In October, Gaasitwe Setshedi is moving to the Karoo, a place that she always dreamed of visiting.
The Karoo dream began transitioning into reality, one Sunday in June when she chanced upon the Jakes Gerwel Foundation / LitNet and Huisgenoot’s invitation to come and be mentored in short story writing at the foundation’s Paulet House in Somerset East, an oasis town in the Karoo Midlands.
Gaasitwe elaborates on her pending move to the Karoo where she will be exploring her writing in all its many forms: “Firstly, the Universe is on my side because I’ve always wanted to visit the Karoo, a dream come true with a cherry on top. What I hope to gain is confidence. As a writer, I often question my voice and writing and I’ve had this problem for years. Through this experience, I hope to learn how other writers work through self-doubt.
“I took a chance. Challenged myself. I stumbled on the call out on a Sunday evening and the closing date was the coming Friday so I told myself; “If I make it then there’s hope and if I don’t, try again.” I don’t give up.
“Also, it was a challenge to put myself out there, I’m a closet writer. Very few people know that I write and fewer have been exposed to my writing.
“We have a saying in Setswana that goes “tlogatloga e tloga kgale modisa o tswa natso sakeng”. It loosely means every child is born with their gifts, I’m a writer who had a hard time believing in herself.
“My inspiration is that I’m a writer from birth. What gets the creative juices going is that I read, but not as much as I would like to. Marubini is a character from a book by Zakes Mda (disappointed to say I forgot the title) and for years I’d write to Marubini as if I knew her.
“At the beginning of this year, something said it’s time, I sat down and wrote a paragraph then on that eventful Sunday evening the Universe and my guides said now it’s time and I wrote a 2000 story about Marubini. Imagination.
“The short prose allows the reader to be a writer as well. The style demands that I write enough and leave some for the imagination. I also wonder where Marubini is. Perhaps one day when I am a mother I will find out, for now she is where she is.”
Gaasitwe Setshedi was born in Mabopane, Tshwane. She studied acting at Tshwane University of Technology, specialising in educational theatre, physical theatre, acting and script writing. Gaasitwe started her professional career as a field worker serving community groups, and later joined StageFright Edutainment, which saw her travelling all over South Africa with educational productions for children and corporate institutions. In 2014 she started a literacy programme at Marula Primary school, developing learners’ reading and comprehension skills. Gaasitwe’s dream is to help improve education in South Africa through her acting and writing.
