Joshua Lubwama – Good writing is hard

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Joshua Lubwama won the African Region prize in the 2025 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, the first Ugandan writer to do so since Jennifer Makumbi in 2014. He talked to Kalungi Kabuye about what it means to be a writer in Uganda, and its challenges. Excerpts:

Q: Who is Joshua Lubwama?

A: I'm 25 years old, a software engineer by profession, and also a writer. I'm from Kampala, Uganda. I grew up in Mokono District, in a village called Butebe, along the Kampala-Jinja Highway. I went to Seta Parents Primary School for my primary education, and then St. Mary's College, Kisubi, for my O-Level. Then I joined Makerere Elementary School for my A-Level. And then I went on to university. I did a bachelor's in software engineering at Makerere University.

How did you become a writer? 

I've been reading for most of my life, and I think that's how most writers begin. At St. Mary's College, Kisubi, literature was compulsory in O-level. At the time, I wasn't very enthusiastic about it, but you still learn a few things from the exposure to writers like Wole Soyinka, John Ruganda and Goretti Kyomuhendo; and books like ‘Animal Farm’ and ‘Oliver Twist’ by Charles Dickens. 

The first thing I recall writing down was a poem. I think I was 16 then. There's this girl that I fancied, and I thought, why not? So, I wrote her a poem. She didn't even like it, but that's the first time I attempted to write something.

I wrote my first piece of fiction in 2022, during the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted everything. I was in my second year at the university; we had a lot of time to ourselves, so we did a lot of experimentation. I learned to play the guitar, and we formed a band with my friends Moses and Jesse. We also founded a literary magazine, Inverbally.

In the band, I was writing most of the lyrics, so I applied that skill to the magazine. I was the editor-in-chief. That's really the time that I could say I became a writer, because in that space of 13 months, I wrote about 20 short stories. Of course, there were sub-quality, but you have to start somewhere.

Have you ever had training as a writer? 

I took a few professional online courses on the art of writing and editing. I also joined two workshops, including the African Writers' Trust workshop last year in October, where we were taught the art of editing and also given insights into the publishing industry.

Why do you write? What drives you to write? 

That's actually a very difficult question. I write because, this is going to sound confusing, but I write because I don't have anything better to do. 

What does that mean? 

Many writers complain about never finding the time to write, citing things like their daytime jobs and their families and other obligations. But I don't have that. If I don't write, then I don't have much else I'd rather be doing. 

I also write because I've been exposed to many of the classics in literature, and I'm a fan of many of them. At some point, before I began writing, I was reading for the pleasure of it. And now one of the motivations to write is that I want people to derive the same pleasure that I did.

Do you enjoy writing, or it is something of a task?

It can feel like a task, but it can also feel enjoyable. But the feelings of enjoyment are usually after a story has been successful, because the writing itself can be very hectic. Even after you’ve written a successful story, it doesn’t make it easier. Different stories demand different aspects from your skill set, and some of them will even attempt to kill you, literally.

So, it's not necessarily a task because I'm passionate about it, but it's very demanding. Good writing is difficult.

Some people say they write for relief from problems or depression. Is it like an outlet of some emotions? 

No, not with me. I'm actually yet to experience writing as a form of catharsis or therapy of any sort. Maybe to relieve me of the anxiety, because any time I'm not writing, I'm anxious. So, if I can fulfil the obligation, then I'm not anxious anymore. It calms my nerves.

Do you find writing easy? Do you sit down and it all just pours out, or do you have to actively create it? 

Yes and no. I write most of the story in my head, so when I sit down to write I have 80% of it figured out. So that could mean, yes, it pours out; but the actual preliminary work has been going on in my head. I usually work with three drafts, because I don't have an editor. 

Do you have themes as a writer? 

I don't write under themes, because that's very prescriptive. But then, when you start writing about your experiences and the experiences of those surrounding you, you start to see themes that keep repeating themselves. But I don't really say, oh, today I'm going to write about maybe love or conflict. 

So, what do you like to write about?

Now that's another hard question. I can't answer what I like to write about because I'm constrained by the limitations of my experiences. My world is actually quite small, so I rarely draw inspiration from things outside of my personal experiences and those of my friends. And those aren't even quite that many. 

What are your influences?

I can think of a few. There is Harper Lee’s book ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’, it's very, very powerful. It's my favourite book. And I just wish I'd write like that. Another book would be Arundhati Roy's ‘The God of Small Things’, it's a very bold book.

When you write, what do you hope readers will take away from the stories?

I've been very careful not to get behind any particular agendas with my work; I just like to tell stories. My underlying principle is truth and accuracy, and then I hope that the reader can learn more about what people are like.

How long did it take you to write the story you submitted to the Commonwealth Short Story competition?

I wrote from the 1st of October till the 15th, got done with the first draft, then let it rest for four days so I can come back with fresh eyes. I wrote for 15 days, then edited it in four days and submitted eight hours to that deadline. So that's 19 days in total. 

How do you balance conveying issues and being entertaining?

I try to ensure that no matter how heavy a topic I'm taking on, I infuse some bit of humour and entertainment into the narrative. I’m also inspired by my country, Uganda. There’re lots of things going on, but people always manage to find something to laugh about. It's been said that we are some of the happiest people. You'll see a tragedy happen, and then the next minute, people are laughing about something. And that makes its way into my stories, so usually my characters have a good laugh about serious things.

What challenges do you face when writing?

Finding time to write has never been a challenge to me, because I first write in my head; I can shut out my surroundings and just write. Maybe a challenge is that I haven't had the opportunity to work with an editor, so I imagine just how much better it would have been if I had a professional editor?

Then, of course, there is self-doubt, and that bothers me a lot. I don't think there is a cure for that; you could win the Nobel Prize and still doubt yourself. But you incorporate it into the process, acknowledge that many people have come before you, grappled with it, and they've come out successful.

After your success in the Commonwealth Short Story prize, are you more confident now as a writer? 

Yeah, I'm much more confident as a writer. But once you sit down to write, the same old demons come back to haunt you. It's like they never go away. Every story demands something different; some come easier than others. But on the whole, yes, I'm much more confident.

You’re the first Ugandan writer to be shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story prize since 2018. What does that say about Ugandan writers? Many South Africans, Nigerians, and others get shortlisted, but very few Ugandans.

That begs the question: Should the worth of a writer be determined by the propensity to win awards? Am I a good writer if I win awards, and if I don't, then I'm not a good writer?  Obviously, winning a literary award says something about your writing ability, your writing prowess and the story itself. But we have many good writers in the country currently.

But nurturing the art of writing and getting into literary spaces hasn't been very prominent in this country. It's been neglected. We don't have as many people making it on the shortlist of well-known literary awards. We don't have very many books being published, both within the country and overseas. But the talent is there, I'm very confident of that. The talent is there, and the things to write about are there; this country is ripe with story ideas.

How will this recognition impact your writing career? Will you become a full-time writer? 

People know my name now, that alone is an achievement, and a couple of literary agents have already reached out. But you can only be good at one or two things, I believe, in life. So no, I don't think I'll give up my daytime job.

But the recognition has given me confidence so I'll be putting out better works, and if I write a novel, then I have a ready audience for it, and hopefully sell a million copies.

So, what advice would you give to aspiring writers? 

Sometimes you just can't help thinking how unqualified you are to offer advice, but one thing that has been very important for me, more than anything, is to take time to work on my craft. That could be the difference between good writing and less-than-good writing.

So, I'd advise aspiring writers to take the time to take writing classes. And you don't need to go do an MFA at the University of California anymore; there's a plethora of resources online. The prices are as low as $10, which is about sh38,000. That's affordable for the kind of knowledge you'd be getting. And you'll be learning from the others that have come before you, which is very important in any discipline in life.