2025 AUTHORS

Bruce Fordyce is a South African legend, renowned for his incredible achievements in the Comrades Marathon. He has won the race nine times, including eight consecutive victories from 1981 to 1988, and set multiple records during his career. Beyond his running career, Bruce is a motivational speaker, writer, and coach. He has authored several books, including the bestselling "Winged Messenger" and "How to Run the Comrades." He has been a columnist for various newspapers and magazines and is the Editor at Large for Runners World.

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Bruce is actively involved in various roles, including being the CEO of Parkrun SA and a member of 'Fordyce and Associates.' He is also an ambassador for The South African Sports Trust and has held numerous administrative positions in sports organizations.

He is married to Gill and has three children: Cara, Jonathan, and Nicholas. Bruce's contributions to sports and his community have earned him numerous awards and honors, including an honorary doctorate from WITS University.

Bibi Slippers is 'n skrywer wat ook soms rolprente en ander kuns maak. Sy woon en werk in die Overberg. Haar digbundels is Fotostaatsmasjien (2016) en Soekenjin (2023). 

Elmarie Viljoen-Massyn is gebore in Pietermaritzburg. Sy studeer o.a. taalpraktyk en is tans 'n vryskut-taalpraktisyn. Sy woon in Bloemfontein saam met haar man. 'n Tweede spanningsroman is stadigaan in wording.

Frik de Jager is reeds sedert 2018 ʼn gereelde gas op die gewilde RSG se Klets en Kook-program. Hy was dan ook die eienaar en bestuurder van ʼn paar restaurante vanaf die vroeë 2000’s waar hy veral daarop gefokus het om sy passie vir “peasant food” of plattelandse kos van oor die hele wêreld uit te leef. By sy laaste restaurant in Rosendal en ook nou by sy huis in Pretoria, paar hy “peasant” disse met reisverhale en avonture ervaar oor die afgelope vier dekades.

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Frik de Jager has been a regular guest on the popular RSG’s Klets en Kook program since 2018. He was also the owner and manager of a few restaurants from the early 2000’s, where he particularly focused on living out his passion for “peasant food” or rural food from all over the world. At his last restaurant in Rosendal and now at his home in Pretoria, he pairs “peasant” dishes with travel stories and adventures experienced over the past four decades.

Gideon Hendrik Groenewald is a South African scientist with a PhD in Geology, focusing on the Stratigraphy and Sedimentology of the Karoo Basin. Due to the importance of Palaeontology in the understanding of the architecture and history of the Basin, Gideon spent at least half the research time for his PhD studies (1985 to 1996) on the basic understanding of the palaeo-environments in the Permian to Triassic aged sedimentary rocks of the Karoo Supergroup. Gideon has an intimate working relationship with the Golden Gate Highlands National Park and the Kingdom of Lesotho, where he spent many years as research officer as well as the “Lesotho Facilitator for Transfrontier Conservation” with the Peace Parks Foundation. As part of his professional involvement in conservation management he is exposed to formal research in various fields of tourism and the art of “fossil hunting” (Honorary Research Fellow at Wits University). He joins renowned botanist Dr Rodney Moffet and Paddy Gordon, Parks Manager at Golden Gate Highlands National Park, in an hour of celebration, remembering the many untold secrets of the geology, geomorphology and palaeontology of the Stormberg Group of rocks, that awakens the curiosity of our traditional peoples, who live the wonderful mosaic of “scientific discoveries” on the canvas of rocks, soils, plants, animals and cultures in the Golden Gate Highlands National Park and the Kingdom of Lesotho.

Ian Roberts is an award-winning actor, playwright and musician. Ian shot to fame in the late 1980s for his roles in hugely popular television series such as Verspeelde Lente, Arende and Inkom’ Edla Yodwa, opposite Henry Cele. Apart from his role in the Oscar-winning South African movie Tsotsi, Ian has also played in many international movies that were filmed in South Africa such as The Power of One, King Solomon’s Mines and Jane and the Lost City.

His performance as Boet in the long-running Castrol Can of the Best advertising campaign made him a household name. He is also the lead singer of the band Die Radio Kalahari Orkes.

Nthabiseng JahRose Jafta is a poet, curator and publisher whose words transcend time, memory, and language. Rooted in the deep spiritual and cultural landscapes of Africa, she writes from the ethereal space between dreams and remembrance, where poetry reveals itself in whispers and echoes. Her latest offering, Alora : She Dreamt Poems in Many Tongues, is a testament to this gift—an anthology born from dreamscapes and translated into twelve languages spanning four continents. 

Justin Fox is the author of more than twenty books, including The Cape Raider, Whoever Fears the Sea, Place and Secret Cape Town. He is the former editor of Getaway magazine and has a doctorate in English from Oxford University. Fox lives in Cape Town.

Jared McDonald is Associate Professor in the Department of History and Assistant Dean of the Faculty of Humanities at the University of the Free State, South Africa. He holds a PhD in History from SOAS, University of London. His research interests include the intersections between Christianity, imperial citizenship, and resistance in the Cape Colony during the early nineteenth century; the work of the London Missionary Society in southern Africa; comparative histories of settler colonialism; and the genocide of the Cape San. He has published articles on these themes in journals such as the Journal of Genocide Research, Historia, and the South African Historical Journal and has contributed chapters to works such as Genocide on Settler Frontiers: When Hunter-Gatherers and Commercial Stock Farmers Clash (Berghahn Books, 2015) and Chosen Peoples: The Bible, Race and Empire in the Long Nineteenth Century (Manchester University Press, 2020). McDonald published his first monograph in 2023 with Routledge, titled Khoesan and Imperial Citizenship in Nineteenth Century South Africa.

Koos van der Merwe se CV kan lank wees, vol toekennings en benoemings (selfs ’n SAMA-benoeming), maar Koos is van mening ’n CV het nie veel nut nie. Wie wil nou verveel word met ’n historiese lys van prestasies?

Die aanhangers van hierdie ervare skrywer, digter, musikant, storieverteller en akademikus, weet, op die verhoog is al wat vir Koos van der Merwe tel die oomblik, die poësie en die musiek. Sy wens is om die lag en die trane van die lewe, die skoonheid en die gruheid, die hunkering, die omhelsing en die ontnugtering in te nooi in die klompie minute van saamwees onder die geklank van die kuns.

Sy repertoire is meestal eie skeppinge, maar Jaques Brell, Leonard Cohen en Bob Dylan bly maar altyd insluip as welkome gaste.

En as hierdie CV vir jou genoeg is, dan sal jy nie teleurgesteld vanaf een van Koos se konserte vertrek nie.

 Karyn Maughan is an award-winning journalist, documentary producer and best-selling author. She writes for News24 and is a BBC contributor. She regularly appears on local and international radio and TV stations. She co-authored Nuclear: Inside South Africa’s Secret Deal and her latest book is I Will Not Be Silenced.

Lesedi Molefi is a Soweto-born author, documentary filmmaker, photographer and copywriter. He lives and works in Johannesburg.

Laurinda Hofmeyr is bekend vir haar toonsettings van gedigte. Verse van bekende digters soos Sheila Cussons, Antjie Krog, Breyten Breytenbach en N.P.van Wyk Louw kry met Laurinda se toonsetting daarvan ʼn nuwe, musikale baadjie. Sy geniet aanvanklik erkenning as liedjieskrywer nadat haar toonsetting van die gedigte “Ek het ’n huisie by die see”, “Kabouterliefde” en “Vir ’n pepermossie” deur Laurika Rauch bekend gemaak word. Sedertdien het Laurinda vyf albums die lig laat sien, almal bestaande uit toonsettings van gedigte.  Laurinda tree gereeld plaaslik, by feeste en soms in die buiteland (België, Nederland en Frankryk) op.

Award-winning author and publisher Melinda Ferguson burst onto the local literary scene with her hard-hitting addiction memoir, Smacked in 2005. Her memoirs Hooked,  Crashed and Bamboozled, followed. She has published over a 100 titles under her imprint,  Melinda Ferguson Books, since 2012. These include the Sunday Times Alan Paton Award winner in 2016, Rape A South African Nightmare by Dr Pumla Dineo Gqola. 

Marida Fitzpatrick is ’n skrywer en bekroonde joernalis. Haar skryfwerk vir Netwerk24, Beeld, Huisgenoot, SARIE en Insig is al met verskeie pryse en benoemings vereer deur onder meer die ATKV, Vodacom, Sikuvile, PICA en Media24. Haar vorige roman is ook vir ’n ATKV-Woordveertjie benoem. Sy het ’n meestersgraad in kreatiewe skryfkuns en ’n honneursgraad in joernalistiek – beide met lof. Mara is haar derde roman. 

Marida Fitzpatrick is an author and award-winning journalist. Her journalistic work for Netwerk24, Beeld, Huisgenoot, SARIE and Insig has been awarded and nominated for numerous prizes by, inter alia, the ATKV, Vodacom, Sikuvile, PICA and Media24. Her previous novel was nominated for an ATKV Award. She has obtained a Masters Degree in Creative Writing and an Honours Degree in Journalism – both cum laude. Mara is her third novel.

(Dr) Marian Human-Nel was in Prieska op skool en voltooi ook daar haar skoolloopbaan. Gedurende die 1980s studeer sy aan die UV en verwerf ’n BA.Ed-graad in Opvoekunde, Afrikaans en Sielkunde en ‘n honneursgraad in Afrikaans. Heelwat later studeer sy tussen skoolhou, huishou en kinders grootmaak verder en verwerf in 2003 haar meestersgraad in Afrikaanse literatuuronderrig. Haar PhD (2009) in Afrikaanse literatuursosiologie fokus op vroueskrywers binne die Afrikaanse literatuursisteem, asook op die verhaalkunde as deel van gemeenskapsradio. Die afgelope 14 jaar is Marian lektor in Afrikaans addisionele taal op die Qwaqwa-kampus van die Universiteit van die Vrystaat. Sy woon in Clarens waar sy gereeld as stemkunstenaar en lofsanger optree. Sy is getroud met JP Nel (’n agronoom) en hulle het twee dogters, Anna-Retha en Anna-Mi en twee kleinkinders.

Morabo Morajele was born in Lesotho and raised and educated in several African countries and one in Europe. He holds degrees from the London School of Economics and the Institute of Social Studies at The Hague. Morabo has spent most of his working life working in the development sector in Southern Africa. He was an employee of the United Nations Development Programme, was a lecturer at the WITS University Graduate School of Public and Development Management and subsequently worked as consultant for various international organisations, NGOs and governments in Southern Africa. 

Morabo is also a musician and has performed with Abdullah Ibrahim, with the late Sibongile Khumalo at Ronnie Scott’s in London, and with numerous leading South African jazz musicians including the now deceased Bheki Mseleku, Zim Ngqawana and Winston Mankunku Ngozi, among others, as well still living artists such as McCoy Mrubata and Paul Hanmer. His own group Voice, was nominated for a South African Music Award, (SAMA) in the mid-2000s. 

Morabo’s first novel titled How We Buried Puso was published in 2006 and was longlisted for the Sunday Times prize. His second novel, Three Egg Dilemma was published in 2023 and was shortlisted for the Sunday Times Fiction Prize and for the inaugural Department of Arts and Culture, Culture and Creative Industries Award. It won the UJ Prize for Literature. 

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Morabo participated at the annual Caine Prize for African Writing retreat convened at Lake Malawi in 2024. His short story is included in the Caine Prize anthology due for publication at the end of February 2025. In the meantime, in between procrastinating, he is writing stories for an upcoming collection.

Nikki Munitz overcame the  gruelling experience of prison to become a global leader in Life Coaching and mental wellness. Her revolutionary approach to addiction treatment is transforming lives in South Africa, empowering thousands to break free from self-doubt and negative beliefs, Her memoir Fraud- How Prison Set Me Free is a bestseller.

Michele Magwood has been instrumental in shaping the cultural discourse of South African literary journalism for over three decades. Serving as the Sunday Times' literary voice, she crafted incisive reviews, profiles, interviews, and essays with established and emerging authors that have become synonymous with her articulate aesthetic.  Renowned for her critical eye and authentic warmth, Michele has been an advocate for diverse voices, introducing novel perspectives to contemporary literature. Her multifaceted and award-winning career as an editor, broadcaster, and literary journalist has established her as a vital figure in South Africa's publishing landscape.

Pieter du Toit is the author of the bestselling books The Stellenbosch Mafia and The ANC Billionaires. He is assistant editor at News24, and heads the investigations team.

Rodney Moffett who has a Ph.D. in plant taxonomy from the University of Stellenbosch, was previously Professor of Botany at the Qwaqwa campus when it was part of the University of the North. He retired in 2000 and since then has remained active and is currently an honorary Research Fellow of the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of the Free State and an Associate of the Afromontane Research Unit at the Qwaqwa campus of that University.

Books recently published by him include: Sesotho plant and animal names and plants used by the Basotho (2010); From UNIN to UFS, - 25 years, a history of the Qwaqwa Campus of UFS (2013); A Biographical Dictionary of Contributors to the Natural History of the Free State and Lesotho (2014); A Field Guide to the Clarens Village Conservancy (2018); A Scientific Bibliography of the Drakensberg, Maloti and Adjacent Lowlands (2020); Meriana ya Dimela tsa Basotho – Medicinal Plants (2020,2nd edn) and A Scientific Bibliography of the far Northern Drakensberg (2023).

In January 2023, he was awarded the South African Association of Botanists prestigious Silver Medal for his contribution to botany in South Africa.

Piet is a seasoned political commentator and writer, and is an Associated Professor of  Political Studies and International Relations at North West University.

Paddy grew up in Somerset West as a wild child, taken mountain climbing often by father who was a teacher and school principal for a lifetime.  He has a basic science degree in the life sciences, and have post graduate qualifications in Botany, Education and Business Management.  He joined SANParks as an education officer in Knysna 36 years ago, and since then has managed 7 national parks; including the Richtersveld, Mountain Zebra, Table Mountain, Garden Route (which is Wilderness, Knysna and Tsitsikamma) and now the Golden Gate Highlands National Park.  Comparing biomes and natural systems between these national parks have provided an incomparable learning experience.

Susan Coetzer is 'n bekroonde aktrise met drie Vita-toekennings vir haar spel in onder meer Diepe grond en Die storm. Sy wen ook 'n Artes as beste aktrise vir die televisiedrama Meester. Vanjaar is sy terug op die kassie as die berugte Mercia (Louis se ma) in die kykNET-sepie, Binnelanders. Sy is ook die skrywer van 'n rits boeke met 'n geestelike inslag. Haar debuut Oros vir die siel het meer as 30 000 eksemplare verkoop. Haar derde roman, Haas en Harriët bly op die topverkoperlys. As motiveringspreker reis Susan sedert 2007 die land en buurstate plat. Sy skryf ook 'n humoristiese agterblad vir die tydskrif rooirose waar sy dagboek hou van die liefdeslewe van 'n ouerwordende Lisa de Waal. Susan woon in Johannesburg en skilder in haar vrye tyd.

Simon van Schalkwyk  lives and works in Johannesburg where he is the current Head of the Department of English Studies at Wits University. He is co-editor of Safundi, an internationally recognised academic journal addressing southern Africa and its transnational relationships to other parts of the world, and he also acts as the academic editor for The Johannesburg Review of Books, a bi-monthly online magazine gathering reviews, essays, poetry, photographs, and short fiction focused predominantly but not exclusively on South Africa and other African countries. Simon has conducted interviews with with local and internationally recognised writers and academics such as Peter Anderson, Paul Beatty, Leon De Kock, Geoff Dyer, Paul Gilroy, Amitav Ghosh, and Hedley Twidle. He has also contributed essays, reviews, short fiction, and poetry to a wide variety of publications including The Johannesburg Review of Books, Aerodrome, The AvBob Poetry Project, Imago, New Contrast, The Conversation, and The Mail and Guardian. His first collection of poetry, Transcontinental Delay, was published by Dryad Press in 2021, and his second collection, Zero Summer, is due to appear under the Dryad imprint in late 2026

Thato Nsele, known to many as Afua Nubiana, is a multifaceted creative force from Bethlehem in the Free State. As a jazz guitarist, playwright, music director and performing poet, Afua's work is deeply rooted in her cultural heritage. Her music, inspired by her African roots, is a testament to her passion for storytelling and creative expression.

Teboho "Talk-Sick" Mokuena is an enthusiastic and creative spoken word artist originally from Qwaqwa but currently residing in Bloemfontein.  A dedicated poet, he is known for his imaginative, rap-influenced writing style. Eager to continue being a student of the art form, he's intent on cementing his presence in the sphere of spoken word.

Tony is hugely popular worldwide for his thriller and non-fiction books. He splits his time between his native Australia and southern Africa, the setting for more than 20 of his novels. 

Sven Axelrad burst onto the literary scene in 2023 with his magical and quirky debut, Buried Treasure. The novel was shortlisted for the Sunday Times Literary Award. His second novel, God’s Pocket (2024) was a main feature at literary festivals around the country and received excellent reviews. Sven is an accountant who reads a lot, is covered in tattoos, plays the guitar, and loves his dog. The Nicotine Gospel is his third novel.

T.J. Strydom is a business author and journalist. He has written and reported for Reuters, the Sunday Times, Financial Mail and Beeld. His unauthorised biography of Christo Wiese scaled the bestseller lists in both English and Afrikaans, as did his second non-fiction title Koos Bekker’s Billions. Capitec - Stalking Giants is his third book.