Maame Aba Daisie, Blessing’s editor at flipped eye

‘Fiction, especially of the science and fantasy variety, has always called to me. The opportunity to discover whole new worlds and magic systems originating from a writer’s mind and visualised through one’s interpretation of their descriptions, there’s nothing quite like it.

‘Last summer, when I was asked to give my thoughts on a speculative fiction piece written by a Zimbabwean author, I had no idea the amazing experience I was about to dive into. There was everything to love about Only

This Once Are You Immaculate. Under Blessing’s skilful command, each line held me practically spellbound. What drew me to it mainly was Blessing’s unique poetic prose, strong distinct settings (each territory, town, village and natural landscape fully realised), and the characters which resonated with me.

‘The editor in me took a seat while the reader took over, disappearing within the pages. So I performed a second read, forcing on my editor glasses, then a third. My response was succinct – “I love it! We can’t say no to this book.”

Blessing herself was a delight to work with. Ghana and Zimbabwe share a bond and so our interactions felt like a deep kinship. Sometimes it felt like we were reading each other’s minds. When the idea of a map was posited, Blessing already had a draft in her archives. When it came time to create a book jacket, while trusting us as her publisher to come up with a wonderful illustration, she was step by step with us in exploring real-world elements for her brainchild. Any editor would be blessed to work with her, and we cannot be any more glad to have her.’