uMhlanga resident pens first novel

UMHLANGA resident, Jennifer Sheokarah has always been passionate about writing and telling stories.

It was this love that led her to pen her first children’s book, The Abandoned Bicycle, which was released last year during lockdown.
She has now penned her first novel, The Intruder, a metaphor for the Covid-19 pandemic.

The 27-year-old, who is studying towards her PhD in Education at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), recently chatted to Northglen News about her novel.

“I started writing The Intruder during lockdown last year. I was also working on my first children’s book, but I took a break to finish The Abandoned Bicycle before returning to my first piece of fiction. I’m not going to give anything away but the book is a metaphor for Covid-19. It revolves around the protagonist, Jen, who is being haunted by a mysterious hooded figure.

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“As the story unfolds you learn more about him and his connection to Jen. I will say, however, that it ends on a cliffhanger and you will have to wait until the second book in the series is released to find out more,” she said.

In the meantime, Sheokarah is working on the continuation of the Abandoned series. The next book in the series, The Abandoned Treasure Chest is due to be released in December.

Sheokarah said she hopes her literary journey will inspire other young authors to pursue their dreams.

“When I started writing I was very concerned about what people might think of my work, mainly because this comes from my imagination. I think there is a lot of fear attached to novice writers, such as are people going to like my writing and the book? My advice to young authors out there is to trust your instinct. You will get people who like it and those who don’t, but it’s ultimately your piece of work and you should be proud of it,” she said.

You can email: jennifer_sheokarah@yahoo.com to order a copy of the book. The book is also available on Amazon.