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Meet Faith Kisa

Creative director at Kiki's Monster Collection

Growing up alot of us were subjected to alot of comic books such as Super Strikers, Kikosi that really engaged us and left us imagining what the world out there looked like. A lot of us read them for simply entertainment and couldnt wait for another issue to come out but there were silent lessons we learnt in the process.These books surely gave us childhood memories worth cherishing for a lifetime. 

As the years have gone by, such comic books got off the scenes leaving a void that Faith Kisa, Content Developer at Kiki's Monster Collection is trying to exploit. Faith has authored an amazing collection of books titled "Kiki's Monster Collection" that is avaible on Amazon that simply paints a picture of a rebellious childhood that all of us went through. In the bid to understand her line of work, we caught up with her and this is what we asked

Who is Faith Kisa the author?

I am a digital artist and concept developer who is passionate about children's development, growth and livelihood. I get to address this through creative writing, character design and animation. My style of writing is fun, quirky and metaphoric. But in the end i aim to tell a story that inspires people. I also want an experience in which people can see themselves or get to walk in someone else's shoes. For example a story from a victim's perspective helps a bully understand how their actions affect the victim's life and this creates empathy and understanding.

Of all the careers in the world,Why did you choose a career in writing ?

Well, the truth is I love to create and to inspire people. Whenever I am in any space that enables me to create, I just feel so empowered. Naturally I was drawn to pick a path that combines multiple streams of creativity and that is how my brand was born. I not only write but I get to create worlds, get to build a personality and aim to inspire my audience with my creations. For example in "The Soup Monster" Miya embodies a child without attention from her busy mom and her mother Mama learns that her busy life affects Miya's character and behavior.

So what was the inspiration behind your book "The Soup Monster"?

The Soup Monster is inspired by my early childhood experience and the rest of my friends who also had both working parents. Growing up it was rare to see our parents because they both worked really hard to provide us with a very good life and education. However being young as we were, I always craved more attention and this made me act out quite a lot. I was very grumpy and also a brat which we see a lot in Miya the main character of the story. But in the end acting out made our parents realize that all we needed was a little family time and they always made it a point to provide one.
 

Faith Kisa being interviewed on Urban Tv
 

When did you start writing?

I started writing at the age of 9 with inspiration from my late aunt Licken Tuape. She always encouraged us to write creatively and develop our world building. And in years there after I naturally wrote a whole load of books mostly based on my life experience and the world around me as I perceived it.


Describe your typical day in line with your work?

Typically I start my day with reminiscing about my most highlighted memories from childhood all the way to date because I am a very pensive person. This gives me material to then understand and structure my content. I write a short synopsis of the story, get to sketching the feel of the character and try to relive my experience and how I felt embody it in a visual way that people can easily understand but at a deeper level.


What particular skills does one need to become an author and why are they important?

One needs to be very extravagant in expressing themselves because that is what makes your story unique and personalized. One has to also read quite a lot, watch movies and follow author profiles to discover the writing style that suits them the most. Lastly one has to have a passion to create because that is the only way you can sit behind your computer patiently developing a story that has to be changed, tweaked and torn apart in order to come up with the best version of your story.

What's cool about being an author?

The coolest thing about being a writer is you get to create. You build worlds through words, you create characters and give them life and you get to express yourself like nothing else. It is a space where you can be exactly who you what to be without any limitations and that is really liberating.


Any challenges ?

The biggest challenge so far is that our reading culture is really still poor. But together with my team, we are working to device more engaging ways to engage the children to be interested in literature in ways they begin to care. We provide life experiences they can relate with, we create characters that they can see themselves in. And life after the book continues because we provide customized branded merchandise that is suitable for children like branded cooking aprons that encourages them to cook, giant painting boards that help them paint and learn more about the stories the read.

What subjects did you take in school and how have they influenced your career path?

In school I took Art, Literature, I.C.T and Business Studies in the Cambridge Curriculum. The Art inspired me to take my Animation and Multimedia course in University, Literature and I.C.T inspired my passion to do E.books and promote E-literature for black children in our communities and Business Studies reinforced my passion for entrepreneurship.


What is your Education to date?

I have a Bachelor in Animation and Creative Multimedia from Limkokwing University Of Creative Multimedia


What aspects of your Education journey have proven most important for your job?

The University Education and also Advanced High School Education where I attained a High School Diploma


What trends are you seeing in your career field ?

I am seeing people these days are more interested in electronic content. People are developing e-learning sites where kids can access curriculum online. Technology is penetrating into literature too and its one of the subjects that enable one to expand their creativity through writing i.e through digital newspaper, ebooks on Amazon , blogs and news feed. More and more people are accessing reading content online because t is more affordable and also the copy is unlimited and the web reaches way more people than print did.


What are the most important personal characteristics required for the job?

Creativity, Passion, Writing Skills and Most importantly being authentic


Which key people influenced your career direction ?

Roald Dahl of the acclaimed book turned movie "Matilda", J.K Rowling of "Harry Potter" Wizard Book Collection and Tim Burton of "Bat Man"


What is your dream job?

My dream Job is being a Concept Developer who designs solutions that solve everyday problems and improve our communities.


What have been the most rewarding events in your career so far?

Being featured on print, video and audio interviews to explain my cause to my audience.


As a student, how did you cope up with the pressure to succeed / excel in class?

I always made friends with the top students, committed a portion of my time to research and always challenged myself to do the things I was afraid to try For example if Character design was intimidating and color was difficult I would challenge myself to create the most compelling character with a very colorful aesthetic.


What advise would you give someone considering to become an author?

Do research, discover authors who inspire you, read a lot of books and don't be afraid to let your personality and your personal experience drive your stories.


What outside class activities did you engage in that have proved beneficial on your career path

I headed a small entrepreneurship program that I pioneered in my class and we held one school exhibition this helped inspire me to be a leader and also appreciate what it takes for one to develop their own intellectual property.


Any Concluding remarks

Always work hard, be resilient and never be afraid of doing what you believe in.

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