The young author builds without bricks

A youthful author from the village of Gottenburg in Manyeleti, Bushbuckridge, is working tirelessly to explore unfamiliar horizons and reach new frontiers. Malphia Honwane (35) has published four books in both English and Xitsonga in the past five years. He is currently finalizing his fifth offering.

“To me, writing is like breathing. It happens extemporaneously, that is why I can write about anything that comes to mind; I am that natural. It is a gift I cannot explain,” said Honwane.

He added that his writing talent dates as far back as his school days. Honwane credits his former teachers at Manyeleti Primary and Dayimani high schools respectively, who spotted his talent and nourished it.

“I am still grateful to my teachers for unearthing my potential and urging me to write consistently. It was through their guidance that I found my niche and vowed to go beyond where I was,” he said.

Apart from painting blank pages with ink, Honwane, who also doubles up as a poet, is also a staunch community development champion who has been doing voluntary community work over the years. He organises an annual school debate competition in the Manyeleti Education Circuit, comprising 10 high schools and four primary schools, respectively. During the festive season, all Manyeleti villages congregate at Gottenburg to witness and participate in the spectacular yearly edition of the Malphia Honwane Annual Games, a football tournament that he single-handedly initiated in 2019.

“It grants me great pleasure to make things happen. Seeing people overjoyed simply because I have taken that bold step to make it rain is such a wonderful feeling. Although community work can be draining, the fact that someone needs to lead from the front for it to happen is something I cannot shy away from,” he remarked.

In 2021, Honwane received a national accolade where he was recognised as one of South Africa’s Unsung Heroes by the Sunday World, in the wake of his enormous contribution to the education fraternity. Besides being a professional content editor, writer, and proofreader, in his spare time, he offers motivational talks and English lessons to learners in various schools, just to help them see the way.

“It is said that evil triumphs when good people do nothing. I reach out to schools because I have seen the beneficial effects of receiving help. We need to be there for our youth,” he said.

His literary work has received positive feedback in the country and beyond, with his Xitsonga novel titled Xivutla Na Mindzheko being a prescribed book at two institutions of higher learning, while his other two books, Dry Tears and Beyond The Beard, reached the national best seller status and making great inroads in Europe, respectively.

“My wish is for my home province of Mpumalanga to take note of my incredible work and contribution to literature. My books can be used for the school curriculum because they have multiple literary and language devices that can help learners. It hurts to see other provinces such as Gauteng ordering my books for their public school libraries while my province watches and does nothing. Charity begins at home,” concluded Honwane.