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south african poetrylatest news & developments
Launched: Siphokazi Jonas has put out a poetry collection titled Weeping Becomes a River, which explores themes of identity, feminism, womanhood, trauma, community and resilience. Photo: Supplied

Siphokazi Jonas on storytelling, survival and the future of African literature

Poet and storyteller Siphokazi Jonas explores identity, lineage and resilience in her debut collection, blending folklore and feminism for a new generation

Have a blast: A saxophonist performs at a previous edition of Heritage Day celebrations. Photo: Supplied

Diary: Heritage Day at Zeitz MOCAA, Friends of Feya Faku in Durban, Poetry at Market Theatre

Your essential dose of art and culture

The MTN Bushfire Festival in eSwatini, which included a poetry and acoustics showcase. (Umsamo we Culture)

‘Travel has been my classroom’

From eSwatini to Johannesburg, poets are finding new voices through travel, collaboration and the transformative power of cultural exchange

The community responded to the death by looting the shop and assaulting the owners. (Thulani Mbele/Timeslive)

Poets’ society revolution

The recognition garnered by young poets’ collections should make the publishing industry reflect on the state of South Africans’ poetic landscape

Melancholy and light

Melancholy and light

Stephen Watson’s death has robbed South African literature of a prodigious talent.

Panacea for Philistines

Panacea for Philistines

According to the festival organisers it will feature a poet of "high excellence who reflects Dennis’s passion for human rights and integrity".

Innovative platforms for local literature

Allan Kolski Horwitz explains independently minded publishing collective Botsotso, while Darryl Accone applauds Colleen Higgs’s award-winning work.

Beating the odds

Percy Zvomuya meets an artist who is championing women in the arts.

Stigmata for my father

As the classic form of the elegy shows, memory can be especially potent when allowed to coalesce around the loss of a loved one.

Shifting worlds, passing worlds

Shaun de Waal samples the works of three South African poets as they get out of town.

The state of verse

An excitement among audiences about local themes is giving impetus to a vital writing culture, writes Gabeba Baderoon.