Karina Author, Book, Event, Festival

Karavan Press authors at the Toyota Stellenbosch Woordfees

We are heading to Stellenbosch for the annual Woordfees that is taking place between 3 and 11 October this year.

Two authors feature with their Karavan Press titles on the programme, Erika Viljoen and Louis Viljoen:

MONDAY, 5 OCTOBER 2026, 11:30 | EasyEquities Skrywerskamer
Louis Viljoen: Selected Plays

As dramaturg is Louis Viljoen bekend vir sy fyn, ingewikkelde taalgebruik en die ongemaklike intimiteit in sy dramas wat gehore vasgenael hou. Die versamelbundel Selected Playsbring vir die eerste keer tien van Viljoen se kragtigste toneelstukke byeen. Die aktrise Emma Kotze, een van Viljoen se gereelde medewerkers, gesels met die dramaturg oor die vakmanskap, chaos en die aard van die Suid-Afrikaanse teater, asook die uitdagings om sy donker werk op te voer.

TUESDAY, 6 OCTOBER 2026, 14:30 | EasyEquities Skrywerskamer
Aggressiewe water

Erika Viljoen se memoires, Aggressiewe water, is gebore uit briewe wat sy aan familie en vriende geskryf het toe die gesin uitgewyk het na ’n stuk veld in die Klein-Karoo waar niemand anders nog permanent gewoon het nie. Wat vir baie mense net ’n droom is, het vir haar gesin ’n werklikheid geword – met al die swoeg en sweet wat daarmee saamgaan. Erika se kind, Roland du Preez, kunstenaar, akteur en skrywer van die toneelstuk Rescue Remedy, tree met haar in gesprek.

Also featured on the programme are authors Lethokuhle Msimang and Zubayr Charles – Lethokuhle with the short film Soil and Grass, written, directed and narrated by her; and Zubayr with his novel, Haram (JB Publishers), and his poetry collection, the sad boy’s starter pack and other poems (Jacana). Lethokuhle published The Frightened and Zubayr published Please, don’t call me moffie with Karavan Press.

3 OCTOBER 2026, 13:30 | Road House Cinema at The Neelsie
Soil and Grass

Soil and Grass follows three traditional artisans in KwaZulu-Natal: a wire basket maker; a potter; and a palm weaver, whose practices move between rural heritage and urban adaptation. As materials are collected, transformed, and re-created, the film traces how knowledge persists in the midst of displacement. Interwoven with a personal story of departure and return, Soil and Grass reflects on what of loneliness, uncertainty, abandonment, survives in the search for a true sense of home. It is also a meditation on women who create alone.

Director, Writer, Narrator Lethokuhle Msimang
Cinematographer Thebe Gee
Editor Kgaugelo Mpyana
Sound Yang Wen Liang

3 OCTOBER 2026, 17:30 | EasyEquities Skrywerskamer

Writers on Writers: The Young Guns with Mia Arderne (How to Stop Being a Naai) and Zubayr Charles (Haram)

4 OCTOBER 2026, 16:00 | EasyEquities Skrywerskamer

Three Part Harmony with Sarah Uheida (Not This Tender), Paula Fourie (Inked in Bone) and Zubayr Charles (the sad boy’s starter pack and other poems)

Full programme: WOORDFEES

Karina Author, Book

Karavan Press title: Please, don’t call me moffie by Zubayr Charles

After viewing a viral online video of a brutal homophobic attack in an unknown country, five men in their late twenties reflect on their experiences of growing up, grappling with their identities and confronting toxic masculinity in Cape Town, South Africa. The play then shifts its focus to a surprise birthday party for Mushfeeq, planned by his group of friends, where the presence of an unwanted guest creates friction and conflict. Through a series of uncomfortable truths, Mushfeeq must come to terms with his own biases and prejudices.

Following successful runs at various local festivals and Artscape Theatre, the critically acclaimed Please, don’t call me moffie is now available in print and includes never-before-staged Acts 2 and 3.

ISBN: 978-1-0671781-6-1

Publication date: September 2026

ZUBAYR CHARLES is a UCT Master’s in Creative Writing graduate and multi-disciplinary writer from Cape Town. He is known as the playwright and theatre-maker of hit plays such as Mercy, this bra’s a psycho, The Battered Housewives’ Club and Brasse, Tot Laat Toe. He was part of the Baxter Theatre’s How to Write a Musical Workshop under the mentorship of David Kramer in 2019, attended LitNet’s and The Jakes Gerwel Foundation’s Kommadagga Nonfiction and Short Story Writing Residency under the mentorship of Rachelle Greeff in 2020, and completed his Master’s in Creative Writing cum laude under the supervision of Imraan Coovadia in 2022 at UCT. His first novel, Haram, and his first poetry collection, the sad boy’s starter pack and other poems, were published in 2026.

Karina Author

Author: Zubayr Charles

ZUBAYR CHARLES is a UCT Master’s in Creative Writing graduate and multi-disciplinary writer from Cape Town. He is known as the playwright and theatre-maker of hit plays such as Mercy, this bra’s a psycho, The Battered Housewives’ Club and Brasse, Tot Laat Toe. He was part of the Baxter Theatre’s How to Write a Musical Workshop under the mentorship of David Kramer in 2019, attended LitNet’s and The Jakes Gerwel Foundation’s Kommadagga Nonfiction and Short Story Writing Residency under the mentorship of Rachelle Greeff in 2020, and completed his Master’s in Creative Writing cum laude under the supervision of Imraan Coovadia in 2022 at UCT. His first novel, Haram, and his first poetry collection, the sad boy’s starter pack and other poems, were published in 2026.

Karavan Press is proud to publish Zubayr’s play Please, don’t call me moffie.

Karina Author, Book

SECRETS: Karavan Stories 2025

SECRETS is the result of the Karavan Stories Workshop & Anthology project, now in its third year.

All the contributors gathered for a writing workshop at the end of April. Together, we discussed the intricacies of the short story, went through several writing exercises, decided on a theme for our anthology and began exploring ideas for individual stories. In the following months, we kept in touch, drafting and redrafting, until the book you are holding in your hands took shape.
We chose the theme for the anthology – secrets – within the group. Contributors could work with it in any way they wished, either reimagine it, see it as a springboard or a metaphor, or let their imaginations soar.
The stories which emerged interpret ‘secrets’ in wonderfully intriguing ways, inviting us to turn the pages with curiosity, anticipation and, occasionally, with a sinking feeling of dread.
I would like to thank all contributing authors for embarking on this journey with Karavan Press: your stories confirm something about local authors that has never really been a secret – you rock! A big thank you to Monique Cleghorn and Stephen Symons for the stunning design of our anthology. To our readers: enjoy!

Karina M. Szczurek
Cape Town, December 2025

Contributors: Lucienne Argent, Zubayr Charles, Christine Coates, Máire Fisher, Nina Geraghty, Rob Glenister, Merle Levin, Michelle A. Meyer, Firdose Moonda, Helen Nevin, Joëlle Searle, Jana van Niekerk

ISBN: 978-1-0492-2960-7

Publication date: December 2025