Bermudians should be guided by practical concerns -- not nationalism -- if and when they weigh independence, a prominent Barbadian writer said this week.

"The problem that most of the post-colonial societies are facing is the price of being on one's own,'' Mr. George Lamming, 67, told The Royal Gazette .

"In the past, they had a certain amount of political and economic protection as the dependencies of major powers. But as new arrangements like the European Union take shape, all of those previous allowances are being abandoned and most (small states) are being called upon to enter world markets in a fiercely competitive manner.'' Added Mr. Lamming, an author and essayist who has lectured at universities on three continents: "The interdependence of countries that characterises today's world does not allow for the exercise of sovereignty. In other words, you can be independent without exercising sovereignty. Bermudians must realise this.'' Mr. Lamming, who has been called one of the most influential black writers of the century, is in Bermuda to conduct a three-week creative writing seminar at the Bermuda College. He will also be giving a reading of his prose at the National Gallery on Monday.

Yesterday, the man that is often mentioned in the same breath as renowned Trinidadian author V.S. Naipaul or St. Lucian Nobel Literature Prize winner Derek Walcott spoke about a variety of topical issues, including the debate over possible independence.

On that subject, Mr. Lamming urged Bermudians to look at the experiences of their Caribbean neighbours, many of which have exchanged a measure of the freedoms they had won with independence for a new kind of interdependence as a regional bloc.

He said the massive blocs that have been created with such ventures as the EU and NAFTA have made it almost imperative for the world's smaller states to form their own alliances.

"It seems to make much more sense to take on the world collectively,'' he said. "That's why you see a desire in the Caribbean to speed up the regional movement and have a single unit represent each of these independent territories.'' As the Caribbean experience indicates, Mr. Lamming said, there is no room for nationalist sentiment in the global marketplace of today.

The author, a Companion of Honour in his native Barbados, claimed that true independence is a state of mind anyway.

"I think people are independent before they institutionalise it.'' Even so, Mr. Lamming admitted that a formal declaration of sovereignty often fulfilled a strong psychological need in societies.

He noted that many Barbadians who were against independence in 1965 would not want to go back to the old system of governance today.

"Colonialism can retard both culturally and socially,'' Mr. Lamming said. "I think it can also generate a lot of nationalist feeling.''