Greener on the Other Side
Lionel Ntasano
Author: Lionel Ntasano
Release Date: April 4, 2014
Lionel Ntasano was born in Burundi and raised in Zambia He attended university in the U.S.A, Kenya and Switzerland, almost quitting college to be a member of a music band. Most days, he wishes he’d actually had the guts to go through with it. He now understands that the pain of regret hurts much more than the pain of failure. Thus he went into culinary school to feed his soul, ultimately opening a small beach resort. Nevertheless, he still did not believe he’d reached the place he wanted be, regardless of the small career success. Emptiness was still rampant. As a voracious reader since childhood, he decided to have a go at writing.
What was the impetus for writing this book?
My family left Burundi (our home country) in 1986. I was only two years old. My father found a very promising job at the COMESA in Lusaka, Zambia, where we spent 16 years. I never really spent time in my home country. We went there for holidays, visiting relatives and friends. We also travelled to many other countries for vacation (Zimbabwe, Zaire now known as DRC, Kenya, South Africa, France, Belgium, Holland and the U.S.A). Growing up, my younger brother and I were sheltered by our parents. So we spent a lot of time playing just the two of us. Thus, we ended up being some really creative youngsters, creating characters, scenarios and many imaginary friends. It might sound weird, or funny, but it helped us in our creative endeavors later on in our lives. As I was inspired and constantly surrounded by musicians and songwriters in my late teens and early twenties, it only added to my already crazy way of seeing the world.
I attended French International Schools, and a British system boarding school, sharing classes with kids from all over the globe. I then decided to go to college in the USA majoring in electrical engineering. It was actually what my father wanted; I had no idea what I wanted to do. I met a few guys who were into music and followed them. It came to a point where I had to choose between being a musician, or getting an education. I got scared and decided to get an education. I got internships in Switzerland and the Ritz-Carlton in Florida. I met people from different backgrounds, ethnicities, cultures and social classes. There was no way I was going to let all this information and experiences go to waste.
When I decided to settle down in Burundi in 2011, I had to get accustomed to some of the inevitable living conditions, for instance, the numerous power cuts. I left my parents’ house to live in a tiny apartment on the other side of town. I had already experienced the party life, the travelling and the heartbreaks. I was involved in a major hotel project and always came back home late, tired and confused. In the summer, the power cuts became more common. That is how I decided to write, I needed to make sense of what was happening in my life.
What’s the overall theme?
The grass always looks greener elsewhere. All our lives, we dream of an elsewhere, another world richer than that in which we live. We want more, better, something else, in an eternal quest for the “Garden of Eden.” My novel examines the root of this elusive quest.
What surprised you about the development of the book?
What surprised me the most was how much discipline I wrote the book with – 2 hours in the morning before work, and 3 hours in the evening. It started out as an essay that I wanted to email to my closest friend. I never did send that email. It then developed into a prose, then a novel once I talked about it with my cousin, who told me that I would be a fool if I did not make a novel out of it.
Which character excites you most?
Nickolas, the future priest and protagonist, is then in his late teens, happy, well protected by his family and naïve. Suddenly, he loses his entire family to war (the massacre of Kibimba) while he was making his way to school. His life journey then takes him to New York, Paris, back to Burundi, then Nairobi, then back to New York through a series of human solidarity, where he leads brilliant studies in psychology and theology, parallel to his status as a writer. Through Nickolas’ eyes we meet different characters, each of whom seem to struggle with a particular vice. Nick is an impressively observant character, showing his virtue but also his pitfalls.
For what audience is your book written?
After watching the rise in popularity of websites such as “humans of New York” I believe that my book will appeal to a wide range of people from around the world and of different ages. The title and theme of the book comes from a very popular philosophical question that intrigues every person on this earth. The hero in the story is not a typical hero who is strong physically, handsome, confident and supper intelligent. He is actually a priest, Black and African. He is modest, confused and in search for a meaning to his life. In his search, he travels a lot.
What one thing do you most want the reader to learn?
It is natural for an individual to want to run away, or pretend to be somebody else. However, confronting your situation will always set you free and make you attractive in the process.
What one thing do you want the reader to remember forever?
Forgiveness heals everything.
What did you learn during the writing process?
Firstly, I learned that writing isn’t as easy as I had always imagined. Secondly, it is such a lonely activity.
Any advice for aspiring writers?
Always write down the most honest story. Write your truth, and the readers will connect.
What’s next on the horizon for you?
I am currently writing a new book. It is a collection of fourteen powerful short stories that are thematically linked. The main them is Manhood. The fourteen stories transcend all the qualities and attributes expected in a man. The book is titled – Still Waters Run Deep.
