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05 Nov

Posted at 15:46h in Book Excerpts

What makes you angry? In my first article related to my upcoming novel, Down at Jika Jika Tavern, I ended off by saying that I would share some of the research, and introduce you to people doing phenomenal work in the field of conservation (both academic and field). Today, I’d like to introduce you to Catherine Jakins, who completed her Criminology Masters at UKZN in 2019. Her research, The Modus Operandi of Rhino Poachers in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa,  explored the drivers of poaching in...

04 Oct

Posted at 17:56h in Book Excerpts

You don’t find the story; the story finds you. I can clearly remember when the story of Down at Jika Jika Tavern found me. Although I had started toying with the idea of writing a novel in 2012 (after deregistering from my PhD), I wasn’t doing it very well. I had the main character but was fumbling with the plot. I had a notebook full of possible scenes, but no storyline to convincingly pull it all together.   It was only in...

26 Oct

Posted at 12:20h in Short Stories

Every morning, as the rising sun burns the mist hovering over the still water of the dam, bachelor Jackie Hangman stares longingly at the object of his affection. He barely moves from his perfect vantage point, a few trees away from where she sits. He is a shy bird, failing miserably at contributing to the much-feared reputation that birds of his kind have managed to cultivate over the years. While the other shrikes invoke terror into the hearts of the small veld...

14 Apr

Posted at 12:24h in Short Stories

Muhle looked at himself in the still waters of the pond. A handsome face stared back at him; glossy feathers and sparkling eyes. But instead of feeling pleased with himself, he was overwhelmed by a deep sense of sadness. ​It was hard to explain to the other birds; their jealousy of his good looks and striking tail prevented him from sharing his real feelings. For in truth, his tail – that glorious accessory that rippled behind him, like a tall stalk...

04 Mar

Posted at 12:12h in Short Stories

Danny Naidoo was always looking for a way to make a quick buck. He was from a long line of down-and-out Naidoo men who somehow managed to evade gainful employment and yet remain marginally solvent through the hard work of a long line of Naidoo women. But even Danny knew he couldn’t rely on the females in his family for every meal, and had therefore perfected a system that ensured he was reasonably well fed without severing those already tenuous...

30 Apr

Posted at 12:57h in Personal Stories

“Jesus was not born here but sometimes, he comes in through the little holes in the walls, and sits on that chair” Sandile Dikeni (Shack Chic) An old man sits in a shaft of light at the front of the small mud hut; his brown hands clasp the spine of his battered bible, motes of dust gently orbit his head and the butter-yellow sunlight sets his hair aflame. This one-roomed, thatched mud hut is a church located in Nyathi, situated roughly an hour outside of...