Moses pens book for Bapedi people
Sepedi author and poet Moses Seletisha told BONUS he did not use complicated language to deliver a message, but that the message of the book remains strong.
POLOKWANE – Sepedi author and poet Moses Seletisha felt the need to make sure Tshifhiwa Mukwevho’s youth drama, Oh, my son, reaches a wider audience.
He then set out to write his own version of the book and recently published Morwa’ka Ruri (Oh, my son in Bapedi).
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“The book explains the journey of a young man who finds himself in trouble with the law after he killed his so-called friend in an act of self-defence. He is faced with murder charges and is ultimately sentenced to jail at which point his mother cries: “Oh, my son,” the author of three books said.
Seletisha, who hails from Ga-Matlala, told BONUS he did not use complicated language to deliver a message, but that the message of the book remains strong. “The read seeks to teach youngsters to respect their elders and to obey the law,” he explained.
Seletisha said readers will come to the realisation that drugs and alcohol can never be a solution to their problems and that whoever commits crime must be brought to book, irrespective of their age.
Writing and selling books are currently a way to make an extra income for Seletisha. “The business of selling books from a car’s boot is as confusing as a chess game. You can never claim to have a stable clientele, and therefore I go to my nine-to-five job and try to make an extra income with my books,” he said.
Seletisha explained that the most difficult part of writing is finding and maintaining one’s voice, and he emphasised that as a writer, you need to listen to criticism that builds you.
“Do not rush things and understand that bad orthography, terminology and punctuation have the potential to downgrade any written work. These speak volumes of the author,” he said.
Seletisha hopes the province can find a feasible strategy to empower young writers. “Inviting a writer to an event to only give them ‘exposure’ is not a good start. You need to buy their time,” he said.
He explained that he has mentored a number of young writers in the community. “Some of these writers have won big awards in the country and I see that as progress in my abilities,” he concluded.
