I WAS A WRITER BY ACCIDENT: CRAIG BORLASE

pandemic, he reveals, “It is so tough, people are scared, nobody wants to go out, though things are relaxing now.” His foundation is also doing its bit, “Through Gofundme on immigrants #Covid-19 - rent relief and donations (are being given) to immigrants like us at our church,” Tani adds.

“God, hard work plus talent makes you great. Talent without hard work is empty,” chirps the nine-year-old with a sensibility of an adult.

Confident, Tani keeps learning, “I use a lot of chess websites - Chess24, lichess, chess.com, chessbase. com, life chess coaching and more of chessbase. No,

I’m not scared and am now focused most on the positional aspect of the game,” says Tani.

He bought a house for his family, after his big win. During Covid times, he adds, “We have been doing great and keeping safe. Life has changed as I am getting more time to practice chess online than when there was school. I can’t play physical tournaments, only online tournaments.”

Leaving Boko Haram

The book speaks about how his father was terrorised by Boko Haram who wanted him to print hate propaganda, and his father refused. They even shifted cities, and

Q and A with New York Times bestselling author Craigborlase who collaborated with a twotime GRAMMY winning songwriter, an Iranian refugee who spent four months in a Turkish jail, a former Muslim woman who was a week away from becoming a suicide bomber, and more.

How did an English teacher become an author?

I was a writer by accident. Fresh out of university, editing a magazine for a Christian charity, the founder was asked to write a book and asked me to help. I took two weeks off work and wrote it. After that, a bunch of people asked me, and I became a ghost writer. But I’d always wanted to be a teacher, so I stopped writing. Trouble was, as soon as I set foot in a classroom, I knew I wanted to be back to my writing desk. I love meeting courageous, wonderful people, and (now) I get to spend months daydreaming about their story as I put it into words.

Your books, apart from memoirs have deep insights into the Christian faith and explorations, how did that happen?

I’m not a preacher or a scholar though I am a person of faith. If the books have any power, it’s thanks to the people whose story they tell.

When did you decide to write the memoir, and what was most difficult?

I was introduced to the family soon after the story went viral, and knew within a few minutes of talking to them that I wanted to write the book. The most difficult part was

then decided to leave Nigeria. “I know they are a set of bad people. When I heard about it, I was not happy. My friends, Austin, my brother and I do not talk about it.”

The adaptation speaks about his father’s struggle through the eyes of a child. probably the challenge of figuring out how to tell the story of an eight-year-old boy to adults.

How did the interviews and learning take place?

I spent time with the family in New York. We went to church, ate Nigerian food and played a little chess. I also bribed Tani and his brother Austin with candy to get them to talk!

Your home in the English countryside, and your family?

I live in a place where the fields roll off into the distance like the ocean. It’s amazingly beautiful and incredibly quiet. I love it. My kids are big readers. My eldest loves authors like Sarah J Maas, while the others, detective fiction.

Your work has taken you to Iraq, Jordan, China, Cuba, Uganda, Australia, Haiti, Kenya, and the US. Your last journey? Apart from a trip to Nashville and to Scotland, the trips to see Tani’s family in NYC last summer were my last. I did drive to Italy with my family last summer and nearly got arrested for driving right into the heart of Florence. But that’s another story. About Tani, the one thing that struck you the most?

He’s a wonderful blend of being incredibly wise and brilliantly funny. He’s a great kid. A lesson we can learn from Tani?

I love Tani’s advice, “You never really lose. As long as you’re learning from your mistakes, you’re getting better. So when you lose, you win!”

Tani now wants to “use a part of his foundation money to grow the country (Nigeria).”

In as much as Tani’s days are all about chess, it is that “deep thinking” of chess that he has imbibed. A terrified boy taken aback by the tall

buildings in New York has changed. With a smiley face, he writes in this email interview, “Tani now meets chess elites. I’m in America, what changed me was chess. I see chess as a life changer. Chess will change your thinking, how you deal with yourself