Arja Salafranca

Contributor

Arja Salafranca is a South African writer and content creator for Now Novel. She holds an MA in Creative Writing from Wits University (2012) and currently lives in Johannesburg.

Biography:

Her first poetry collection, A life stripped of illusions, received the 1994 Sanlam Award for poetry, while a short story, ‘Couple on the Beach’ received a Sanlam Award in 1999. Her second collection of poetry, The fire in which we burn, was published by Dye Hard Press in 2000. She received the 2009 Dalro Award for poetry. Her third poetry collection, Beyond touch, was a co-winner of the 2016 Sala Awards. Her debut collection of short stories, The Thin Line, was published by Modjaji Books in 2010. It was long-listed for the Wole Soyinka Award in 2012.

She has edited three anthologies of prose most recently Fool’s Gold (2019), which was shortlisted for the 2020 Awards.

She edited the Life supplement in the Johannesburg-based The Sunday Independent from 2003 to 2016.

Her next publication is a collection of creative non-fiction to be published in 2024, consisting of memoir and travel stories.

Find out more:

Recent posts

A definitive guide to mastering point of view

When you crack open a novel you're stepping into the shoes of the narrator of the story. And how that story unfolds and immerses you largely depends on the point of view (POV) it's told from. Point of view isn't just a technical choice or term; it's the lens through which readers experience the ...

May 20th, 2024

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EB French on her writing journey

EB French is currently in our Group Coaching program, and has just released her first novel, Botanical Love. It's a romantic comedy described as as a sweet workplace romance in small-town Georgia. Here's a synopsis: Mari has focused on her career for far too long, mostly because plants don'...

May 16th, 2024

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End notes: what goes at the back of a book

We have all had the experience of reading a novel, getting to the end and feeling unsatisfied. Something wasn’t right, we expected more, the story was so big, so enjoyable and yet, it’s hard to put a finger on it. We may now vow never to read another word from that author again. More than lik...

May 13th, 2024

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Elevate writing using literary devices

Recognize any of these literary device?'It was the best of times; it was the worst of times.' – Charles Dickens'Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.' The Dickens quote, from the novel, A Tale of Two Cities, is an example of anaphora, while the Peter piper tongue twister might have be...

May 6th, 2024

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How to use Jung's 12 archetypes to shape characters

We are all familiar with character archetypes: the smiling joking jester, the villain with a leer on his face, or the wise man or woman with flowing white hair. There’s a reason we are familiar with them, as they are used over and over in the stories we watch, read and consume in various ...

April 29th, 2024

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Exploring the depths of villainy

The evil eye peering through the keyhole, the man with a dagger raised, the sneer of a woman’s scarlet-painted lips. Cue the sinister music: we’re talking about villains, antagonists and anti-heroes. These nefarious characters, with their dark intentions and sinister deeds, play an indis...

April 22nd, 2024

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