Our people | Centre for Creative Writing | School of Languages & Literatures

Imraan Coovadia

Director

Imraan Coovadia is a writer and scholar who has been director of the University of Cape Town’s Centre for Creative Writing since 2011. His writing include a history of political poisoning in southern Africa, The Poisoners: on South Africa's Toxic Past (Umuzi, Random House, 2021), a study of non-violent thought, Revolution and Non-Violence in Tolstoy, Gandhi, and Mandela (Oxford, 2020), a collection of essays...

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Students' Profiles

Megan Tennant-Vink

Megan Tennant-Vink’s story, Little Women, was published in The Common magazine. It won a PEN America debut short story prize (details here.

Jesse Brown

Jesse Brown is a writer and filmmaker. He co-directed the feature film Finding Optel which premiered at Silwerskermfees and London Film Festival in 2025. He also wrote and directed the short film Dream Dinner (2024).

https://iol.co.za/entertainment/movies/2025-09-03-from-siblings-to-film-makers-mikayla-and-jesse-browns-heartfelt-journey-in-finding-optel/#google_vignette

Mary Watson

Mary Watson’s first collection of short stories, Moss, was published in 2004, and her most recent novel, Blood to Poison, was published with Bloomsbury in 2022. She has published across various genres, including thrillers and children’s books. She now lives in Ireland.

Zubayr Charles

Zubayr Charles graduated cum laude from the UCT MA Creative Writing programme. He is a writer, playwright, and poet from Cape Town, and his most recent play, This Bra’s a Psycho, ran at the Artscape Theatre in 2025. He describes himself as an “all-round creative being”.

Nape A' Motana

Nape A’ Montana is best known for his novel, Fanie Fourie's Lobola (2007), which was adapted into a film in 2013. He has published a number of books over his career, most recently Babatunde’s Heroic Journey (2018). He lives in Pretoria.

Kerstin Hall

Kerstin Hall is a fantasy and science fiction writer based in Cape Town. Her most recent novel, Asunder, is a finalist for both the Nebula and Locus Awards. She is also a fiction editor.

Wanjiru Koinange

Wanjiru Koinage is a Kenyan writer whose novel, The Havoc of Choice, is considered a classic. She is a co-founder of Book Bunk, a social impact firm that exists to restore old libraries and install new ones in public spaces in Nairobi.

Mia Arderne

Mia Arderne is a Cape Town based writer, artist, and dancer. She writes about gender-based violence, sex worker rights, and mental health. Her debut novel is titled Mermaid Fillet.

Henrietta Rose-Innes

Henrietta Rose-Innes won the 2008 Caine Prize for African Writing for her story "Poison". Her novels, essays, and short stories have been widely published.

Ilze Hugo

Ilze Hugo’s debut novel The Down Days was published in 2020 and was shortlisted for the Morning News’ Tournament of Books Award, longlisted for a Nommo Award, and an Amazon Editor’s Pick.

Fourie Botha

Fourie Botha is an editor and poet. His collection of poetry Donkerkamer was shortlisted for the Ingrid Jonker Prize in 2013. His second collection is called Krap uit die see.

David Cornwell

David Cornwell is a writer and musician. His work has been featured in a number of publications, and his first novel Like It Matters was longlisted for the Sunday Times Fiction Prize. His latest book is called Hell of a Country.

David Viviers

David Viviers is a writer, and screen and theatre actor. His film/TV work includes Binnelanders, Tali’s Baby Diary, Kanarie, No Hiding Here, Home Affairs 1 & 2, Rage and Black Sails. His debut novel Mirage was published in 2023.

C.A. Davids

C.A. Davids is a novelist and editor. Her debut novel The Blacks of Cape Town was published in 2013, and her book How To Be A Revolutionary won the Sunday Times Literary Award for best fiction in 2022 and has been published globally.

Sam Beckbessinger

Sam Beckbessinger is the author of the bestseller Manage Your Money Like a F*cking Grownup and Moving to the UK. She also writes horror stories and kids’ TV shows.

Bongani Kona

Bongani Kona is a writer, editor, and co-curator of the Archive of Forgetfulness project. His writing has appeared in Chimurenga, Safe House: Explorations in Creative Nonfiction, The Daily Assortment of Astonishing Things and Other Stories, The Baffler and BBC Radio 4.He is the president of PEN South Africa.

Brad Harris

Brad Harris founded Imagnary House in 2015, a publishing house focusing on children’s and YA stories. His latest publication The Brave Turtle was commissioned by the NSRI.

Kris van der Bijl

Kris van der Bijl focuses on African literature, speculative fiction, and storytelling. His work has appeared in publications like Wasafiri, The Johannesburg Review of Books, and News24.

James Clarke

James Clarke is the co-author of the graphic novel, Kariba which is an African fantasy-adventure inspired by the mythology of the Zambezi River.

Vernon Head

Vernon Head is an architect and award-winning novelist and poet. He is an avid birdwatcher, which inspires his work. His book On that Wave of Gulls was award-winnning and longlisted for the Sunday Times Literary Awards.

Benedikt Jordaan

Benedikt Jordaan is a writer, actor, and award-winning director. He is passionate about storytelling that inspires and connects people.

Dan Corder

Dan Corder enrolled but did not graduate from the MA programme. He went on to become a well-known television, radio, and internet personality. He hosts The Dan Corder Show on eNCA.

Dela Gwala

Dela Gwala is a Johannesburg-born feminist, activist, and writer. She writes about healing, memory, trauma, spirituality and social justice.

Conrad Kemp

Conrad Kemp is a writer and actor who has worked on stage and screen. He has written for the documentaries 'Chasing the Sun' and 'Peak', and was Head of Story for the Emmy-nominated 'Two Sides'.

Irene Ndiritu

Irene Ndiritu is a Nairobi-born writer. Her first book, Lucky Girl, was published by Penguin Random House, New York. Her fictional work has been published in The Yale Review and Adda, and she was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize.

Olivia Coetzee

Olivia Coetzee was born in a small town in Namibia and grew up in a suburb of Cape Town. She has published poetry and opinion pieces in various journals. Innie Shadows is her first novel.

Almini van der Merwe

Almini van der Merwe’s debut novel The Ghost Limb was published in 2023. She has worked as an editor, copywriter, and translator. She is currently working on her second novel.

Michèle Betty

Michèle Betty is the founder of Dryad Press, which is dedicated to publishing South African poetry. Her own poems have been published widely and her debut poetry collection Metaphysical Balm was published in 2017 and shortlisted for the 2018 Ingrid Jonker Prize.

Steven Robins

Steven Robins is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology at the University of Stellenbosch. His novel, Letters of Stone, was published in 2016 by Penguin Random House and was received well by audiences.

Jennifer Thorpe

Jen Thorpe is a feminist writer and researcher who has written three feminist essay collections, two novels, one full-length non-fiction, and three children’s books. Her first novel, The Peculiars, was long listed for the Sunday Times Fiction Prize (2017).

Stephen Symons

Stephen Symons is a lecturer, graphic designer, and writer. His writing has been widely published in journals such as New Coin, Umlanga, New Contrast, Aerodrome and Prufock.

Chantal Stewart

Chantal Stewart is a medical doctor, poet, and writer. Her book, The Veil of Maya, was published by Karavan Press and won the 2024 UCT Book Award.

Recent Graduates

From high concept thrillers to contemporary sci-fi and autobiographical fiction, graduates of UCT’s Creative Writing programme have emerged as leaders in their genres, and an integral part of a new generation of African writers.