Novel release for Bryanston writer
Having just released his second novel, Bryanston resident Peter-John Calitz is destined for great things in the literary world.
Calitz explained that his talent for writing began at an early age. “I was blessed to be born in a time without TV or any form of social media, so we had to rely on our imagination for entertainment,” he said.
The wordsmith’s first novel, The Broken Moon was a love story set in the 1800s during the time of the Anglo-Zulu war. But now, Calitz’s second novel, The Man in the Cardboard Box – which took him nine months to complete – has taken him into the world of murder-mystery.
In the novel the protagonist, Gabriel commits a crime, thereby choosing a path that takes him on a journey to an unpredictable destiny.
Calitz explained that the story is of misgiving and misfortune, “It is a story about how the consequences of a simple choice can change your life, how man’s human weakness can lead to utter destruction.”
Calitz has some advice for aspiring writers. “Anyone can write a book,” he said, “but it requires a fundamental understanding of literature and grammar and you have to live the story.”
Calitz said that the most essential element of his writing is research. “If you know your subject, you can set a benchmark and never doubt yourself,” he said.
Calitz admires and is influenced by literary greats like James Joyce, Graham Greene and Aldous Huxley.
“Writing is about perseverance,” he said. “And it is like most things in life where the dedication becomes the reward.”
Calitz’s novel has already been released in the United Kingdom but he is planning to do the official South African release at Skoobs in Montecasino in February. Both his novels are also available on Amazon.
