5 Nigerian medical doctors who are award-winning writers

Medical doctors are known to be busy people because their profession keeps them preoccupied with treating patients, performing surgeries, and attending to countless medical duties.

However, some Nigerian medical doctors have defied the odds and are deeply absorbed in the literary world as well. They are doing excellently in the literary field, just as those who studied Arts and Humanities. These doctors have published award-winning books, some have held notable literary positions, and many are championing the course of improving the literary field in Nigeria and beyond. 

In this article, Tribune Online takes a look at 5 medical doctors who are award-winning writers : 

1. Wale Okediran 

Wale Okediran is a medical doctor and former member of the Nigerian parliament at the Federal House of Representatives. He served as the national president of the Association of Nigerian Authors and secretary general, Pan African Writers Association. He’s the founder of The Ebedi International Writers Residency in Iseyin, Nigeria.

He is a Published author of several novels, many of which have won local and international Literary prizes such as American Poetry Association Book Prize (Call To Worship, 1990), Commonwealth Literature Prize Shortlist (The Boys At The Border, 1991), ANA Prize for Children’s Literature (The Rescue of Uncle Babs, 1998), NLNG Nigerian Literature Prize Shortlist (Dreams Die At Twilight, 2004) Spectrum Books Prize For One of the Best 25 Books in Nigeria in the last 25 years (Dreams Die At Twilight, 2004), ANA Best Fiction Prize (Strange Encounters, 2005), and Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature in Africa shortlist (The Weaving Looms, 2008). 

2. Dami Ajayi 

Dami Ajayi is a medical doctor, a Nigerian writer, and a psychiatrist. He is the author of the poetry chapbook Daybreak & Other Poems (2013). 

His first volume of poems, Clinical Blues (Write House, 2014), was a finalist for the ANA Poetry Prize. It was also longlisted for the Melita Hume Prize and the Wole Soyinka Prize for Literature. A Woman’s Body is a Country (Ouida Books, 2017), his second volume, was selected by Quartz Africa in 2017 as one of the best books of the year, and it was a finalist for the Glenna Luschei Prize. His poems have been translated into Yoruba, Portuguese, and Italian.

In an interview, Dr. Dami Ajayi claimed doctors are better writers, detailing how clinical work shapes his craft. He’s a dexterous and versatile poet who flexes his linguistic muscles effortlessly. 

3. Eghosa IMASUEN

Eghosa Imasuen is a medical doctor, a Nigerian writer and cofounder of Narrative Landscape Press Limited. His second novel, Five Boys, a coming-of-age novel, was received to wide acclaim in 2012 and was published in North America by the Ohio University Press’ Modern African Writers Series in 2021. 

Dr. Imaseun is also an advocate for literature and publishing and has worked with partners such as the UBA Foundation, to distribute books across Africa for reading children, and the CANEX initiative of Afreximbank to highlight the book value chain on the continent. Imasuen’s next book is The Challengers, a narrative nonfiction examining Nigeria’s post-2008 entrepreneurs. 

He was a member of the 9 writers, 4 cities book tour that was concluded in early June 2009 in Nigeria.

4. Toluwalogo Ajayi 

Toluwalogo Ajayi is a medical doctor, a Nigerian poet and fiction writer.

Some of Tolu Ajayi’s works are The Year (London: Macmillan, 1981), The Lesson (Lagos, Nigeria: Granny Fatima, 1985), The Ghost of a Millionaire (Heinemann Educational Books Nigeria, 1990); Eyes of the Night, short story collection including his 1990 BBC World Service winning story “Family Planning” (Lagos, Nigeria: Granny Fatima, 1991);  Images of Lives: Poems for Everyone, poetry collection (Lagos, Nigeria: Granny Fatima, 1991); Motions and Emotions: Fumes of Poetic Feelings, poetry collection (Lagos, Nigeria: Granny Fatima, 1993); After A Bad Moon: a Sh-to-vel, story collection(Lagos, Nigeria: Granny Fatima, 1995).

He co-founded The Lagos Review (a culture magazine) in 2019 and has been active as a critic, essay writer, and poet, beyomd strictly medical writing.

5. Tade Thompson

Tade Thompson is a British-born Nigerian psychiatrist and writer of Yoruba descent.

Some of his works are Far From The Light  Of  Heaven(2021) and Jackdaw (2022). He is the author of the Wormwood Trilogy, winner of the 2019 Arthur C. Clarke (Rosewater) and Nommo Awards, nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award (Rosewater Redemption).

He is also the author of the Molly South Bourne Books (Shirley Jackson Award finalist, winner of Nommo Award and Prix Julia-Verlanger, nominated for the British Science Fiction Association award, among others) and Making Wolf(winner of the Golden Tentacle Award). 

Several of his works have been optioned for screen adaptation, including the short story The Apologists.