Unfolding the magic and pragmatism of good Narrative

If one of the things on your to-do list is to tell the great South African story (or any damn-good story), you simply can not afford to miss this year's Narrative Journalism conference.

For both writers and journalists, the conference organisers have lined up speakers such as Zakes Mda, Mark Gevisser, Fred Khumalo, Jacqui Banaszynski, Tom French and Dave Hazelhurst, among others.

Master of magical realism, Mda will take participants through the journey of building effective characters while speakers such as Gevisser and Hazelhurst, pass on the practical skills to write and deliver compelling narrative.

French and Banaszynski have both won Pulitzer prizes for their work while acclaimed author Khumalo is the winner of the 2005 EU Literary Award for his novel Bitches Brew.

The award winning Gevisser, who is currently updating his much lauded biography of President Thabo Mbeki, writing a narrative film script on the ANC’s 1930 Congress and his celebrated Mail and Guardian political profiles were collected in the anthology: Portraits of Power.

Creative director at The Star newspaper, Hazelhurst will unpack the production of a narrative project – from idea to publication – through “The Search for Looksmart”, a story which recently won the Mondi Shanduka award for best narrative story.

Taking place at Hackle Brooke Estate on May 21 and 22, the conference aims to deepen the understanding and power of narrative journalism, and to give journalists the skills to use it more effectively.

The conference, now in its fourth year, continues to attract considerable media interest from across the continent.

Said frayintermedia Managing Director Charmeela Bhagowat: “This year we want to build on past gains and focus on practical skills for reporters, sub editors and editors from every type of media.
A specialist one day skills workshop will also be run on 23 May by Jacqui Banazynski.

With limited space, interested parties are advised to book sooner rather than later.

For more information on the conference, please contact Debby Kramer at: 011 341 0767 or at dkramer@frayintermedia.com

Download registration forms here.
Download the draft programme here.

Eish, lyk is this a treatise on twang? Yah neh?

Do you find that you sometimes subconsciously emulate the tonal inflections of the people you speak to?

The phenomenon of 'twanging' (the word itself is a souf-efrikanism I believe) is best explained by the action of adapting your natural accent to mimic the one of the person you're addressing.
Twangers are derided by their critics for aspiring to sound more 'upper-class' than the dictates of their social status [squared] quo, with commentary running along the line of "Why you talking like a white?".

So far, thirteen years of democracy in SA is just a band-aid on the schismic gashes left by the idea that each racial group be left to develop along a path set by white supremacists. With that as our baggage and legacy, our fully heterogeneous society makes up a chorus so varied and rich, that South African Accent in itself is a misnomer. Our voices bump up against each other everywhere. It's this huge conversation, and here and there, we encounter the Twang.

I twang. And I only realised it after I listened to an interview I recorded. It was with gag-disbelief that I heard my voice outside itself, "Yawh, That's true."
I said "Yawh", the way most white south africans would.
Not "Yah", the way most indian south africans would.
It wasn't a conscious act. At no point, did I commit to thinking, "Ok, I'm interviewing the woman the Sunday Times billed as South Africa's richest. I can't show my 'jaat'* here."
And it's not just 'talking White'. I've since noticed I adjust not only to accent, but also nuance, pace and cadence of the people I speak to, more so when it's a situation that requires engagement and earnest concentration.

My mother twangs too, though she'll deny it. And when she speaks to elderly indian women, she lapses into indian-aunty talk (when every fourth word is 'shame', regardless of the positive nature of what's heard. E.g: Your husband bought a new car? Shame, that's so nice, shame. Your daughter's engagement is on Saturday, shame, you must be so happy.)
I've heard friends and work colleagues twang. And I do not believe that anyone of them do it with purposeful intent.

When we converse with someone face-to-face, we mirror their body-language. When they sit with their legs crossed, we tend towards crossing our legs. Apparently, we do this to create a sense of empathy with the other and establish common denominators to smooth the interaction.
Perhaps this holds true for twanging. Some subliminal notion that if we sound like the people we want to engage, we create commonality?

I welcome your thoughts.



*gujarati for caste or social standing

where the smoke indeed thunders (pending wordy words)

Mosi oa Tunya

Press Pause and hold.

The Mighty Zambezi at her most tender.

On private equity, the carrier trade and ‘cheap money'

"If everyone knows where the cheap money is, they are all going to go to the same place to get the cheap money. Until it runs out.
And how will it run out?
When the Bank of Japan increases interest rates. Then global liquidity dries up.

There’s a wonderful story about a village where there’s only one pig. One guy sells the pig to the neighbour at one price and the neighbour sells it to another guy at another price and the pig keeps circulating around town and everyone’s making money off the pig. And then one guy doesn’t quite understand. He buys the pig and kills it. Everyone's mad at him. "Don’t you know this is how we make money?" they say. He says, "I was hungry, I thought we were supposed to eat this pig."

And that’s what’s happening with private equity now.
There’s a pig going around the world and one day, Japan’s going to kill it."

Hlelo Giyose, Fund Manager, Stanlib
Speaking at Wits Business School's panel debate on “The Rise of Private Equity. Is South Africa a new target?”
May 30, 2007

Of shivering loins and heaving dirtypillows...

S: how do u write sex though? dont want it to be all smarmy
S2: true
you dont want it porno
nor do you want it mush
or a weird combination i call "morno"
S: yeh...i hav no clue...all this writing...im outa my league
S2: which is kinda like mills and boons
S2: a mix of mush and porno, but where you're saying "more? noooooooooooo"

One morning in Rietvallei

Where the streets have no names...

through a portal of mattress-springs (...here be dreams)

skip around the arrogance of cauliflowers...

and the colours will not be still...

stuff your fists into your ears.

It is now that you must hear through your eyes.

---

(Elliot Mlalazi's nursery in Rietvallei ext1, West Rand, Johannesburg)