Book gives voice to aspirant writers

FORMER radio presenter, newspaper columnist and philanthropist, Ravi Govender, will be launching his fourth publication, A Medley of Voices, today at California Dreaming restaurant at 7pm.

Govender, of North Beach, Durban, who is involved in editing, writing and marketing, said he regularly came upon aspirant authors who wanted to publish their work but had no idea how to.

“There were those that wrote single stories and did not know what to do with them. I envisaged a book, which could offer the writers a chance to see their work come to life in printed form.

“I put the call out and received the submissions, which you will find in this publication. Besides three of the writers, the rest are first -time published writers.

“From an 11-year-old boy to a 70- year-old intellectual, the stories are varied and interesting. From unrequited love to heroism on the battlefield, they are within these pages.”

Govender described the publication as a work of love. “Much time and effort was invested in producing it, and seeing it evolve is almost a spiritual experience.”

He credits the book designer, Ash Lalgith, as being a genius at his craft.

“The cover is one of the most artistic and beautiful I have ever seen. We collaborated on all my books, but in this one, Ash outdid himself.

“Together with the printer we have formed a team that Ravi Govender will soon launch his fourth book,

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Medley of Voices,

work as a unit and will produce many more books.”

Govender has also run workshops on self-publishing and is always ready to assist writers to get their work out there.

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He published his first book, Down Memory Lane, in 2006 and the sequel, Deja Vu, followed in 2011. He reedited and republished his third book, Come to the Point, in 2017.

“When I published my first book, I walked into Exclusive Books at the Pavilion and, lo and behold, my humble work was selling next to Nelson Mandela’s Long Walk to Freedom. It was a surrealistic moment that blew me away. We were both listed as African writers.”

Govender’s next project and also the last item on his bucket list is tackling his first film. “Being a film fundi, which harks back from growing up in the casbah and going to the cinema weekly, I was inspired to my make my first film and will be collaborating with a South African comedian.”

He said the book was dedicated to the memory of a friend, Laviena Saminathan, an avid reader, who died earlier this year from illness.