Ekari Writes

So, romance is not easy y'all. Translating the feeling of love into words that is supposed to again translate themselves into the reader's feelings? Yikes, I must say. Soooo much opportunity for corniness haha.  But I've given it my best shot! I had been brainstorming for awhile before I typed a single word, until I had a breakthrough at something like 2am. It was this strong feeling which overwhelmed me, and brought me to (happy) tears, and I knew I had something I could work with.  All the other story elements, plot, character, setting etc, were dressing which provided the framework for this emotion to come through. See if you can spot where that moment is... read my first swing of the bat:  The Chief's Daughter, The Warrior and the Grootslang . It's a story of survival on Mulanje Mountain [Link] and tribal prejudice, overcome by love. If you like it, vote. If you really like it, tell a friends to vote. If you love it, shout about it to your friends a...

So, romance is not easy y'all. Translating the feeling of love into words that is supposed to again translate themselves into the reader's feelings? Yikes, I must say. Soooo much opportunity for corniness haha.  But I've given it my best shot! I had been brainstorming for awhile before I typed a single word, until I had a breakthrough at something like 2am. It was this strong feeling which overwhelmed me, and brought me to (happy) tears, and I knew I had something I could work with.  All the other story elements, plot, character, setting etc, were dressing which provided the framework for this emotion to come through. See if you can spot where that moment is... read my first swing of the bat:  The Chief's Daughter, The Warrior and the Grootslang . It's a story of survival on Mulanje Mountain [Link] and tribal prejudice, overcome by love. If you like it, vote. If you really like it, tell a friends to vote. If you love it, shout about it to your friends a...

If a picture is worth a thousand words, this awesome trailer for a free  (for now)  short story  must be worth many times it's weight in font: Support Malawi's Muthi Nhlema by downloading his exciting science fiction e-book, TA O'REVA, about the return of Nelson Mandela to a future South Africa destroyed by xenophobia. You don't have to go through Whatsapp, just go straight to this link https://freeditorial.com/en/books/ta-o-reva and click where you see PDF to start the download. He has 4 days left from the time of this post to win the competition. The more downloads the better, so spread the word!

My name in print... I reflect on this fact, hardly daring to believe that it has finally happened. Up until now, it's been one of those far away fantasies that begin with "One day..." Even though I know that I put in the research, the typing of each word, the editing, and proofreading by my awesome sister... Even though I know all of this, it's hard to believe that "One Day" has finally become "Today". I sincerely thank the production staff at Cottman McCann for printing my non-fiction article " The Clock Tower, the Gun, and the Boat: A Walk on the History Side of Mangochi " in Ulendo Magazine. I chose to write the piece as an alternative perspective of the Malawian lakeside town called Mangochi. I was fortunate to get an opportunity to spend some time in the area, taking in the sights and having a ton of fun finding stories! Malawi is a beautiful country, and I'm glad that a new corner of my country will be read abou...

Gone far too soon.  It seems that when we blink, another great talent disappears forever... Michael Jackson, and more recently Whitney Houston... It's a clear sign that our artists need to be wholly appreciated while they still share this Earth with us. Wisdom Chitedze was a Malawian musician whose talents were truly only just beginning to show their potential before he passed away in late 2011. Thought-provoking songs such as ' Tipewe ' brought him popularity, but what was less publicised was that he was also an extremely gifted writer.   He made many friends in the field of writing; colleagues who recognised the talent he had, and considered him " the most prodigious poet and writer of this generation. ", as well as " a genuine person, of integrity and without artifice ".  ~~~~~~~~ I myself had been looking forward to meeting him, as I am always eager to share experiences with fellow writers, mentors and comrades. At a point in time, it cam...

Happy UN Day! I had the great fortune of attending my first UN Townhall meeting which was to commemorate UN Day on the 24th of October. The first thing I learnt about Townhall is that it doesn't take place in a town hall. After some speculation I came to the conclusion that Townhall was not a description of the physical structure, but rather a meeting of the minds of staff from all UN derivative groups such as UNICEF, UNDP, UNESCO, etc, to discuss current agendas.  This year, the main agenda was (suitably) climate change. Speaking on the issue was Professor S. Chiota, who teaches at Chancellor College (Chanco), and is the regional programme director of the Leadership for Environment and Development Southern and Eastern Africa - LEAD SEA ( http://www.leadsea.mw/ ) . What I had expected was a presentation of the facts and figures of the effects of climate change in Malawi, with graphs and pie charts showing how things have been getting progressively...

It's not every day that I find a car parked right outside my door. I was delighted and surprised at this red beauty, and on closer inspection, I realised that it was electric! Completely chargeable, no fuel tank, 100% eco-friendly. I applauded the owner as an example to all enviro-conscious citizens of the world (he was not available for an interview. I was told he had gone on a lollipop run). Here are the specs on the new model: It's a 4x4 roofless convertible, perfect for your open air adventures. Not the greatest for foul weather days, but I'm sure you would rather be in bed with a hot cup of coco made by Mommy anyway. It has adapted the Mini Cooper/Smart Car approach to saving space - and as you can see, it can park virtually anywhere, including the veranda. It's an automatic, so it's quite simple to drive with no pedals, but rather a button at your feet which serves as an accelerator. The entire chassis was made of plastic - the seats, steering wheel, t...

As I sat in the auditorium, I thought back to the moment I chose the poem I was about to perform. Q Malewezi's anthology has many powerful pieces, but "The Dress" had me hooked immediately. My love for dresses was the first catch... then there was the layered meaning, the metaphors, the build-up, the ultimate ending. The poem took my breath away. It captured the agony, and the power of being a woman all in one piece. I was compelled to respect that deeply, considering that although it was portrayed from a woman's point of view, the poem was written by a man. Q told me he had performed this piece at an earlier occasion as spoken word, but this time he advised that I take on a monologue approach. I had no idea what the difference between the two was, but after a bit of schooling in the form of a five minute conversation, I got an idea of what I could do. And here I was! On the night of Q's book launch, waiting for time to eat up the first hour before my slo...