When Esinam Bediako submitted the manuscript of her first novel, “Blood on the Brain,” for consideration for the prize Ann Petry Prizeshe didn’t think she would be in the running for first prize.

The award, founded in 2020 by Pasadena Red Hen Press and the Peauxdunque Writers’ Allianceawards $3,000 to a work of fiction by a black author. Bediako, whose work was judged by author Deesha Philyawwon. The prize also comes with another benefit: the publication of Red Hen’s book.

“I didn’t really think I was going to win,” Bediako said. “I was just trying to get myself back on my feet by saying, ‘If I set a deadline and submit my work for something, I’m going to make a habit of doing it.’ »

SEE ALSO: To find out more about new books, bestsellers and authors, get the free Book Pages newsletter

“Blood on the Brain,” released by Red Hen in September, follows Akosua, a 24-year-old Ghanaian-American graduate student in New York who is going through a difficult year. Her relationship with her boyfriend, Wisdom, has ended and her feelings for another man, Daniel, are not reciprocated. She also recently learned that her absent father had left Ghana for the United States, bringing up a past she would rather forget.

Worse yet: Akosua slips in the shower, hitting his head, causing a concussion, throwing his life into further disarray. But it also makes him question his life choices, prompting him to make drastic changes.

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

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

I started this book while I was in grad school for my MFA, probably 17 years ago. I was in my early twenties, just like Akosua was at that time, and I was a less mature writer, so I was writing characters that were fundamentally like me. They didn’t really have much conflict; they simply observe the conflicts. In my second year of grad school, I said to myself, “I’m just going to write this character who, yes, we have a lot of demographics in common, but she’s just a lot more daring and impulsive.” » She was sort of my alter ego. It was really fun to write from that perspective.

Q: It must have been cathartic.

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

Q: The problem in this book is that she suffers this horrible head injury, and in a way it ends up making her more of herself. What made you want to take this story in this direction?

In my first version, she just hit her head because I thought that was a way to introduce Ella and Wisdom, these two important characters. I was just like, “Oh, something bad must happen to him for them both to come in at the same time.” But the more I thought about it, the more I realized it would be a very 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 what they do, and I tend to think about it in terms of past traumas or experiences that influence the way you act.

It was interesting for me to research what happens if you suffer a brain injury and how it might affect your personality. I thought it was a really interesting way to explore her personality, her actions, and how she reacts to things that happen. I think it’s a little strange how much the injury seems to help her be and say and do the things she wanted to do, but I also think it’s a little nebulous that she still has been so or not. Was it still there, or did she just have a concussion? And after the book was finished, a few days after the book was finished, would there be this chapter where she would say, “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 Wisdom telling her she’s not Ghanaian enough. Why do you think this hurts him so much?

I had a few scenes that I didn’t include where she was describing the value she placed on the fact that her first love was this Ghanaian man. I deleted these scenes because I thought they were a little too obvious, but essentially what I hoped to come across in the book is that she, for better or worse, cannot prevent her from thinking about Wisdom while she thinks. about her father, and the question: “Am I good enough for you as a daughter?” turns into this question: “Am I good enough for you as a partner?” Whether she likes it or not, she confuses these two questions about how valuable she is to these two Ghanaian men, and feeling this 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 she pursues Daniel, to get that kind of acceptance?

I think so. She gets really excited when he tells her, “You’re both American and Ghanaian.” You are more complex than I thought. She’s excited about this, even though it’s a very superficial comment on her part. 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.