Fred Khumalo (born 4 August 1966) is a South African journalist and author. His books encompass various genres, including novels, non-fiction, memoir and short stories. Among awards he has received are the European Union Literary Award, the

Alan Paton Award The ''Sunday Times'' CNA Literary Awards are awarded annually to South African writers by the South African weekly newspaper the '' Sunday Times''. They comprise the ''Sunday Times'' CNA Literary Award for Non-fiction and the ''Sunday Times'' ...

and the Nadine Gordimer Short Story Award. His writing has appeared in various publications, including the ''

Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'', ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'', ''

New African ''New African'' is an English-language monthly news magazine based in London. Published since 1966, it is read by many people across the African continent and the African diaspora. It claims to be the oldest pan-African monthly in English, as well ...

'', ''

The Sowetan ''The Sowetan'' is an English-language South African daily newspaper that started in 1981 as a liberation struggle newspaper and was freely distributed to households in the then apartheid-segregated township of Soweto, Johannesburg, Gauteng Pr ...

'' and ''

Isolezwe ''Isolezwe'' is a Zulu-language newspaper launched in 2002 by Independent News & Media. It is published daily in Durban, South Africa, in the tabloid format. Editor Kiki Ntuli describes their target market as "the modernising Zulu ... meone ...

''. In 2008, he hosted ''Encounters'', a public-debate television programme, on

SABC 2 SABC 2 is a South African family public television channel owned by the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). SABC 2 broadcasts programming in English, Sepedi, Afrikaans, Venda, and Tsonga. As of August 2018, the channel started broad ...

Biography

Born in Chesterville,

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

Natal NATAL or Natal may refer to: Places * Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, a city in Brazil * Natal, South Africa (disambiguation), a region in South Africa ** Natalia Republic, a former country (1839–1843) ** Colony of Natal, a former British colony ( ...

(now KwaZulu-Natal), Khumalo grew up in

Mpumalanga Township Mpumalanga () is a provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa. The name means "East", or literally "The Place Where the Sun Rises" in the Nguni languages, Swazi, Xhosa, Ndebele and Zulu languages. Mpumalanga lies in eastern South Af ...

. While still at high school he decided to become a writer, and went on to graduate from Durban's

Technikon Natal Technikon Natal is located in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and has now merged with ML Sultan Technikon to form the Durban University of Technology. History Technikon Natal was founded by Dr Samuel George Campbell in 1907. In 1912, th ...

(now the Durban University of Technology) after studying journalism, then earning an MA degree in creative writing from the

University of the Witwatersrand The University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg (), is a multi-campus South African Public university, public research university situated in the northern areas of central Johannesburg. It is more commonly known as Wits University or Wits ( o ...

with distinction. He is the recipient of a

Nieman Fellowship The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University awards multiple types of fellowships. Nieman Fellowships for journalists A Nieman Fellowship is an award given to journalists by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University. ...

from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

, as well as fellowships from the Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study, the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study, and the Academy for the Arts of the World in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

, Germany.

Writing

As a journalist and columnist, Khumalo has written for publications in South Africa, Canada, and the United Kingdom, including for '' City Press'', ''

Sunday World The ''Sunday World'' is an Irish newspaper published by Independent News & Media. It is the second largest selling "popular" newspaper in the Republic of Ireland, and is also sold in Northern Ireland where a modified edition with more stories r ...

'', the ''

'', ''

'', ''UmAfrika'', ''

'', ''

This Day ''This Day'' is a Nigerian national newspaper. It is the flagship newspaper of Leaders & Company Ltd and was first published on 22 January 1995. It has its headquarters in Apapa, Lagos State. Founded by Nduka Obaigbena, the Chairman & Editor-i ...

'', ''

'', and the ''

Mail & Guardian The ''Mail & Guardian'' is a South African weekly newspaper and website, published by M&G Media in Johannesburg, South Africa. It focuses on political analysis, investigative reporting, Southern African news, local arts, music and popular cultu ...

''. His short stories have appeared in such magazines and literary journals as ''

Drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel-Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a she ...

'', ''Tribute'', ''Pace'', ''

Staffrider ''Staffrider'' was a South African literary magazine that was published between 1978 and 1996. History and profile ''Staffrider'' was first published in March 1978. Its founder was Mike Kirkwood. The magazine took its name from slang for people h ...

'', and ''

The Johannesburg Review of Books ''The Johannesburg Review of Books'' (or ''JRB'') is a South African online magazine based on other literary magazines such as the ''New York'' and ''London Review of Books''. Its bi-monthly issues include reviews, essays, poetry, photographs, ...

''. His first novel, ''Bitches' Brew'' (its title referencing the similarly titled album by

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

), was published to acclaim, winning Khumalo the European Union Literary Award in 2006. Reviewer Victor Dlamini wrote in the ''Sunday Times'': "Fred Khumalo bares his own soul by revealing his own love for the beautiful art of jazz. It is his ability to narrate the story of a love that promised so much and how it was strangled by the hard hand of history, that makes Khumalo's novel stand out. He does not flinch from taking the reader beyond the glamour and shine of the life a successful bootlegger and budding musician. ...Khumalo has captured something of the infectious hedonism of the late 60's and early 70's." His 2011 memoir, ''Touch My Blood: The Early Years'', was adapted by James Ngcobo into a stage production that opened at the

Grahamstown Makhanda, also known as Grahamstown, is a town of about 140,000 people in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated about northeast of Port Elizabeth and southwest of East London, Eastern Cape, East London. Makhanda is the lar ...

National Arts Festival The National Arts Festival (NAF) is an annual festival of performing arts in Grahamstown, South Africa. It is the largest arts festival on the African continent and one of the largest performing arts festivals in the world by visitor numbers. Th ...

. A stage adaptation of his 2017 historical novel ''Dancing the Death Drill'' premiered in the UK at the

Nuffield Theatre, Southampton , mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour , type = Public research university , established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...

, in 2018. Khumalo has twice been shortlisted for the

Commonwealth Short Story Prize The Commonwealth Short Story Prize is awarded annually for the best piece of unpublished short fiction (2,000 to 5,000 words). The prize is open to citizens of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations aged 18 and over. The Commonwealth Short ...

, and among his other awards are the 2019 Humanities and Social Sciences Awards for ''Dancing the Death Drill'', and the Nadine Gordimer Short Story Award for his 2019 collection ''Talk of the Town'', for which the citation noted: "When a great storyteller and great plots intersect, that leads to magnanimous stories and incredible characters. In his debut short stories collection, the author weaves a number of themes that explicate contemporary topics in South African life. These are moving stories that will drive the reader to extremes of gaiety, disbelief and disgust. The author refuses to be time-bound and his stories look before and beyond apartheid South Africa. When you read them you are bound to pose questions whether you search for an identity or you question the foibles of society. Through these stories, the author examines a society that tries to define itself in exile and at home."

Selected recognition and awards

* 1991: Runner-up for Nadine Gordimer Short Story Award runner-up * 1996: Runner-up for Bertrams V.O Literature of Africa Award * 2006: European Union Literary Award (for ''Bitches' Brew'') * 2007:

(for ''Touch My Blood'') * 2015: Shortlisted for

(for "Legs of Thunder") * 2017: Multilingualism Award (for ''#ZuptasMustFall'') * 2018: Shortlisted for

(for "Talk of the Town") * 2019: Humanities and Social Sciences Awards (for ''Dancing the Death Drill'') * 2019: Nadine Gordimer Short Story Award (for ''Talk of the Town: Short stories'')

Bibliography

* ''Bitches' Brew'' (novel), Jacana Media, 2007, * ''Seven Steps to Heaven'' (novel), Jacana Media, 2008, * ''Zuma: The Biography of Jacob Zuma'', Penguin Random House South Africa, 2008, * ''Zulu Boy Gone Crazy: Hilarious Tales Post Polokwane'', Sandton: KMM Review Publishing, 2010, * ''Touch My Blood: The Early Years'' (autobiography), Penguin Random House South Africa, 2011, * ''The Lighter Side of Life on Robben Island: Banter, pastimes and boyish tricks'' (with Paddy Harper and Gugu Kunene), Houghton: Makana, 2012, * ''#ZuptasMustFall, and other rants'', Penguin Random House South Africa, 2016, * ''Dancing the Death Drill'' (novel), London: Jacaranda Books, 2017, * ''Talk of the Town: Short stories'', Kwela, 2019, * ''The Longest March'' (non-fiction), Umuzi/Penguin Random House South Africa, 2019, * ''A Coat of Many Colours'' (short stories), Kwela Books, 2021, * ''Two Tons o' Fun'' (novel), Penguin Random House South Africa, 2022,

Selected shorter writings

"On Writing"
''African Writing Online'', December/January 2008.
"I am not an African, no, I am 100% Zulu"
''The Sowetan'', 2 September 2016.
"Historical fiction is back – with fire in its belly"
10 May 2018.
"Books and belonging—Fred Khumalo reflects on how James Hadley Chase and Alan Paton changed his life"
''The Johannesburg Review of Books'', 1 October 2018.
"Talk of the Town"
''adda'', 5 October 2018.
"The dominant narrative locks black people out of our figurative mansion"
''Sowetan Live'', 18 October 2019.

References

External links

"Fred Khumalo, Author"

"Literary Birthday – 4 August – Fred Khumalo"
''Writers Write''.
"Time of the Writer 2022: In Conversation with Fred Khumalo"
Centre for Creative Arts, 16 March 2022 {{DEFAULTSORT:Khumalo, Fred 1966 births Living people 21st-century South African male writers 21st-century South African novelists Nieman Fellows People from KwaZulu-Natal South African journalists South African male short story writers