising things you learned while working on your books?

SO: Whenever I’m writing a novel, I start behaving like the main protagonist. The line between fiction and reality blurs. Unconsciously, I create or look for situations similar to the ones in the novel. So, people have often accused me of having multiple personalities or suffering from bipolar depression.

NT: What important advice would you give a first-time author?

SO: Read your completed manuscript and shelf it for six months. Read again after six months and if you’re still happy with your work, then shelf it again for another six months and read more books and hone your craft.

Literature is art.

NT: Fame or art?

SO: Genuine artists worship art. They never look at art as a medium to make themselves famous. Follow the same.

NT: What comes first for you – the plot or the characters and why?

SO: You won’t believe me when I say this but when I start writing a novel, I have no idea how the novel will end or how the characters will develop. The plot and the characters develop only when I write the words. It is not like I sit and imagine what the characters will say or how the plot will unfold. I have to sit and see words flowing from my fingers into a book or a laptop.

NT: Any final word of encouragement that you’d like to share with readers, particularly those interested in writing?

SO: Readers,

Stephen King once said, “Writing is a lonely job. Having someone who believes in you makes a lot of difference. They don’t have to make speeches. Just believing is usually enough.”

Thank you for your belief in us. Please continue to support art and literature, writers in particular.

Aspiring writers,

Read, read and read more. Write every day. It is okay if it is gibberish. Make reading and writing your daily ritual; like brushing your teeth. Respect art and literature. Don’t be in a rush to publish your works. Let them age like fine wine. Stay grounded. Never stop growing.