Authorsmag September 2015

The Power of

FAILURE

What’s in a

Ian Tennent

Book Review

Zululand’s Finest AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 1

2 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

Contents

COVER FEATURE

06

IAN TENNENT Zululand’s Finest

ARTICLES

PUBLISHER Lesiba Morallane ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Sardia Mustapher MANAGING EDITOR Shalate Davhana EDITOR Marion Marchand ASSISTANT EDITOR Joan Hack ADVERTISING COMMUNICATION Dineo Mahloele LAYOUT AND DESIGN Apple Pie Graphics Tel: 079 885 4494 CONTRIBUTORS Melissa Delport Noxolo Chalale Cristy Zinn Monique Snyman Helga Pearson Cat Hellisen Dave de Burgh Justin Fox

12 14 16 22 23 24 26 28 34

THE POWER OF FAILURE FOR THE LOVE OF BOOKS BOOK TUBE Video Killed the Blog Star ON THE COUCH with Victor Kgomoeswana INTERNATIONAL FOCUS Author: Diana Nixon MY SABF 2015 EXPERIENCE WHATS IN A BOOK REVIEW ANYWAY WORLD BUILDING And the Modern Speculative Fictional Author FROM INDIE TO PUBLISHED: Part 2 My self-publishing experience

REGULARS A Message from the Editor.........................................................04 Justin Fox Sounds of Silence..............................................................................18 Life According to Nox....................................................................20 Recommended Reads...................................................................25 AUTHORS MAGAZINE: PO Box 92644, Mooikloof, Pretoria East Email: team@authorsmag.com To advertise online please email team@authorsmag.com or contact Ms Dineo Mahloele on 084 299 6812 DISCLAIMER The views and opinions expressed in this magazine are intended for informational purposes only. Authors Magazine takes no responsibility for the contents for the contents of the advertising material contained herein.

All efforts have been taken to verify the information contained herein, and views expressed are ont necessarily those of Authors Magazine. E&OE

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 3

ditor

A message from the

Our Heritage

Rands, Rooibos and Biltong South Africa has an assortment of tradition, culture and beliefs which emanate from other parts of Africa and Europe. Over the years, the locals have been able to infuse this inherited customs and created a unique blend of languages, music and food that have influenced the identity of Mzansi, to what it is today.

For many years groups of people lived in little separated worlds, governed by different laws in one country. Yet there have been those items and practices that have been able to make a ‘silent’ cross-over between these worlds. One such item is the South African currency which is internationally known as the ZAR. Even at the height of political tension, the ZAR moved gracefully from hand to hand, from township to suburb, from Qunu to Oppiekoppie. The ZAR knows no race or tribe and it knows no boundaries. Whether it is signed

by Reserve Bank Governor, Chris Stals or his successor Tito Mboweni, the ZAR delights any one that receives it. The ZAR feeds families, educate kids and throws in some luxury gifts every Christmas. In has crossed over into the new democracy, bearing the portrait of the all-time unifier, Nelson Mandela.

It embraces tolerance and forgiveness. The ZAR still moves freely, even from Pretoria to Nkandla.

The Rooibos takes the cup though. It has made folks from across the world visit Mzansi for just for tea. Rooibos grows only in the Western Cape, but it has made its way to the flamboyant Sandton homes and to the humble huts of Botlokwa alike.

Rooibos keeps its nutty flavour and rich aroma, whether is enjoyed the Chinese porcelain tea cup or an enamel mug. It

4 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

has taken flight and ship trips all over the world too. Rooibos brings tons of ZARs to Mzansi through exports.

The Old Timer is the Biltong, otherwise known as ‘Mogwapa’ to some South Africans. Before fridge was popular or even available, Mzansians soaked “the kill” in salt and hanged it to dry. The dried meat would and served as a snack or ‘isishebo’ to go with the pap and gravy at dinner. The ‘magic’ ingredient has been the salt though. It gave meat flavour and saved it from being rotten and chowed by maggots.

The diversity of South Africans is the salt that keeps the nation full of flavour and colour. South African embrace their differences in a unified way – through sport, language, music, poetry, drama, literature and many other unifying events and activities. It is the country that has stood the test of time, just as its unique home brewed beer that continues to topple the world’s best in international competitions!

In celebration of Heritage month, Authors brings you an exclusive interview with Ian Tennent on his debut book, Zululand Snow. Ian tells the story of his exciting journey of crafting the vivid scenes of this action book. He shares his views and experiences about the inKatha (which he refers to as the “Soul of the Zulu Nation”), a significant symbol of part the South African culture and history.

Shalate Davhana

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 5

COVER FEATURE

Ian Tennent

Zululand

“Hubby, daddy, writer, brother. Full-time weekend warrior, part-time horse for six year old.”

This is the Twitter bio of author, Ian Tennent. Ian’s first novel, an action-adventure tale called Zululand Snow was released in October 2014 and has been delighting readers with it’s colourful prose, rich plot, and cultural setting.

Melissa Delport sits down with Ian in his home in Hillcrest, KZN, to find out who the real Ian Tennent is, behind the social media presence we have come to know.

MD: Tell us a bit about yourself, Ian. IT: Linguistically, I’m English; natively, I’m Durbanese; historically, I was raised and schooled in Zululand.

Occupationally, before succumbing to the lure of the writer’s life, I sweated in the trenches of various Investment Banks. Recreationally, when I’m not holding my breath underwater vainly flinging spears at fish, I’m falling off my mountain bike on some inhospitable goat-track.

MD: Well, I guess that about sums it up (laughs). Let’s chat about Zululand Snow. How did this book come about?

IT: I had wanted to write a book for just about as long as I can remember.

Certain scenes in the book have been with me for ages. Scenes that were as clear to me as a high-res video. I would find myself thinking about them – about

6 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

Fines

by Melissa Delport

how I would love to write that scene but what would I do with it? I didn’t have a logical framework to use, just a few disjointed scenes. Compelling scenes to my mind, but disjointed nonetheless.

I wish I could say the story wrote itself but it bloody well didn’t!

Anyway, after much soul searching and excavating in the dark recesses of my brain I eventually uncovered the connective tissue between the scenes and the synapses started firing. All told, the actual writing took me three years.

MD: I love the title of this book. How did you come up with it?

IT: I grew up in Zululand which is cane farming country. For most of the year, Zululand is like a greenhouse and the sugar cane thrives, but it can also get hellishly hot at times. Every year, prior to harvesting, the farmers would put

their crops to the torch to burn off the outer fronds of cane. The crackle of the flames could be heard for miles while black ash rained down over the entire countryside. Zululand locals referred to this blight, somewhat sardonically, as Zululand snow. I like the name, the juxtaposition of the words, the irony of black snow - burnt ash instead of frozen water. It just resonated with me; connotations of grime and ruin but also of rebirth and renewal. A bit ‘phoenixlike’, I guess.

MD: I think you got it word perfect! The title really pulls you in. Now, as to the Zululand setting, were you aiming for a South African readership?

IT: Absolutely! South African and more!

A writer always hopes their work will go on to find international appeal, but for me it was important for Zululand

nd’s

st

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 7

Ian, with is lovely wife, Carryn, at the launch of Zululand Snow

Snow to really resonate with a local readership. The holy grail for me is to have Zululand Snow incorporated into a South African school syllabus as a setwork, something I’m working on for 2016.

MD: I had the same thoughts while reading it. It would work beautifully as a set-work option. Let’s talk about your cover, which is stunning, by the way. I love the grey and the grainy “texture”, but why the hamerkop? Does this bird have any significant symbolism to you, or within the context of the book?

IT: Thank you! Although, most of the credit for the cover design must go to Wendy Bow of Apple Pie Graphics. I wanted the cover to convey a mood of vague unease. The colour and texture hint at ash and stone, both of which play a role in the story, while the hamerkop is portentous, a sign that something bad is about to happen. It’s a bird of huge mythological significance, not just in Zulu culture, but across the African continent. Otherwise known as the lightning bird, it’s an ill-omen, a bird of death and mystery. In many ways an aberration: both in looks and behaviour,

During my school days I was blessed with a string of top class English teachers.

But it struck me that at school we were taught all the tools of writing, but few of the techniques.

8 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

and also scientific classification. It seemed to have particular significance to my story, which rests on folklore, myth and lightning, and harks back to a turbulent period in Zululand’s not so distant past.

Funnily enough, a month prior to Zululand Snow’s completion, while participating in a mountain bike stage race through the Isimangaliso wetland park, I came across a hamerkop overlooking a dam. The first hamerkop I had seen in the wild in years. I got a phone call later that evening to say my dad had been in in a car accident and narrowly escaped with his life.

I’m not, by any means, superstitious but that ruffled my feathers!

MD: Speaking of folklore... Zululand Snow centres around an object known as the ‘lost inKatha’, which you refer to as the “Soul of the Zulu nation.” Is there

any truth to this legend?

IT: There is. Several historians make reference to it, although admittedly facts on the ground are pretty thin.

The naming of the Inkatha Freedom Party allegedly also has its origins in this object. The inKatha Yesizwe or “Soul of the Nation” was essentially a Royal artefact: a coiled ring of grass, sinew, human hair, skin, vomit and other substances. It was the founding symbol of Zulu unity and strength, binding the nation together and passing from one Zulu King to the next. It was more than just a symbol though. It was said to imbue the King with powers of prophecy, and more. Supposedly, whilst a King sat on it he could inspire and even control his troops in battle. As the legend goes Cetshwayo sat on it during the battle of Isandlwana, a famous Zulu victory during the Anglo-Zulu war, however, during that evening he left his seat, causing the Zulu to suffer a major defeat at Rorke’s Drift. Most scholars believe that the inKatha was destroyed in the aftermath of the battle of Ulundi, the final battle of the war, when the Royal residence was burnt to the ground and Cetshwayo fled for his life.

African story. By “pure” I mean a South African story that could stand squarely on its own two feet without resting on the pillars of apartheid or racism or the struggle. Those types of stories are

good and we need them. But I wanted something different. I wanted a tale that lives and thrives purely on the fuel of a good story. The idea was to create a good ol’ yarn using all the colour and

Interestingly, Craig, a staunch Zulu romantic, has in his possession an old war letter which lends credence to the idea that the inKatha survived the torching of Ulundi and is hidden in his hometown. Ecstatic, he resolves to find it!

MD: One thing that struck me as I read Zululand Snow was the fact that the book has a delightful South African setting without any of the dark undertones that characterise a lot of South African fiction. Was that intentional?

IT: Definitely! If nothing else, my goal at the outset was to create a “pure” South

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 9

texture that South Africa provides.

Zululand Snow is not about politics, it’s about imagery and history and memory but, above all, it’s about story.

MD: Goal met, in my opinion. Zululand Snow is all that and more. Let’s talk about your media presence. I’ve been following your social media channels for some time and I notice you do a fair bit of public speaking. How did you get into it, and as an author, does this take you out of your comfort zone?

IT: These days, the modern (if I can call myself that ☺) writer can’t afford to be a wallflower. You need to actively build your marketing platform and your brand. Part of this involves engaging in social media. And part of it involves actual human ‘blood, sweat and fears’ interactions too. Right from the outset I had this message hammered into my resistant skull by authors who had trod the path ahead of me.

Fortunately my editor was of the same opinion and she set up a speaking engagement for me with a school, Durban Girls College. The rest all flowed from that. Standing up and talking to 80 odd schoolkids can be surprisingly intimidating but I learnt a huge amount and the kids were really engaged. It’s been a really good experience all round.

So far I’ve presented to various schools, the IEB (Independent Examinations Board) and the South African Writers Circle.

MD: What message do you try and instil in your audience?

IT: Typically, I try and provide some insights into the craft of writing. During my school days I was blessed with a string of top class English teachers. But it struck me that at school we were taught all the tools of writing, but few of the techniques. In effect we could recognise a hammer from a chisel but we weren’t

10 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

taught how to hold them, how to wield them to make words become images and make images bleed. From a craft point of view there’s a huge reservoir of knowledge out there that we weren’t exposed to at school. We were simply given a topic and told to write as creatively as we could. We were largely clueless and operated off instinct.

Never mind the ‘how’, we never even tackled the ‘why’ of creative writing techniques. So, my talks are aimed at showing that, while talent plays a part in good writing, technique is vital. And, crucially, technique can be learnt!

MD: So, writing, motivational speaking… is there anything else you fit in to what sounds like quite a busy career?

Apart from my fiction writing, I help admin a Facebook book club called “The Secret Book Club”. Author Mag Readers are invited to look it up and join in our antics there. We discuss books, hold giveaways, run Q&A sessions with Authors and a bunch of other stuff. I also like to keep my editing oar in the water with a bit of editing every now again for fellow writers and I also engage in a bit of Copy Writing for corporate clients, when I have the time.

MD: Let’s talk about your main character, Craig, around whom the story is centred. What was your childhood like? Any reflection of yourself in Craig, the intrepid adventurer?

IT: (laughs) Zululand Snow was my debut novel. Back then, as a ‘not so intrepid writer’, I opted to follow the much lauded dictum of ‘write what you know.’ So, Zululand Snow and my main character, Craig, both drew on my own experience. But it’s not my story. I guess I could say that Craig resembles me in his thoughts but not in his actions.

In terms of my childhood, I guess it was pretty typical of most boy’s growing

up in the suburbs of a small Zululand farm-town of that era. We stole sugar cane and litchi’s, blew each other up with chlorine bombs and collected roasties like they were medals. We played shockingly bad cricket and even worse rugby. We lived for our BMX’s our mates, our mate’s sisters and their friends!

MD: While the mystery of the lost inKatha is “solved” in the book, we do not have any resolution with regards to a certain turn-of-the-century gold coin that cropped up in the book. Can we expect to read any more of Craig’s adventures?

IT: Yes. *silence* MD: Erm... Could you elaborate?

IT: (laughs) Yes, Craig and his friends live on in book two, which is just around the corner with a September release date. Nobody knows this yet, so this is an Author Mag exclusive, but, shortly after the events in Zululand Snow, Craig is embroiled in a hunt for a treasure that has eluded thousands before him.

Fortunately, armed with his intuition and determination, Craig has the inside track. But, who is that lurking in the background?

MD: We love exclusives! Thanks so much for giving us the inside scoop and we are thrilled to hear there will be a second offering. Thank you for taking time out to chat with us, we wish you every success in your writing career. If our readers would like to get in touch, where do they find you, and your book?

IT: Thank you very much and it’s been a pleasure. Zululand Snow is available electronically on Amazon or in hardcopy from leading bookstores.

FUN FACTS.... about Ian Tea or coffee? - MOCKACHOCOCHINO thingy.

Hiking or cycling? - BLOOD, SWEAT and GEARS i.e mountain biking.

Grand Prix or Formula One? FORMULA ONE Alessandro Nannini is the man! (it’s possible I may have missed a few races since turning pro.)

Favourite Author? On balance, for sheer originality, diversity and craftsmanship, Stephen King. He’d probably occupy 5 of my top ten greatest reads of all time.

Most defining moment of your career to date?

THIS INTERVIEW!

Favourite food? - Pork belly. Yes, yes, I know...

Favourite book? Too close to call. “Lord of the Flies” or “Something Wicked This way Comes”

Readers can find me at any of the following social media platforms: Facebook - www.facebook.com/Ian-Tennent-Writer • Twitter - @iantennent1 • Website - www.iantennent.com or, email me at iantennentwriter@gmail.com

&Exerpt

Teaser Swells rippled away from him. He lowered his gaze and stared after them in a daze. In the distance, one of the furthest ripples turned back on itself. He peered at it. It gained definition, losing its gentle arc and becoming a blunt arrowhead: a blunt arrowhead gliding towards him.

A moan escaped his lips. He dropped the pole and launched off the rock in a thrash of arms and legs. In three strokes his hand hit the pier. He reached up, grasping frantically for the lip and looked over his shoulder. The arrowhead honing in on him was huge. A bone-crunching grip seized his wrist and yanked him bodily out of the water, dumping him onto the jetty. He scrabbled away on all fours, trying to get as far away from the edge as possible. Something bashed into his head: the pumphouse. He tried to stand and run. His left hand found the corner of the pump-house wall. His right hand found empty air and then something shoved against his backside and he was

falling through the open doorway.

A dark figure swayed over him, silhouetted against a rectangle of pin-pricked night sky. A red glow hovered where the figure’s eyes should have been.

“You and I need to have a little talk,” said a guttural voice.

The rectangle of night sky narrowed to a slit, then vanished.

The red eye pulsed again. Craig slithered backwards and cringed against the far wall between two cold hunks of steel.

A match flared and levitated towards a hurricane lamp on a shelf. The flame pounced on the wick and writhed like a spider on a moth before a tall glass descended, sending the flame upward in a pyre that splashed light across the ceiling and a wide-brimmed hat.

Lappies twisted a coin-shaped dial and reined the flame back to a warm glow. He turned towards Craig. A clear bottle wrapped in a net of straw dangled from his left hand. Dark blood sloshed inside. Craig was shivering uncontrollably now, his lips pulled back over his teeth. Lappies slid a metal chair in front of the door and plonked himself into it. He took a swig from the bottle, eyeing Craig the whole time.

“Boys and dams,” he said. “Damn boys.”

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 11

ARTICLE

Failure

the power of

by Monique Snyman

Failing is a part of life.

This modern, fast-paced world has, unfortunately, been indoctrinated to fear failure, rejection, disproval, and disappointment. This has inadvertently created a populace who believes that the world owes them something. It does not.

All writers learn this lesson the hard way – through blatant, unadulterated rejection. Nothing can prepare a writer for that first rejection letter. No matter how thick their skin or how sarcastic their outlook on life is, egos will be bruised. Nevertheless, even the most prolific authors in the business have had their fair share of rejection: Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind was rejected 38 times. Stephen King’s Carrie was rejected 30 times. J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was rejected 12 times. The list is endless. Despite the fact that even the best of the best have been dismissed countless times, and sometimes cruelly, most of them did not let their failures define them. No, the greatest writers draw inspiration from their flaws and fears, and they see their failures as opportunities.

Of course, this concept of ‘embracing one’s fallibility’ is not the easiest thing to do, especially when you’re still licking the salt from your wounds. But if a rejection letter makes you tear up, and it will, imagine how you’ll feel when you receive your first bad review…

You are not special. You are not a beautiful or unique snowflake. You’re the same decaying organic matter as everything else.”

- Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club

12 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

LEARNING THE TRICKS OF THE TRADE Newbie authors often fall into the trap of letting their emotions cloud their judgement. This is evidential on various social media platforms, where rejection and critique is sometimes

answered with vehemence. Let it be known that attacking a publisher or reviewer for their opinions of your work, in public no less, is possibly the worst move any writer can make.

Appreciate the feedback from critics, publishers, editors and other writers, because their experience in this field is far greater than yours, and they deserve respect. If you do not, not only will you come across as a diva, but your inexperience of the real world can send your career back to the dark ages, for years. Publishers and reviewers make use of blacklists. It might not sound like much, but blacklists make their rounds in the industry, and if you’re a nobody writer and you’re on a blacklist … well, let’s just say it’s hard enough to make a name in the business without a bad reputation.

Therefore, it’s best to keep your mouth shut, your mind open, and learn from your mistakes.

Don’t brush off an editor’s suggestions or corrections without having an indepth conversation with said editor.

Their name will be associated with your work, too, which means they’re not just pulling issues out of a hat for annoyance sake. Editors have valid reasons for changing, deleting, correcting, or adding things to your manuscript, even if these alterations don’t always make sense. If they do, however, explain major issues, it is your responsibility to consciously improve on those shortcomings until you’ve succeeded in fixing those errors instinctively.

Another thing many newbies are guilty of is not realising the importance of following instructions. They think a degree in English prepared them for a career in writing, but they’re wrong. Oh, they are so very wrong. Every publisher

and editor has their own way of doing things, and it takes a while to get a hang of preferences. The trick is to read the guidelines and implement them into the submission correctly. Failing to do so will result in an inevitable rejection letter.

But rejection is okay! A rejection letter confirms that you, at least, had the guts to put yourself, and your work, out there. It gives you a chance to better yourself in the future. Rejection is not the end of the world, although it can sometimes feel that way.

IMPERFECTION IS INEVITABLE You’re not a failure for failing; you’re only a failure if you don’t try.

It should be noted that you will never please everyone, no matter how hard you’ve tried not to offend. This dilemma is especially irksome for inexperienced writers, but there is a workaround: Please yourself, and to hell with the rest of the world. If you want to write a story about mutated zombie-werewolf hybrids, battling three-breasted alien lifeforms, then that’s your prerogative.

Granted, that particular example will only appeal to a niche market, but there are markets available for weird stuff.

Just make sure you learn from whatever blunders you make along the way.

If that mistake turns out to be that you wrote for yourself, instead of writing for an audience, then you can rectify it with your next project. There is, after all, always a solution to the direst situation.

Next, remember that a critic’s job is to be critical. They will praise your work in one sentence, and they will tear you a new one in the next. Don’t take it personally (unless they attack you in your personal capacity, which does

happen on rare occasions). Negativities only seem negative on the surface, so dig deeper and you might just come across a smorgasbord of positivity that’ll help you in the long run. With Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, and all the other online bookstores, readers now have the ability to also leave reviews, and they’re not always sycophantic either. Deal with it by remaining gracious, and grateful, when someone takes the time to read your work. Be a good sport by sharing the bad reviews without adding a snide remark. And laugh at yourself, because life is too short to be angry at everything. It makes you more approachable.

You’ll be happier for shrugging off the small things and holding on to the good stuff.

FAILING MAKES YOU HUMAN Thomas Edison said: “Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time.” In other words, make peace with the fact that you’re going to fail, and allow yourself to be pleasantly surprised when you succeed.

Human beings, in principle, make mistakes.

Your job is to learn from those mistakes and use them creatively in your writing to achieve multiple emotional dimensions in your work. Personal experiences, the good and the bad, are invaluable sources of inspiration for authors, so don’t neglect living your life to further your career.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 13

ARTICLE

Love of for the

I wish I could say that I remember the exact moment I fell in love with books, but in truth, mine was a slow-burn addiction that developed over the years. If I could remember it, I’m sure it would deserve a soft-focus lens and an emotional coming-of-age score, because this strange phenomenon occurs when I come across books stacked together. I’m drawn to the spines, to the jacket covers, and the enticing promise of undiscovered stories and secrets between the pages.

I find these on the shelves of libraries, bookstores, second-hand bookshops, garage sales and in my friends’ houses.

Book

There are piles of books in every room in my house. I just can’t help myself.

I’m the kind of girl who is sent off to buy new shoes and comes home with bags of books. It’s not my fault. There is something about crossing the threshold

by Cristy Zinn

of a bookstore – I experience a hunger to discover a new story or storyteller, no matter how many books I might have in my to-be-read pile. You know the feeling... that exquisite sense that you’ve walked into a room that holds a thousand worlds. Sigh. It’s a beautiful thing.

Maybe I am a little obsessed but I recently joined a Facebook Group just for readers and I quickly realised I am not alone. Not even close. The group is well over a thousand members now and every single one of them loves books. They love buying them, talking

14 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

about them, reading them (sometimes more than once), reviewing them, and dare I say, smelling them. It is a group of very diverse tastes but, like me, every member is hungry for stories. I posed the following question: if you could squeeze a reason for your love of books into a single sentence, what would you say? The answers were varied but two kept popping up over and over. One: it is a blessed escape from our own reality, and two: it gives us a new perspective on the world.

ks

American poet, Muriel Rukeyser, once said, ‘The universe is made of stories, not atoms.’ The scientists among you may groan, but I do believe there is some truth in that. From our very beginning, humans have told stories in one way or another. Whether through painted symbols, oral traditions or writing things down, we have this tendency to want to share stories, true or otherwise. Like the folk in the Facebook book club, I know that books are portals for knowledge and escape.

In my opinion, I think both have the potential to change us as human beings.

Just words between pages? I think not.

As a child living in a house that was always chronically full, I found libraries and books a time-out from the noise.

On melancholy teenage days, I would walk down the library’s aisles, trailing my fingertips across the spines, and the very action calmed me. Leaving

the library with an armload of books, despite the long walk home, always felt like I was carrying possibilities. To this day the weight of unread books makes me giddy with anticipation of what I might discover inside them. To me books have always been, in the words of Stephen King, a uniquely portable magic. The kind of magic that helped me imagine a world a little larger than the small town I grew up in, a magic that has helped me be empathetic to people who are not like me, a magic that has inspired me to write.

In truth, I don’t only love books for the stories within. I also love the objects themselves. This is called, Bibliophilia.

Yes, they have dictionary words for people like us - a Bibliophile being ‘someone who loves or collects books, especially as examples of fine or unusual printing, binding, or the like.’

My Bibliophilia has grown more pronounced since I took up writing.

Knowing now the Great Effort that goes into book-making, I find them even more incredible. Being both a writer and a graphic designer means this love is two-fold: I love the words inside and the illustrations and design throughout.

I love the thought that goes into the cover, the encapsulation of the story in another art-form. I love the chapter headings and titles that have been laboured over. I love the texture of the pages and the amount of white space around the text. I love the choice of typeface and colours. I love that unique book smell. In this digital age, the physical book has to become a work of art, competing with lower eBook prices and I’ve been drawn to many by their intriguing design. I don’t mean to say that a book should sell purely because of its design, because remember I am a writer too, but I do love it when a

book can properly promote the magic between the pages by having a design that compliments it.

One of my favourite authors, Neil Gaiman states, ‘A book is a dream that you hold in your hands.’ Never a truer word was spoken. A writer who had an idea sat down at a desk, and wrote some things down. At some point this writer became excited enough about this project to begin the harrowing process of submission-and-rejection.

This writer kept going, no matter how high the rejections piled up, because they had a dream to see their idea published in book form. And then, one day, someone else validated that author’s belief in him or herself; a publisher/agent/editor decided that they liked it too. Together they laboured over the idea, tweaking the words and phrases until they sounded just right.

Enlisting the help of an artist, a designer, a typesetter and a printer, they turned that idea into a physical thing - a book.

A device of uniquely portable magic, a dream manifested. You don’t just hold a story in your hands, you hold someone’s dream. I am more prone to appreciate this now that I have been through the process myself. Every time I pick up a new book, I can appreciate the labour and the time and the love and tears poured into it. And then I get to sit down and be absorbed by it. No matter how much I see behind the scenes in the writing world, I still get lost in a good book. All writers love books, and not just because we write them. I think you’ll find for most writers, the inspiration to write began with reading, not the other way around. We were readers first. Maybe we always will be.

Because, after all, the fact remains that there is just something magical about a book - inside and out.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 15

ARTICLE

Book Tube Video Killed the Blog Star

by Helga Pearson

‘BookTube’ sounds a little rude, doesn’t it? As if you submitted your novel to a publisher and they replied with, “Why yes, we did receive your draft Dear Writer, unfortunately it was such a unholy stinker we had to flush it down the Booktube!” In actual fact, BookTube is quite the opposite. This is the name adopted by a growing community of people who love books so much that they spend a great deal of time and effort producing videos to discuss and review them.

Online videos have of course been around for a while now. Everyone knows, if you post a video of on the web of your cat trying to lick its bum and instead it falls over, you’ll get at least a zillion views. YouTube, the online megamonster hosting site for all things video, started out in 2005 and today its users watch a grand total of 6 billion hours of video each month. A staggering 300 hours of video are uploaded every minute. That’s just mind-boggling!

But how many of us are guilty of this sin - when we say we’re updating that spreadsheet for tomorrow’s meeting, but in reality we’re trolling YouTube, watching that cat video. You know, the one where the kitty hilariously fails to lick it’s own bottom - Hashtag ButtLickFail

16 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

A video blog or ‘vlogging’ is a little different. Vlogs generally feature individuals who are passionate (read: super, super geeky) about a particular subject and feel the urge to share it with the world by filming themselves talking about it. These days you have online vlogging celebrities for everything from make-up and science, to food and swordmaking. It was inevitable that books and the people who love them would eventually find a place for themselves in this flourishing environment. Why do I say that? Well, have you met book geeks? Generally you can’t get a word out of them since they’re too busy reading but ask them about their favourite books and you may be forced to chew your own arm off just to get away.

Random vloggers have of course been talking about books on YouTube since its inception. However it was only in 2011, when the term ‘BookTube’ became popular, that book vloggers began to form their own networked community on YouTube.

Another fascinating fact about this community is their average age.

Book vloggers are for the most part millennials in their early 20’s. Who says kids don’t read anymore? That said, the

history of BookTube gravitates heavily around a goofy-haired old fossil (he’s thirty-seven) known as John Green. If you’re not familiar with John Green, he’s an award winning author of YA fiction books such as ‘Fault In our Stars’ and ‘Paper Town’. Both John and his brother, Hank Green, are veteran vloggers and YouTube superstars. Although their original channel, ‘VlogBrothers’, is not strictly BookTube, I have a sneaky suspicion that the BookTube movement had its roots in the legion of bookish fans Green built up around him and his passion for reading, learning and nerdy fandoms such as Harry Potter. Even if BookTube didn’t strictly start with John Green and the vlogbrothers channel, it was most certainly a gateway through which book nerds from around the world were able to find one another and become a part of this emerging community.

It appears that publishers are now catching on to this phenomenon too, with big names like Pan Macmillan in the UK starting their own online book show. Personally, I’m not sure if I’m sold on this idea just yet. It’s encouraging that the publishing industry is taking an interest but they will need to put some real thought and effort into making their offerings as accessible, personal

and engaging as indie channels if they hope to attract BookTube fans.

Even South Africa is staking a claim in BookTube territory. Local literary diva, Monique Snyman is well known in the book reviewing and blogging arena and is now making her mark in the world of book vlogging too. Monique says, “I accidentally stumbled onto a bookshelf tour when I was searching for new book releases on YouTube. Intrigued, I watched the video, and I swear it was love at first sight. For months I scoured Youtube for more BookTube-related videos, until I realised: “Hey, I can do that too.” When asked why should we care about this thing called BookTube,

Monique Snyman responded with, “BookTube is a wonderful source for finding out about new, and older titles.

It’s great to see folks talking about books, and book-related stuff. BookTube makes reading fun, especially when you connect with likeminded individuals.

It’s a really great community.”

I believe here we have the underlying reason as to why BookTube is increasingly popular amongst the young, passionate and bookish. Let’s face it, reading is a very introverted, lonesome pastime. As much as we love reading, as much as we love our books - we’re people who also really enjoy sharing our love and opinions and ideas with others. It gives

us a chance to bond over something we have a mutual affection for. ‘Sharing’, ‘bonding’, ‘mutual affection’ this is all starting to sound a little too much like a euphemism for something else (cough, cough) but you get the idea.

The bottom line is, if you love books, this is something you should know about and potentially be a part of. So click away from that dumb cat video (you’ve watched it like a hundred times now, seriously, enough already) and go and discover something new and mindaltering. These are exciting times and I won’t have it said that you missed the train, er, I mean BookTube on my account.

Some notable BookTube channels include: Benajaminoftomes: A young, bright-eyed British lad whose enthusiasm is just adorable

Yeah, we love her. One of the better produced BookTube channels with some great content.

Booksandquills: Sanne Vliegenthart (yes, that is her actual name) is also a long-time BookTuber. She is well versed in her topic, with a university degree featuring subjects like, ‘Dystopian fiction’.

JenVCampbell: Jen Campbell is a British bookseller, author and poet who also happens to run her own BookTube Channel.

Elizziebooks: A founding member of the BookTube community, Liz Vallish and her channel are the hub for all things BookTube Little Book Owl: An Australian BookTuber with magical Tonks-like hair (you really don’t read enough Harry Potter).

Monique Snyman: The South African BookTuber Monique Snyman knows her stuff. It’s always great to get a local take on books and everything bookish.

The Readables: Well produced, great graphic design and a nice variety of content make this channel a winner.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 17

TRAVEL

Sounds Justin Fox is one of those writers who needs utter silence in order to work, or even think straight. Travelling in northern Kenya, he experienced a very different relationship with noise.

If I were a religious man, I might have called it the voice of a Maker.

That’s what it sounded like. That’s what it felt like. Each one of us travels for different reasons and with different objectives.

S

of

ABOUT Justin Fox Justin Fox is an award-winning writer and photographer, and former editor of Getaway International. His most recent non-fiction books include The Marginal Safari (Umuzi, 2010) and The Impossible Five (Tafelberg, 2015). Justin’s first novel, Whoever Fears the Sea (Umuzi, 2014), is a tale of piratical adventure on the East African coast.

Silence Until reaching that little corner of paradise, I hadn’t realised I’d been searching for a particular brand of silence. My travelling companion Mike Copeland and I had been driving through the Chalbi Desert in northern Kenya, bound for Addis Ababa. After a tyre blowout we’d retreated to the sanctity of Marsabit, a remote and dusty town in the middle of bandit country.

That night we found a place to camp in Marsabit National Park beside Lake Paradise, snug in the bowl of a magnificent volcanic crater. The contrast with surrounding desert could not have been greater. It was a coneshaped island of plenty, like something out of a fairy tale. The lush, tropical slopes were lined with hardwoods and abounded with big game and a vast array of bird life.

As dusk fell and red elephants stepped from the forest wall, I started to become aware of the noises: ducks squabbling, shrill crickets, pulsing frogs, the splash of elephants cooling themselves. A fish

eagle cry, head thrown back in full voice, was more potent than I’d ever heard it.

Perhaps it was the shape of the volcanic bowl that trapped the sounds, echoing them off the circular walls, that lent it such an enchanting ring.

I’m normally not good with noise, especially when trying to write or sleep.

Dogs barking, jabbering televisions, the sycophantic mewing of mating pigeons on my window sill, the grumble of traffic. But this was something different altogether. The guinea fowls made the point. Normally their staccato clucking in the early morning riles me. But here, from afar, moulded by the shape of the crater and modulated to fit the other myriad sounds it was acceptable, necessary even. Tree-trunk castanets, oboe frogs, wind instruments in the high leaves, the static hiss of insects, bird calls, all were in harmony.

I left my tent flap open and kept waking during the night to marvel at the sounds. They changed through the night: different movements in a long

symphony. It was varied and complex, and no instrument took control or overbore.

The shock came just before dawn. I snapped bolt upright, terrified. Waap, waap, waap! Bandits was my first thought, expecting the crackle of AK47 fire.

In those sleep-fuddled moments, I imaged Mike shot and me running in my underpants, without spectacles, into the dark forest, bullets whistling around my head.

The Land Rover alarm was deafening beside me. Mike, trapped in the rooftop tent, cursed in choice expletives, fumbling for the remote button.

Our cacophony had ruined it, silencing the appalled creatures with our alarm.

But, after a while, one brave frog began a tentative croak, and slowly each instrument rejoined, building for the dawn crescendo. I no longer wished to sleep and lay there marvelling at the perfect noise.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 19

LIFENox

COLUMN

according to My Sunday Stories I was happy. I don’t remember why, but I remember being okay with life as it was. It had been a good day. Suddenly, the light flickered. I was washing dishes.

“Remember to change the bulb” I thought to myself. I forgot.

A few days later, the light flickered again. I can’t remember what I was doing but I remember it was daytime. The lights weren’t on. I was confused.

It happened again, and this time I understood that I was experiencing seconds of blindness.

I would be walking, reading, or cooking, and suddenly, everything would just go dark. It wouldn’t last for more than a few seconds. There was no pain. I didn’t have any other symptoms except fear.

I didn’t want to be blind.

Doctors said there was nothing wrong with my eyes. They suspected a blood clot that they couldn’t find with difficult to pronounce procedures. After months of tests and waiting She said the taxis weren’t that far so I should just walk straight.

She even told me that I should put my index finger up in the air to show where I wanted to go. I walked and walked, my finger ready for that hooter.

The hooter didn’t come.

by Noxolo Chalale

for results, I had a diagnosis: Anaemia.

It was laughable really.

I almost went blind when all I needed was a little more beetroot.

We need to pay attention to the seemingly little things before they blind us.

One of my favourite authors puts it like this: “Life is chiefly made up, not of great sacrifices and wonderful achievements, but of little things. It is oftenest through the little things which seem so unworthy of notice that great good or evil is brought into our lives. It is through our failure to endure the tests that come to us in little things, that the habits are moulded, the character misshaped; and when the greater tests come, they find us unready. Only by acting upon principle in the tests of daily life can we acquire power to stand firm and faithful in the most dangerous and most difficult positions.” [Ellen White] Don’t neglect the beetroots of life. left again and kept walking straight.

When I arrived almost 45 minutes later, I knew I had made a mistake by wearing my heels and not bringing my flats. The blisters on my feet agreed.

I asked again. This time another She told me I was close enough to just walk to my destination without using a taxi.

Because someone once told me that a lady doesn’t change her heels after church. You know, because, it ruins your outfit or something.

So I walked, turned left, walked, turned right, walked, turned

Keeping up appearances. Hindering progress.

20 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

“What will They say if…” and “imagine what They’ll think when….”

our arms yet bruise our souls. We laugh with friends we can’t cry with because they don’t know those things about us.

But They don’t see your blisters. They can’t feel your pain.

Keeping up appearances for Them. Hindering progress for You. Take off those heels.

Take off those heels and wear your flats.

Some of us are depressing ourselves in careers to impress others. We are in relationships with people who look good on

It was a beautiful Friday afternoon in November. I was in love.

I wore a pastel lime button-up top with those jeans that made me look... nice. Tied my braids in a bun and sprinkled that sweet perfume he liked behind my ears, where he would smell it and look at me with that tinkle in his eye when I hugged him.

I did. But my outfit would’ve looked better with flats than those ripped pantyhose.

What had started as a light drizzle three hours earlier, had become a flash flood. The water was up to our knees in some parts and we even had to turn back on several occasions, looking for a better way to get back to campus and onto higher ground.

We drove to the mall for lunch, or it could’ve been dessert, or something else that I can’t remember beyond the many laughs that we shared. I wanted this feeling to last forever.

It was all over the news. People’s homes were wrecked while others took their sailing boats out into the street for Instagram posts and happy childhood memories. The hospital had to evacuate patients from flooded wards while Boyfriend and I were singing happy songs in the car on our flood adventure.

We decided to go back to campus almost two hours later. As we left the mall we were shocked by what we saw...

But it’s never flooded forever. People rebuild their homes.

And I’m single now.

The streets were flooded!

Life.

She was wearing a blue skirt. A bright blue tutu skirt. I didn’t know her but knew I wanted to.

to others. Not a I’m-happy-she’s-unhappy pseudo-blessing, but rather the strength to carry on because you saw that she could do it.

That day was so cold. Browns, blacks and all things neutral were the dress code of the day. But there she was, with her bright blue skirt.

You know it’s difficult to be bright when things are dull and miserable around you.

And it’s ironic that misery is synonymous with the colour blue, yet that was an amazing hue.

She said “hi” etc etc. We talked for a bit and I knew we’d be friends for a while. She wasn’t a ballerina. She was a tutuwearing law student.

Yet some of us don’t adapt. We are miserably waiting for what should be, missing out on the joy of what could be.

We should be bright blue tutu skirts.

Because sometimes, the way we wear our pain is a blessing

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 21

Couch on the

The corner couch focuses on celebrities - their reading habits and the books that have shaped their lives.

with Victor Kgomoeswana

For this, the first of our ‘On the Corner Couch’ interviews, I had the privilege of interviewing Victor Kgomoeswana. Victor is not only the author of Africa is Open for Business, he is also a newspaper columnist, as well as the host of Power Hour on Power FM 98.7 and African News on CNBC Africa.

Here is what Victor had to say...

by Dineo Mahloele

the world without ever leaving your chair. I don’t see how we can expect our own opinions to be taken seriously, if we do not care for what others have to say. Reading also develops an open mind in the reader, fostering ongoing growth and development.

AM: Tell us about your reading habits. Do you read one book at a time, or many? And do you read for entertainment or information?

VK: I read many books at the same time.

I read with the attitude ‘so what?’ all the time. I do not read to internalise what I am reading, although some books are more informative than others.

As a writer, I also read to appreciate different writing styles. As to whether I read to finish, it honestly depends on how engrossing the story is.

AM: What are your top 5 all time favourite books?

VK: - Confessions of an Economic Hitman

by John Perkins.

AM: What was the first book you ever read, or the first book that ever had an impact on you?

of which were incidentally written by my late father – Phillemon Pulasena Kgomoeswana.

VK: I can’t remember the very first, but the most potent was definitely The Wily Wizard & The Wicked Witch - a collection of fairy tales about witches and witchcraft by Godfried Bomans.

As for books written in my mother tongue, I would have to say Dithola tja Mahlakung & Motho wa Badimo, both

AM: What are you reading at the moment and why?

- Oliver Tambo: Beyond the Engeli Mountains by Luli Callinicos.

VK: My listeners recommend so many books to me, which are taking up most of my time at the moment.

- I Write What I Like (a collection of writings by Steve Biko)

22 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

AM: Why is it important to read?

VK: They say reading allows you to travel

- Neo-Colonialism: The Last Stage of Imperialism by Kwame Nkrumah.

- Losing My Virginity by Richard Branson

International

Focus

AUTHOR: Diana Nixon

by Melissa Delport

Diana Nixon was born and raised in Minsk, Belarus and speaks several languages, including English, Polish and Spanish. She also holds a Master of Law Degree, specializing in International Law, from the Belorussian State University’s Department of International Relations.

At 29, this wife and mother of two young girls has achieved what many of us couldn’t do in a lifetime!

Diana’s passion for writing grew from a childhood love of reading. Her professional writing career, however, began only four years ago, with a romantic fantasy novel called Love Lines. Originally written in Russian, it was later translated into English. Since then, she has selfpublished 14 books in the romance and paranormalromance genres, with much success. Checkmate, the first book in her Checkmate Series, hit the Amazon Kindle romance bestseller lists in the US, UK, France, Germany and Australia less than 24 hours after its release. Love Lines (Love Lines, #1), Songs of the Wind (Love Lines, # 2) and Checkmate (Checkmate, #1) have been featured as Indie Books of the Day. Not content with promoting her own work, Diana founded Ink and Scratches in May 2015. Inks & Scratches is a literary magazine focused on promoting authors of all genres, and spreading the word of their books to a loyal fan-base of readers. The magazine is available in both print and digital formats, and can be found on Amazon’s kindle platform.

If you would like to know more about Diana and her books, you can visit her website: http://www.diananixon. blogspot.com

EXCERPT: In Your Eyes Chapter 1 I lived my life on autopilot after the awful night that took Adrian’s life away.

I helped Kassie and her parents with the funeral preparations, but I didn’t know how to prepare myself for saying good-bye to him. They say life is a game made for everyone, and love is a price… But for me, life was a price I had to pay for my love.

I was still in shock, and it was simply impossible to absorb the amount of it.

My guilt made everything even more difficult to stand, it didn’t matter how many times Daniel tried to make me believe Adrian’s death wasn’t my fault, but just a tragic accident. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Adrian’s car speeding down the road, and then… It was all over and gone.

Hundreds of times, I replayed the scenario in my head, trying to figure out if there was a way I could have avoided the crash and everything that followed it. Hundreds of times, I asked myself if I could have done anything to save him. But I never got the answers to my questions… And the worst thing was I never stopped blaming myself for losing the best and most important part of my life. It was a burden I was predestined to live with, for the rest of my life. But frankly, I didn’t want to live, because the night Adrian died, I died right along with him...

“It’s time to go,” Daniel said after a while. He wasn’t going to attend the funeral, well not exactly. He was going to be there, but he didn’t want Kassie to see him. She was still angry at him, even though the police report said whatever had happened, had been just an accident, and Daniel didn’t have anything to do with Adrian’s death.

If only she knew it was me driving the car that night… She would hate me too.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 23

ARTICLE

#DiscoverYourBookself

my

SABF2015

This year the South African Book Fair took place in Newton, Johannesburg.

Cape Town’s loss was Johannesburg’s gain, as people flew in from all over the country to attend what is purported to be the African continent’s largest book fair. Previously known as the Cape Town Book Fair, the organisers found the perfect venue in Turbine Hall, and what a hallowed hall it was over the weekend of 31 July – 2 August 2015.

The campaign theme this year was #DiscoverYourBookself, and I discovered far more than I could have imagined.

I was fortunate enough to be invited as a guest author, to speak on the Speculative Fiction Panel along with authors Fred Strydom and Lauren

24 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

Beukes. The panel was chaired by Louis Greenberg – novelist, editor, screenwriter, and one half of horrorwriting duo, S.L Grey. Surrounded by such talent, it was only natural that I was a little star-struck. The specfic panel was a discussion revolving around South African Speculative fiction writers and their books. We have such incredible local talent writing in this genre, spearheaded of course by the no-introduction-needed Ms Beukes herself.

I had done my research on my fellow panellists, determined to go in armed with knowledge and to impress these industry heavyweights... which turned out to be completely unnecessary. You

experience

by Melissa Delport

would be hard-pressed to find a more humble group of people. Despite the awe-inspiring talent that practically crackles off them like St Elmo’s fire, this dynamic, international award winning trio are warm, friendly, and huge supporters of local writers. They are ambassadors, paving the way for local speculative fiction writers, showcasing their talent for the world to see, living, breathing, laughing proof that South Africa is capable of holding its own on the international stage. And there I was, in their midst, not entirely sure how I got there.

I was terrified. There is no point denying it. I was honoured to have been asked, and I knew that I would benefit massively from the experience, but I felt out of my depth, like Nemo on the edge of the reef, looking out into the blackness of the unknown. In my worst nightmares I imagined Louis throwing me to the barracudas while I mouthed like a one-finned clownfish, Lauren and Fred laughing hysterically at my expense. I couldn’t have been more wrong. The panel, as it turned out, was a blast, interspersed with laughter, teasing, and Lauren’s occasional F-bomb.

Wearing a Wonderwoman t-shirt and a pair of Doc Marten lace-up boots, her diminutive stature encases a largerthan-life personality. Louis, who towers above her, is the epitome of casual cool.

Sandwiched between the two of them at lunch, with a glass of champagne to ease the nerves, I began to feel really comfortable. Fred arrived two glasses of champagne in, by which time I had gotten over my nerves, and the rest of our pre-panel discussion lunch passed by without incident. And without any panel discussion, whatsoever.

Being at SABF was the first time since becoming an author that I was surrounded by what I refer to as “my people”. People who listened to what

I had to say because they felt it was important. People who understood me, understood why I started writing, why I could never stop, and just how far I still have to go. An entire community of readers and writers congregated in one place, wanting to share and learn from one another. For a writer such as myself, it was a beautiful affair, and an amazing experience.

Meet the SABF2015 Speculative Fiction panel: Lauren Beukes: Author of the international hit The Shining Girls, Lauren’s black-magic noir Zoo City won the Arthur C Clarke award and was long-listed for the international Impac Dublin Literary Award. She has worked in journalism, documentarymaking, and children’s TV and writes comics for DC Vertigo.

Louis Greenberg: Louis Greenberg is a novelist, scriptwriter and editor. His first novel, The Beggars’ Signwriters (Umuzi, 2006), was shortlisted for the 2007 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize and the 2007 University of Johannesburg Debut

Prize. His second novel, Dark Windows, was published by Umuzi in 2014.

Under the name S.L. Grey, he co-writes horror-thrillers with Sarah Lotz. Louis has a keen but purely amateur interest in art, food, music, photography and travel. He lives with his wife, two sons and two dogs in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Fred Strydom: Fred Strydom studied Film and Media at the University of Cape Town. He has taught English in South Korea and has published a number of short stories.

He burst onto the book scene this year with his debut novel, The Raft. Fred currently works as a television writer and producer in Johannesburg, where he lives with his wife, three dogs, cat and horse.

Melissa Delport lives in Durban, KZN. She is the author of the published works: The Legacy Trilogy and Rainfall, and independent title; The Traveler, which won the SAIR People’s choice award for Book of the Year 2015.

Melissa has just released the first book in the highly anticipated “Guardians of Summerfeld” series.

For more information about the South African Book Fair please visit their website: southafricanbookfair.co.za.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 25

ARTICLE

Book Revie WHAT’S IN A

The very first person I asked about reviews and how much they influence her book choices was a woman in her thirties. This woman was a voracious reader who read across genres; fiction and non-fiction, and was very internetsavvy. She claimed to pay no attention to reviews and that they didn’t influence her in any way when it came to buying books.

This woman is not alone in preferring the recommendations of friends over trusting book reviews. The most buzz I see for book reviewing online seems to be among the Young Adult book blogger community, though it often seems to me as though they are all talking among themselves and not directly to a mass of potential book-readers. Which may make you wonder: What exactly is the point of a review?

Let’s look at what constitutes a good review, be it on your blog or on a site like Amazon or Goodreads. A review should give you the title, author, imprint, and a general overview of plot and who the main character is. Genre should be mentioned - is the book a romance, a historical non-fiction narrative, a space opera, or a children’s picture book?

These are the basics that a reader would want to know at a glance. Book reviews which discuss style, tone and language can help a reader decide if the book is worth adding to their list. When it comes to reviewing the content of the story, the best reviews are evenhanded in their approach—detailing what worked and what didn’t. There is a style of book-bashing review which highlights only the negatives of a book,

26 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

and while these can be entertaining, they often feel like an exercise in spite.

The balanced review might get fewer hits, but it enables people to make a better decision about whether or not the book is for them. Several readers prefer to read a sample of the book online, such as Amazon provide, in order to get a feel for if they’d enjoy the book. In this sense it’s much like picking up an interesting-looking book in your local bookstore and reading the blurb and the first page. Isn’t that how many of us make those impulsive purchases?

Most of the people I have spoken to don’t make their book-buying decisions based on reviews, however. They rely on word-of-mouth, on seeing the book displayed in the book stores or libraries (whoever said “Don’t judge a book by its cover” was fooling themselves), and on the recommendations of friends who share their taste in literature.

They don’t trust the marketing aspect of ruthlessly over-hyped books, often expecting these big name titles to be a disappointment before they even read them. Why? Because it has happened to them over and over again.

So what’s the deal with the online culture of reviewing on Goodreads, Library Thing, Amazon, B&N, and Kobo?

It’s still essentially word-of-mouth, especially as our social lives become

ew Anyway?

by Cat Hellisen

more and more heavily internet-based, but it shouldn’t replace “real life” conversations about reading. Clicking 4 stars on Goodreads next to a thumbnail-sized image of the book’s cover tells your fellow readers nothing. If you want other people to know about a particular book you loved, tell them a little more.

While “OMG BEST BOOK EVA” might be great for author egos, they don’t help other readers quite as much.

Which brings us to the thorny hellish underworld of writers and book reviews...

Bad or poorly constructed reviews are agonising for an author. A book is, after all, the end result of much pain, sweat and tears.

Many readers are blissfully unaware that it took two years to write, another year to sell, and still another year and a half spent with the publisher going through seven rounds of edits before hitting the shelves for one week only. All that time and effort, and some guy gives it one star and writes, “This book was so terrible I used it as toilet paper.” Worse, he gets fifty-two likes from all his buddies.

At this point, I would advise the author to take a deep breath.

Look at how many people actually pay attention to reviews— professional ones, at that—and move on. Any writer who feels the urge to respond to a negative review needs to go sit in the corner for a while until the feeling passes. Your life will be better for it, I promise.

Book-reviewing and its importance in our book-buying ecosystem has shifted with the surge of book blogs, but reviews, readers and writers need to understand that their reach is limited, and that the best reviews still come from those who know our likes and dislikes, who share our tastes. Which doesn’t mean I believe reviewing is pointless, but simply that we should treat our reviews as a conversation between friends and stop worrying about their impact on sales, good or bad. When the focus becomes more personal in reach, I think we’ve found a path that joins the relentless deluge of “BUY THIS! BUY THIS!” of online reviews to the friend enthusing, “You HAVE to read this, it’s one of the best books I’ve read this year!” and creates a comfortable place between the two.

At the end of the day, reviews are subjective, and they are simply the opinion of one person. One review will not make or break anyone’s writing career, although, if you get nothing but bad reviews, it may be time to adjust your technique and look to the advice and mentorship of fellow writers and beta readers.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 27

World Build

ARTICLE

and the Modern Speculative Fictiona

his article I will try to explain what world building is, how important it is to the speculative fiction writer, and the pitfalls and problems associated with world building. Note: I’m not an expert

28 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

and will never claim to be.

To better understand what world building is, try and think about your suburb or neighbourhood; the street names, the commercial centres, the

municipal buildings, perhaps even the parks and public transport hubs. All of these places are singular aspects of your immediate ‘world’ yet merge together to create and sustain your ‘world’.

ding

al Author

by Dave de Burgh

specific – going to the store for bread and milk; remembering the parking-bay layout while you’re on your way to a municipal building or shop to pay your bills. You already know where you’re headed and where your destination is, so you don’t need to focus on that destination.

World building for the writer is much the same, but only in terms of what has to be put in place for the reader.

Remember, your reader is reading a tale in which characters do certain things in service of the plot – that is the most important aspect of your tale, and what you as the writer need to remain focused on. Everything else is background and adds to the world you are building within your tale – the world your characters inhabit. Let us look at the concept of world building within specific fictional genres:

Fantasy: For example, in Fantasy, world building is supremely important but it can also seriously hamper the telling of the tale.

Settings in Fantasy usually don’t exist at all – the entire world has been created, from the grass to the mountains to the oceans to the rivers to the cities, towns, kingdoms and empires.

World building in Fantasy is much broader and deeper than in most other speculative fiction genres, because not only do you have to create a world that doesn’t exist but you also need to create histories, cultures, myths and legends. You as the writer have to know why a city has that particular name and what the city’s history is, from when it was founded until a point in time not too far after the end of your tale.

You know where you live and work in relation to other places, businesses, houses, etc. This knowledge, however, is background information which you use when you’re about to do something

Why? Well, it’s simple – if we didn’t know enough about our real world, we wouldn’t be able to function properly. If you don’t know the name of the street on which your house or apartment is located, how do you tell people where

you live? If you don’t know where the shops are, how do you go buy groceries?

Knowledge of your world is supremely important to you – but again, only when you need to recall something specific or go somewhere specific. The rest of the time it’s all background information.

World building in Fantasy can also lead you to just world-build – it’s one of the traps I fell into when I was trying to write my novel. I created lists of names, including places, people, cultures, and events. I drew maps to better situate myself in the world I was creating. I jotted down explorations and explanations of the various cultures that inhabited this world I was creating.

And I did very little writing.

My advice? Stick to the details which you need to focus on –such as your characters and their arcs and the plot of your tale. Once you’ve set that in stone (for want of a better phrase) and you know where to begin and where to end, you can fill in the background detail of your world. How do you do that? Think of your character as an explorer. Just as I have no idea about, say, India, and the kind of ‘world’ India is, so would my character have no knowledge of a country or kingdom very far away.

So use your characters to explore the world and to learn about it.

Urban Fantasy: Urban Fantasy can be an immensely fun sand-box to play in, because most UF takes place in our own world – the world of cars, internet, Facebook, electricity, industry, adverts, fashion, etc. What is important to remember about Urban Fantasy is that there’s another ‘world’, a hidden world, behind the real world.

This is the world in which the creatures, magic, mystery and terror hide, the world where your story takes place. In UF (which might sound a bit strange) the writer has to strike a balance between the worlds.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 29

You want to be able to build your tale in a world readers are familiar with but you will also want your readers to look askance at a building they’ll walk past and wonder just what the hell is happening in the shadows. Could there be a creature looking out at them?

Is someone performing some kind of ritual? Where is the magic hidden?

As with Fantasy, your hidden history and hidden world has to be clear as day to you, the writer. If you don’t know enough about the world you’ve created you run the risk of contradicting yourself or even creating something that doesn’t have a place in your world.

Horror: Horror is another genre in which the hidden history of your world plays an important part, and yet Horror is also a genre in which you as the writer don’t really need to ‘create’ a whole new world. The best Horror uses characters to horrify, and as such that’s were your focus should be. Readers who love Horror read it to be scared and terrified or freaked out – it’s about character reaction and interaction, so it’s doubly important for the writer to create the story world in such a way that it serves the characters and the plot.

Think of Stephen King’s ‘IT’ – the entire tale takes place in our world (albeit in towns that don’t exist in New England), and the world building King employed in ‘IT’ served the characters and the plot – he probably does know where IT comes from, but it’s not important to the reader.

30 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

Science Fiction: SF is a genre in which world building is probably the most difficult to pull off well, since SF is the ‘what if’ of genre fiction. SF asks a core question and then proceeds to answer it – think Arthur C Clarke’s ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’. The world building which Clarke did was very research- and probability-focused, which led to the reader understanding how HAL worked, the mechanics of using a planetary body to increase a spacecraft’s speed, and even the worlds beyond the wormhole David Bowman travels through on his journey toward becoming the Star Child.

SF can also, of course, take place in our time, or in the past, or even in a not too distant future – you as the writer need to be able to pose the questions and have the answers so that the world you’re building for your characters rings true for that world. Think of the TV series ‘Defiance’ – the tale takes place on Earth, though an Earth muchchanged from the planet we know. The city of Defiance is situated on and over the ruins of a well-known American city, and this fact has also informed the plot and the world building of the series.

So, what is important to remember when it comes to world building?

1) Background – you as the writer must know your world well enough so that the character’s exploration of the world dovetails with the reader’s exploration.

2) It Must Make Sense ¬– one of the mistakes I made in my novel was to

name a carpet after a people I hadn’t mentioned previously and didn’t mention again. Don’t just throw something in to fill your world with ‘stuff’. If it doesn’t make sense in the context of your world, don’t use it. If you cannot link it to something in your world, don’t use it.

3) Focus First, Build Later – make sure that you know who your characters are and what they must do. That’s the most important aspect of your tale. Extend your world outward from that focalpoint.

4) Have Fun ¬– but not at the expense of your tale. If you’ve been world-building for weeks, shift into writing. You can world build until you’re grey and frail, but you won’t be writing.

I hope this article has given you some insight into how dangerous and wonderful world building can be – it’s an important aspect of any speculative fiction writer’s skill-set, and you will get better at as you continue to write. Some aspects of world building just won’t be important (perhaps grass-colour and texture) and others will – it all depends on what you’re writing and how, where and why your characters interact with your world.

Dave de Burgh is the author of the epic fantasy novel, Betrayal’s Shadow, available on Amazon and in selected retailers. If you’d like to get in touch with Dave you can find him on Facebook, Twitter and at his official site: http:// davedeburgh.weebly.com

Masoja Msiza

Heritage Personified

by Shalate Portia Davhana

Authors caught up with the macho, brown-eyed heartthrob who has been ‘invading’ our living rooms during television prime-time viewing in different soapies and dramas. The legendary Masoja Msiza, continues to transcend in the arts industry locally and abroad. He has been a delight to watch for many of his fans, not only because of his good looks but also his ability to perform across multiple genres.

His journey to eminence began on a school’s fun day, in a jam-packed hall in Springs, east of Jo’burg. But for Masoja, it was not funny that the teacher ambushed him to perform in the presence of 2000 learners, totally unprepared. To his surprise though, he received a standing ovation from the crowd after his impromptu stage debut.

Masoja is one of the country’s renowned multi-talented artist. He is a poetactor-musician-storyteller-playwright and healer. He can rock up with his tailored-shirt for one performance, and

effortlessly slip into the Zulu leopard print vest for the next. It is his versatile aptitude that has earned him accolades and esteem within the industry and with his fans. Some of his TV appearances include Scandal, Isidingo, Zabalaza, Sokhulu & Partners and Zone 14, just to name a few

On countless occasions, Masoja has performed poetry at high profile official events such as during presidential ceremonies locally, as well as premium international events like the Africa Nations Cup and the India’s Freedom Day Celebration. He has published two collections of poetry entitled “The Voice of Hope” and “AVALON” Masoja never misses and opportunity to share his talent with aspiring poets.

He has stimulated the love poetry to millions of young South Africans through his popular SABC TV series, Lentswe Poetry Project. To him, poetry is not only a career, he believes that it can encourage social cohesion in

schools, churches prisons and other social institutions. His bold deep voice adds ‘cream’ to his poetic vibes and has well-positioned him as the best choice to perform poems on SABCs uKhozi FM. His many stage performances include a leading role in Where The Soul resides, where he characterises the late struggle icon Steve Bantu Biko and Once Were Warriors, which depicts King Shaka Zulu.

His skills extend beyond the television screen, theatre stage and the microphone. He has vast experience in production and one of his poetry books, AVALON, is self-published. Masoja is an isiZulu name which can be translated as ‘soldiers’ and he definitely possesses an army of talents and continues to mesmerise audiences each time he takes centre stage.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 31

Reads recommended

Title: Rainfall Author: Melissa Delport Romance, Psychological Description: Paige’s father has Alzheimers, and her fiancé is shot and killed in an armed robbery. Paige fights her depression and pulls herself out of the dark place that she has succumbed to, with monumental effort and a new-found determination to live her life to the fullest, doing things that both terrify and exhilarate her.

When Paige meets Adam, the attraction is instantaneous.

Adam grew up in an orphanage and has no recollection of his life before the age of six. Paige falls head over heels in love and embraces a happiness she never dreamed possible.

Until the day she finds Adam in bed with another woman.

Wanting nothing more to do with him, Paige cuts Adam out of her life, until she receives a mysterious visitor, who reveals secrets about Adam’s past that shock Paige to her very core.

Determined to fight for the man that she loves, Paige finds herself on a journey that will change her life forever.

32 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

The Raft Author: Fred Strydom Dystopian Adventure Description: “The day every person on earth lost his and her memory was not a day at all. In people’s minds there was no actual event … and thus it could be followed by no period of shock or mourning. There could be no catharsis.

Everyone was simply reset to zero.”

On day zero, humankind collectively lost its memory. The collapse of civilisation was as instantaneous as it was inevitable. For a man named Kayle Jenner, confined by a regime to a commune on a remote beach, all that remains is the vague and haunting vision of a son … That, and a wooden raft.

It is a raft that will set Kayle on a journey across a broken world to find his son.Braving a landscape of elusive encounters, a maze of other people’s dreams, and muddled memories, Kayle will discover more than just his lost past. He will discover the truth behind Day Zero – a truth that makes both fools and gods of men.

Title: The Miniaturist Author: Jessie Burton Historical Fiction Description: Set in seventeenth century Amsterdam—a city ruled by glittering wealth and oppressive religion—a masterful debut steeped in atmosphere and shimmering with mystery, in the tradition of Emma Donoghue, Sarah Waters, and Sarah Dunant. ”There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed . . .“ On a brisk autumn day in 1686, eighteen-year-old Nella Oortman arrives in Amsterdam to begin a new life as the wife of illustrious merchant trader Johannes Brandt. But her new home, while splendorous, is not welcoming. Johannes is kind yet distant, always locked in his study or at his warehouse office—leaving Nella alone with his sister, the sharp-tongued and forbidding Marin.

But Nella’s world changes when Johannes presents her with an extraordinary wedding gift: a cabinet-sized replica of their home. To furnish her gift, Nella engages the services of a miniaturist—an elusive and enigmatic artist whose tiny creations mirror their real-life counterparts in eerie and unexpected ways . . .

Johannes’ gift helps Nella to pierce the closed world of the Brandt household. But as she uncovers its unusual secrets, she begins to understand—and fear—the escalating dangers that await them all. In this repressively pious society where gold is worshipped second only to God, to be different is a threat to the moral fabric of society, and not even a man as rich as Johannes is safe. Only one person seems to see the fate that awaits them. Is the miniaturist the key to their salvation . . . or the architect of their destruction?

Enchanting, beautiful, and exquisitely suspenseful, The Miniaturist is a magnificent story of love and obsession, betrayal and retribution, appearance and truth.

The Art of Asking Author: Amanda Palmer Biography, Memoir Description: Rock star, crowdfunding pioneer, and TED speaker Amanda Palmer knows all about asking. Performing as a living statue in a wedding dress, she wordlessly asked thousands of passersby for their dollars. When she became a singer, songwriter, and musician, she was not afraid to ask her audience to support her as she surfed the crowd (and slept on their couches while touring). And when she left her record label to strike out on her own, she asked her fans to support her in making an album, leading to the world’s most successful music Kickstarter.

Even while Amanda is both celebrated and attacked for her fearlessness in asking for help, she finds that there are important things she cannot ask for-as a musician, as a friend, and as a wife. She learns that she isn’t alone in this, that so many people are afraid to ask for help, and it paralyzes their lives and relationships. In this groundbreaking book, she explores these barriers in her own life and in the lives of those around her, and discovers the emotional, philosophical, and practical aspects of THE ART OF ASKING. Part manifesto, part revelation, this is the story of an artist struggling with the new rules of exchange in the twenty-first century, both on and off the Internet. THE ART OF ASKING will inspire readers to rethink their own ideas about asking, giving, art, and love.

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 33

ARTICLE

FROM INDIE TO PUBLISHED: Part 2

Self-Publishing experiences My

by Melissa Delport

Why you need to be in control of every production step if you opt to self-publish

Last week I explained why I feel that writers should not use the services of a vanity publisher. This week, I will explain the process and make recommendations of the professionals that I use.

Once you are confident that you have the best possible version of your manuscript in hand, it is time to turn your attention to publishing. The “writing” part of your writer’s journey is over, and you will soon learn that writing your book was actually the easy part.

The first thing you should do is source a good editor. Be prepared to pay for this service, believe me it is money well spent, and a friend or family member with an affinity for English is simply not qualified. Do your homework and ask for references and qualifications. I use Pam Thornley (pamthorn@mweb. co.za) who is, in my opinion, one of SA’s finest. She has worked with many South African authors with widely varying styles – Zakes Mda, Marguerite Poland, David Lambkin, Hamilton Wende, Jacques Pauw, Dalene Matthee and Etienne van Heerden. I also highly recommend Catherine Eberle of Wordweavers (eberles@telkomsa.net), for those with a slightly lower budget.

34 | AUTHORS MAGAZINE

Ensure that your dedication and acknowledgements pages are included when you send your manuscript off for editing, and DO NOT use double spacing and page breaks, if you are being charged per page. You will effectively be paying for editing of blank spaces.

Try to get a quote based on final word count, to avoid confusion. Do not worry about formatting your book at this stage – that comes later.

Once your manuscript has been professionally edited, have it beta read. One beta reader is good, two are better. Three are...well, you get the point. Errors will slip through the cracks, even the most professional editor may overlook an obvious typo, and beta readers who are reading the manuscript for the first time will pick these up. Here, you can use family and friends – although try and use people that you know are avid readers and will enjoy your genre.

You are now ready for one of the most exciting steps in the publishing process: cover design and layout. Come up with a blurb for the back cover. (Note: Ask your editor to proofread this for you.)

You will need a graphic designer to create your cover. I use Wendy at Apple Pie Graphics (www.applepiegraphics.

co.za). If you are publishing in ebook format only, you will only need a front cover. For printed books, you will need both front and back. I always have a very strong idea of what I want on my covers before I contact the designer, and I source images from a website called Shutterstock. For me, the coverdesign is my favourite part of the process, which is fortunate as after my disastrous dealings with a vanity publisher, I was very nearly put off cover-design for life. Let me give you an example as to the difference a good designer makes.

Your graphic designer will also assist you with the internal layout of your book – which includes Chapter headings, fonts, spacing, page numbers and headers and footers. As with your back cover this is only required if you will be printing your book.

You will need to contact the National Library to get an ISBN number – separate numbers will be issued for the printed and the ebook versions. This number is generated and supplied for free although depending on the quantity of books you are printing, you may have to send a few copies over for their records. The ISBN number and bar code must be incorporated onto your cover in the print version.

Next, you need to source a reputable

I supplied my vanity publisher the following brief: “My story is slightly futuristic and the genre is dystopian. My lead character is a soldier (not in the traditional sense with soldier garb, but she is rising against the President and can kill people with her bare hands). If I had to compare her to anyone I would say Sarah Connor from The Terminator, without the guns. She is beautiful but she is also very strong. There are a few elements that could be used in the cover. They are: • The famous Chicago city skyline • A boundary fence • Atomic bomb/ nuclear symbol • A woman (main character is a strong female lead) “ In return, I received these cover options, each more dreadful than the last:

Unable to bear another awful offering, I sourced my own Graphic Designer Apple Pie Graphics – at an additional cost and gave her exactly the same brief. The result is the official cover of The Legacy, and of course, the subsequent sequels which came after:

printer. Your graphic designer should be able to recommend one. I recommend Pinetown Printers, who are reasonably priced, print good quality products and have also started a website where they promote and sell some of the books that they print (especially for people who selfpublish, and print their books with them) – www.igobooks.co.za.

Formatting your book for kindle is slightly trickier and more specialized. I format my own books, thanks to an online tutorial that you can find on the Amazon website.

Amazon provides a number of useful author tools and community forums that provide insight and information that is imperative in successfully using the platform.

Once you have your printed book in your hands, plan a party! Hold a book launch and invite as many people as you can. If you can recover your capital outlay in book sales at this launch, you have nothing left to lose.

I hired a venue and provided snacks and a cash bar.

Getting your books into physical book stores is difficult. You may be able to convince a few of the smaller, independent stores to stock a couple of copies, but the larger chain stores such as CNA, Exclus1ves and Bargain Books will only go through a reputable distributor.

I was fortunate enough that I managed to get a distributor as an Indie author – Gerald Wratten of A.G Book Distribution (www.agbookdistribution.co.za). Without the support of a publisher, however, it is

unlikely that you will sell many copies of your printed book. I now opt to publish my indie titles only on Amazon’s digital Kindle platform, whereas my traditionally published books are printed and available in store.

Now that your book is tangible, your selfpublishing goal has been achieved, but it is only the beginning of your journey. You must now turn your attention to marketing and promotion. I will discuss this in great detail in Weeks 4 and 8, which outlines the importance of social media and virtual tours in book promotion.

Until then, Happy Writing! ** originally published on Allaboutwritingcourses.com

AUTHORS MAGAZINE | 35

NE XT

IS S

UE

AUTHORS

MAGAZINE

OCTOBER 2015

Gareth Crocker