Koa’s Online Creative Writing Workshop
2 Days
8 Amazing Speakers
Creative Writing Competition
Koa Academy is hosting a virtual creative writing workshop from 11 to 12 June. The workshop will be free and open to all Grades 8-12 South African learners.
The workshop aims to inspire learners, give them insight into different aspects of the writing industry and equip them with practical skills to improve their writing.
THE LINEUP
We are excited to announce an all-star lineup of guest speakers singer-songwriter, Majozi and award-winning playwright, Gabriella Pinto as well as children's Author Refiloe Moahloli, children's Author and Journalist, Michelle Banda.
Allison Staals
Content Lead
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Allison has been involved in managing projects and the development of educational content in the publishing industry for over 10 years, working on projects locally as well as for countries across Africa. In her current role as a Content Development Lead, she is committed to overseeing and project managing the development of educational print and digital projects. .
She embodies integrity, inclusivity and diversity. She truly lives by Nelson Mandela's quote, "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world"
Majozi
Singer and Songwriter
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Majozi is a South African singer and songwriter. He rose to prominence in 2013 when he released his first EP, ‘Marvelous Light’. The track went to number 9 on the South African iTunes chart and resulted in him being signed with Universal Music South Africa.
His follow-up album ‘Fire’ debuted in the iTunes Top 3. He has worked with internationally acclaimed artists such as The Lumineers and Mango Groove. He received a SAMA nomination for Best Adult Contemporary Album for Fire and in 2019, he recorded with the Soweto Gospel Choir who won 3 grammys.
Gabriella Pinto
Playwright, Film Writer and Director
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Gabriella is a writer and film director from Cape Town, South Africa. Traversing fiction and journalism, she is interested in telling stories about the human condition.
Over the past decade of writing, and sometimes directing, in the film, video, TV, and digital space, she has helped agencies and production companies deliver information, creative, entertaining, and actionable content. Gabriella has also penned plays, as well as written and directed several films.
Her short documentary, The Leg-Maker, was nominated for Best Female Director at the international My RØDE Reel Short Film Competition, which she produced after completing a scholarship to the University of Cape Town’s Stepping Stone documentary filmmaking program.
As a playwright, Gabriella won the first inaugural Scribe Scriptwriting Competition for her play, Chickens, while her work, Eden, was published by Oxford University Press. The theatre production received a Fleur du Cap nomination for Best New Theatre Director and later toured to the National Arts Festival in Grahamstown, the largest event of its kind on the African continent.
Tania Kliphuis
Writer, Storyteller and Poet
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Following an eight-year career as a textbook publisher working for a multinational publishing firm, Tania went freelance in 2013 and has worked as a freelance content developer, editor, and proofreader for the educational publishing industry ever since. Educational writing pays her bills, but she writes novels and kids' books too. She has written readers, English Home Language textbooks, Science textbooks, and even a Coding & Robotics textbook for the South African, Namibian, Ghanaian, and Asian school markets. You'll find her serialised memoir on Substack at taniakliphuis.substack.com, and her two Book Dash books, The Box and How do you want your eggs? at bookdash.org. She is currently shopping around her first novel to local publishers (one rejection and counting...), and hopes to complete her second novel by the end of 2025.
Beth Peterson
Copywriter and Brand Storyteller
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Beth Peterson is a conceptual copywriter and brand storyteller with more than 30 years of experience in business writing. She works closely with leadership, marketing and PR teams to help develop and define communications strategies and implement communications campaigns. As a business writer, she is responsible for crafting a wide range of outputs including brand stories; marketing and advertising copy; SEO webcopy, blog and social media posts; media releases and advertorials; newsletters and emailers; speeches and scripts. She is also a ghostwriter for business books, opinion columns and thought leadership articles.
What she loves about her work is the diversity. She writes for clients across many industries including tech & ICT; retail, CPG & e-commerce; wine, tourism, travel & hospitality; healthcare, wellness, coaching, psychology & personal development; parenting & women; leadership, entrepreneurship & SMEs; financial services; sports, recruitment, education, non-profit sector and the arts.
Refiloe Moahloli
Childrens Author
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Refiloe Moahloli is a best-selling and award-winning author of 15 children’s books including How Many Ways Can You Say Hello, We Are One and Know My Name. Her awards include a South African Literary Award, two South African Book Awards and an IBBY SA Picture Book Award. Her books have been published in 6 official South African languages. We Are One and Let’s Play are published globally – in the USA, Brazil and Turkey. Refiloe is passionate about writing stories that bring out the best in the human spirit, stories where children can identify and celebrate themselves.
Michelle Banda
Journalist
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Michelle Banda is an award-winning, dedicated, and dynamic general news reporter with a passion for storytelling. Also a Co-Editor of the DM168 Kids Pullout section at the Daily Maverick Newspaper, I specialize in creating engaging content tailored to young minds. With a background in food justice reporting during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I have since branched out to cover a wide range of topics, including immigration, housing, inner-city issues, service delivery, pop culture, and stories of those often overlooked. My goal is to bring a fresh perspective and captivating narratives to the forefront of news reporting, ensuring every story I cover resonates with readers.
Creative Writing Competition
We are excited to announce a Competition as part of this workshop!
What is it?
Are you a burgeoning wordsmith? Prepare to dazzle our judges with a captivating tale, but here's the catch: your story must be a mere 100 words. Koa Academy invites South African learners in grades 8-12 to write a compelling narrative in 100 words or less. The winners stand a chance to win fantastic prizes. Their stories will also be published on Koa Adademy's official website.
Terms and Conditions apply.
Your narrative should be:
100 words or less
Engaging from the first to the last word.
Deadline:
All entries must be submitted before midnight on 9 June.
Rules:
This competition is open to all learners in grades 8-12 in 2024. To be eligible for participation a learner must be a citizen of the Republic of South Africa.
To participate in the competition, learners must submit their entries in the format of a PDF or Word document before midnight on 9 June 2024. Late submissions shall not be accepted.
The narrative must be the original work of the participant. A zero-tolerance policy towards plagiarism and the use of AI will be followed. If plagiarism or AI usage is detected, the entry will be disqualified.
The narrative must be written in English.
By entering this competition, the participants agree to indemnify the organisers from and against all claims, suits and damages based on any claim of copyright infringement, plagiarism or unauthorised use.
The narrative submission will be considered to be the property of Koa Academy once submitted, and Koa Academy reserves the right to publish any submission.
The results of the competition will be announced on 12 June 2024. Winners will be notified via email.
The winners of the competition authorise the organisers to use their names and photographs, if required, to publicise the competition and its results.
The judges' decision will be final.