Describe yourself in a sentence.
I am, most of the time, a very private and reserved person, but once in a while, especially around my birthdays, I get very wild and adventurous.
Describe your ideal reader.
Anyone who considers [themselves] an African owes it to himself or herself to read this book, which attempts to change the ‘dark and dangerous” Africa stereotype that has been created by mainstream media. Any person who is passionate about this wonderful, exciting, rich, but yet so poor, continent called Africa will find it a great read. My ideal reader could also be someone who wants to pursue a dream, but is scared of letting go of the comfort zone. After all, the book encourages people not only to follow their hearts but also to relentlessly pursue their dreams.
What was the originating idea for Dark Continent My Black Arse?
At the beginning of 2005, knowing full well that in June of that year I was going to turn 30, I decided to do something bigger than the other stuff (for example, bungee jumping, parachuting, running the Comrades) that I had done before to celebrate my birthdays.
Secondly, from a very young age I had always wanted to write a book. Thirdly, Africa as a continent has always fascinated me. In May 2005, I decided to do the Cape-to-Cairo as part of my birthday celebration, and then attempt to write a book based on my travels. As they [sometimes] say, the rest is in the book.
Describe the process of writing and publishing the book. How long did it take?
While travelling I took hand notes. After the trip it took me four months to compile what I thought at the time was an excellent manuscript. Fortunately Umuzi, the first publisher that I submitted the manuscript to, thought it had potential but needed a lot of work. That is when the real work began. Relatively speaking, doing the trip was the easy part compared with [getting the] additional information that was required, as well as all the deadlines that I had to meet. Writing a book is, without a doubt, the most difficult and time-consuming exercise I have ever embarked on. In total it took me 18 months from typing out hand notes to having a completed manuscript ready for publishing as a book.
Name some writers who have inspired you and tell us briefly why or how.
Quite a few authors have had an impact on how I perceive and live my day-to-day life. If implemented effectively, I find Steven R Covey’s habits very helpful if one wants to live a life that matters. I also used to stress about almost everything until I read Richard Carlson’s Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff. In fact I took this book with me while doing the Cape-to-Cairo. I also find Harold Kushner’s books to be analytical, insightful, enriching to the soul and thought-provoking, especially if you want to live a meaningful life. Stephen Hawking’s concise but simple explanation of the creation of the universe made me realise how much we have been lied to as religious people. Now and then I enjoy conspiracy theorists such as David Icke.
What are you reading at the moment?
Race to Dakar by Charley Boorman. Just finished re-reading Screw It, Let’s Do It Again by Richard Branson.
Do you write by hand, or use a typewriter or computer?
For this particular book, I wrote by hand while travelling and then transferred everything to a computer at night when the two women in my life (my fiancée and my two-year-old daughter) were fast asleep.
What is the purpose of travel writing?
It’s to make couch travellers feel like they have visited a lot of places. Seriously, it is to inspire and encourage other people to go out there and experience life in other places, countries and continents. In essence it is to give people that ‘oomph” to get up from their black [and white] arses and acknowledge that the least we can do — in this ever-expanding universe — is to extensively travel on this tiny blue planet called Earth.
How do you see the future of South African literature?
It looks promising but a conscious effort still needs to be made [by all stakeholders] to encourage more black African people to read. Just imagine if only 10% of black Africans were to read general books. If official figures are anything to go by, black Africans make up 79,5% of South Africa’s 47-million population. Therefore we are looking at about 3,7-million readers. Therefore there is definitely a huge untapped market. I believe if all stakeholders were to play their roles well the South African literary industry will — with time — blossom into something that all of us will be proud of.
Is there anything you wish to add?
I am just taking it for granted that, purely because I am black, my arse is black as well. My fiancée, I hope, will check me one of these days —