When Esinam Bediako submitted the manuscript for her debut novel, Blood on the Brain, to be considered for Ann Petry Awardshe didn’t think she would be in the running for the top prize.

The award, founded in 2020 by the headquarters in Pasadena Red hen press and the Alliance of Peauxdunque Writersawards $3,000 to a work of fiction by a black author. Bediako, whose work was judged by author Deesha Philyawhe won. The prize also comes with another perk: the publication of the Red Hen book.

“I didn’t really think I was going to win,” says Bediako. “I was trying to go back there by telling myself, ‘If I set a deadline and submit my work to something, I’m going to get into the habit of doing it.’

SEE ALSO: For more on new books, bestsellers and authors, get the free Book Pages newsletter

“Blood on the Brain,” which Red Hen published in September, follows Akosua, a 24-year-old Ghanaian American graduate student in New York who has a rough year. Her relationship with her boyfriend, Wisdom, has ended, and her feelings for another man, Daniel, are unrequited. She also recently learned that her absentee father has moved from Ghana to the US, bringing up a past she prefers to forget.

Making matters worse: Akosua slips in the shower, hitting her head, causing a concussion, throwing her life into disarray. But it also makes her question her life choices, inspiring her to make drastic changes.

Bediako discussed her novel by phone from her home in Claremont. This conversation has been condensed and edited for length and clarity.

Q: How did you initially come up with the character of Akosua?

I started this book when I was an undergrad for my Masters, probably 17 years ago. I was in my early twenties, like Akosua at the time, and less mature as a writer, so I was writing characters that were basically exactly like me. They really didn’t have much conflict; they just notice the conflicts. In my second year of undergrad, I thought, “I’m just going to write this character who, yeah, we have a lot of demographics in common, but she’s a lot bolder and more impulsive.” She was like my alter ego in a way. It was a lot of fun writing from that perspective.

Q: It must have been cathartic.

It certainly was. I started the book almost 20 years ago, then came back to it a few years later. It was interesting to see that character again. I still don’t think I’m much like her, but at least now I have a little more perspective to see how I have some of those thoughts and inclinations that she has, but I’m a little better. For better or for worse, I can step back and think before I act. But it’s been interesting to see now that I’m older, some of the ways I thought, “Oh, you know what? Maybe we’re judging her too harshly, and she’s doing the best she can.”

Q: The twist in this book is that she suffers this horrible head wound and somehow ends up doing more of it herself. What made you want to take this story in this direction?

In my first draft, she just bumped her head because I thought of that as a way to introduce Ella and Wisdom, these two important characters. I just said, “Oh, something bad has to happen to him, for both of them to come at the same time.” But then, the more I thought about it, I realized it would be a pretty serious injury. I just started thinking more about what happens when you hit your head. I’m always interested in what motivates people to do the things they do, and I tend to think about it in terms of past traumas or experiences that influence how you act.

It was interesting for me to research what happens if you have a brain injury and how it might affect your personality. I thought it was a really interesting way to explore her personality and her actions and how she reacts to things that happen. I think it’s pretty weird how the injury seems to help her be and say and do the things she wanted to do, but I think it’s kind of nebulous whether or not that was always the case. Was that always there, or did she just have a concussion? And after the book ends, a few days after the book ends, there would be this chapter where she’s like, “Oh, no, what did I do?” I don’t know.

SEE ALSO: Bestsellers, authors, books and more can be found in the Books section

Q: Akosua is really affected by the wisdom that tells her she is not Ghanaian enough. Why do you think this is so bad for her?

I had a few scenes that I didn’t include where she described how much value she placed on her first love being this Ghanaian man. I took those scenes out because I thought they were a little too obvious, but what I was basically hoping would come across in the book is that she, for better or for worse, can’t help but think about Wisdom the way she does . about her father and the question, “Am I good enough for you as a daughter?” it turns into this question: “Am I good enough for you as a partner?” Whether she wants to or not, she confuses these two issues about how much she values ​​these two Ghanaian men, and to get that kind of feeling from Wisdom is a blow to who she is. It doesn’t matter if her mother or her friend Ella says she’s fine the way she is, but if this man rejects her, then it’s too painful.

Q: Do you think that’s part of why he’s chasing Daniel, to get that kind of acceptance?

I think so. She gets really excited when he says, “You’re both American and Ghanaian. You are more complex than I thought.” She’s excited about it, even though it’s a very shallow comment she made. She still doesn’t know him very well, but it’s almost as if she’s looking for a replacement for Wisdom in him and someone to validate her Ghanaian identity.