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An old friend unknowingly validated my decision to retell and publish old Setswana folktales. She SMSed me to ask me if I still remembered the story of Tselane and the giant, and if so, can I retell it to her? She says she's the official storyteller to her nieces and the they are having so much fun she needs more stories for variety. Of course I was happy to send her a copy of the story. We'll

Pule's sister Neo broke his wire car during the wire car race in their village. Pule was furious but he forgave Neo - until she damaged his car again. Then he decided to get revenge. Buy The Doll That Grew on Amazon today.

Thank God it’s Friday!  It was not a hectic week choc-full of deadlines, but it was stressful in a “I hate waiting for editorial queries from the publisher” kind of way. I expected the queries to come through and the printing dates are looming. So not hearing from managing editor tied my stomach in all kinds of ugly knots. So I decided to put some focus on personal/self-published projects. The

The good news is that my children's story, The Doll That Grew, is almost ready for release through Amazon. I just need to sort out a few pesky details, like choosing a cover, loading the title on Amazon and setting a launch date. Meanwhile, I have 3 suggested covers to choose  from. The difference is in the text. Please vote for the cover you prefer in the comments section? Option 1  

By Pamela Moeng Check the Sunday Independent Book Review section (Sunday, 29 January) to read about locally written and published crime novels with female protagonists. I was surprised at the number of local writers writing crime thrillers, a genre out of my normal choice range for a number of reasons. What I read made me think I need to read more widely across genres I have never thought of

Today I'm keeping a low profile, writing my fingers off on client projects and guest-posts to promote the ebook. Thanks Rebecca for agreeing to to host me as a guest-blogger. BTW, Rebecca is currently asking her readers: Should you self-publish your book?  Please hop over there and share your views with her and her readers. Self-publishing is not for losers:-) My answer is: self-publish when

The 12th edition of South Africa's bestselling guide to starting a business is now on sale. Updated in 2010 and published in August, the book is made up of 3 main sections: Planning, Getting started and Scaling up. The book is published by USA Oxford University Press and is available from Kalahari.net for R211.95.Exclusive Books is also offering the book at a very special web site price of

It's now official - the big non-fiction book will be launched on the 9 June 2011.I'm still not sure what I can say or cannot say about the contents of the book, so I'll check with my publisher and maybe tell you more then. I'll also  find out if they will set up a pre-ordering facility and maybe some of y'all can buy a copy or two before the launch? Heh! No presssure on you there! My publisher

By Megan Voisey-Braig ReadSA appeals to you to donate books to Equal Education’s Bookery. Equal Education is in particular need of primary and high school books, non-fiction and reference books. All donated books should be in a satisfactory condition please. Any books in Afrikaans and in Xhosa are most welcome too, as are any other books. Equal Education also needs assistance with helping the

Andrew Davis has written to me via READ SA, asking us to donate books to the community of Zoar. Basically, if you'd like to participate, you can choose a book that you want to donate, and mail it to the physical address he has provided.Here's David's letter below, outlining the community of Zoar and its reading needs:The community of Zoar is a very poor Afrikaans rural community situated

Read SA invites you to “Meet the Writers” at a special event in London the day after the conclusion of the London Book Fair. Join SA authors at The Meat & Wine Co., Westfield London, on Thursday April 22 at 7pm (click here for map).Your hosts will be the South African writers Imraan Coovadia, Siphiwo Mahala, Angela Makholwa, Thando Mgqolozana, Kgebetli Moele, Ndumiso Ngcobo, Fiona

"The most criticism that’s levelled on writers is that after the submission of the manuscript, we sit back and relax and wait for the book to sell itself," writes Zukiswa Wanner in her latest post entitled "It's Still The Marketing Stupid!" Zukiswa is the author of Behind Every Successful Man and The Madams.I beg to differ on that with regards to South African writers (and you can call me a

One paperback novel at Exclusive Books ( by my favourite author) = R103Three secondhand paperback novels = R40 each, which translates into R120. If I can find the books.Eleven ebooks by my favourite authors (same titles I could have bought in paperback) = R111.50 from Must Love Books.And yes, I still love being able to touch a book and turn the page. But somehow, the math says buy an ebook. I

The responsible parent in me knows we need to give our children as rounded an education as possible, so they get useful skills, gain understanding of how the world works and can find their own career interests.But as an individual, I couldn't help but why my 11-year old daughter needs to know how hydroelectric power stations and geothermal power work.Today I was testing her on sources of power;

Tomorrow morning Baby is taking part in a school arts programme as narrator of her class play. She was thrilled to land the role, which she had to audition for. She even started mumbling about a career in the arts, but I suspect something else will soon grab her attention. Or she’ll go back to wanting to be an accountant. That's what she wanted to do for years after finding out that there were