BlackBird Books hosted a launch for Chwayita Ngamlana’s If I Stay Right Here at the new African Flavour Books store in Braamfontein last night.

Click on the link above for more about the book!

The launch was a roaring success, and many thought-provoking questions were asked by the audience.

You can read the questions and answers below, as they were live tweeted by Jacana Media.

If you missed out on the launch, get yourself to Bridge Books Maboneng tonight, where Chwayita will be chatting to Malebo Sephodi.

• Event details here

@SquishyPanther now in conversation with @mbongomuffin discussing how she started writing. #IfIStayRightHere pic.twitter.com/xGmtb8e6aG

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

https://twitter.com/_BlackBirdBooks/status/920690854867685381

‘The characters in the book are inspired by myself and my ex’

‘I focused on the feeling in each moment I wrote about.’ @SquishyPanther pic.twitter.com/8cBd4EfJV7

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

Kitchen Heat was an experimental chapter. The chapter was written to “confuse the enemy” says @SquishyPanther pic.twitter.com/XNjiOn4D4t

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

‘You’ve had moments where you’re sacrificing yourself & your soul for someone. It’s not a black thing.’ @SquishyPanther #IfIStayRightHere pic.twitter.com/jgC09a5ixb

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

‘I found most of the sexual scenes in the book didn’t seem consensual, why was that?’ @mbongomuffin pic.twitter.com/b7ssfpdo30

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

‘Every sex scene I wrote about, has some sort of significance… and it’s ufcked up!’ – @SquishyPanther pic.twitter.com/Z3XLjYZBBE

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

‘They seemed as though they weren’t because of how they happened, but to me I saw them as the only way my partner knew how to apologize.’

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 19, 2017

A. ‘Why do we as writer try to create this perfect circle that even we don’t know in our own lives?’ #IfIStayRightHere

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

https://twitter.com/_BlackBirdBooks/status/920747684088238080

Q. Very long question. #IfIStayRightHere pic.twitter.com/wnoy8Ht0iU

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

A. ‘It almost feels like the LGBT community needs to be something that they are not instead of just being be.’ #IfIStayRightHere pic.twitter.com/jTxUbtY1EJ

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

Q. ‘Were you still in the moments you wrote about or were you writing retrospectively?’ #IfIStayRightHere pic.twitter.com/vK3YQRHHUV

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

A. ‘I was still with my ex when I wrote the book. I told her I was writing about us but I don’t think she thought I’d write about the abuse’ pic.twitter.com/nOk1nX2Bfm

— FB: Jacana Media (@JacanaMedia) October 18, 2017

 

 

 

 

Categories Fiction South Africa

Tags African Flavour Books BlackBird Books Book events Book launches Braamfontein Chwayita Ngamlana If I Stay Right Here Jacana Media Johannesburg Malebo Sephodi