The Week in Review – February 22, 2025

Jislaaik it, 2025 is fucking difficult, on so many levels. But this is not going to be me adding to the noise. I will be upfront and say that I'm having to work extra hard to manage my mental wellbeing, and for the most, that involves avoiding doomscrolling. Because I'm struggling to believe that people can truly be so callous and hateful. But anyhoo, this is your reminder that a little kindness is so important. And also, you don't need to engage with randos on the internet who annoy you. You don't owe them anything. Don't feed the monkeys.

FREE yourself from the hustle

So, part of the reason why I've started blogging again, even if it's old school, is that I'm sick unto death of this hustle culture that's gripped social media users. We've got all these influencers and super-users and what-not who're throwing terms like 'leverage your social media footprint' and 'boost your reach' and all that twaddle. I'm going to blunt.

Fuck that.

Now, with the enshittification of generative AI in the creative and media industry overall, the signal-to-noise ratio has whooshed past the abilities of mere mortals to keep up. You're going to keep getting al those AI bros telling you to adopt or lose out, banking on your FOMO. And I'll say it again.

Fuck that.

I know this makes me a fucking William Morris wannabe, but honestly, if we're not making art, music, or words with love and soul, then why the fuck are we doing this? I've seen so many movements pushing authors to put out a gazillion books in a short a possible time to maximise their profits that we're sitting with a shit avalanche of even shittier books that not only flood our retailers with dross but also erode readers' trust.

For those of us who're not hustling, we're not going to make all this apparent money that some of those schnaaiing scamsters promise in their advertisements. Ebooks are not some cash-cow renewable 'commodity' that will rake in piles of passive income. Anyone who says so is smoking their fucking socks. Plus the fact that they're likely trying to sell you some sort of skeezy get-rich scheme.

So this is me telling you to give yourself permission to take however long you want to write that novel, paint that picture, or record that album, for however long you want to take to do it. It's not about pooping the 'content' (and fuck me I hate that word – content) out as fast as possible. It's about process. About taking the time to create, to understand, to revise until you are happy with it, and then possibly still go onto collaborating with other creatives... until you can make something beautiful.

Don't get me wrong. It's great to hold a final work in your hands. But it's equally important to have that journey to reach that point. Giving in to the hustle will rob you of that very important part in the act of being creative.

Mini review – The First Murder on Mars by Sam Wilson

I will admit that this is the first Sam Wilson book I've read, and for a long time I've aways brushed shoulders with him at local bookish events and have admired his wit whenever we've had the opportunity to talk. He's done extensive work in the film industry, which most certainly shows in how The First Murder on Mars is structured. This is a really well thought out story, and has some relatable characters whom he really puts through the wringer. Mars as a setting provides a challenging environment, and humans are ... well... As a species, I get the distinct impression that we never learn, and Sam does an excellent job with his social commentary. The pacing is fast, and boy oh boy does shit go sideways, however I did feel there were three instances where characters withheld crucial information in a way that felt too contrived to heighten tension – which is something I've seen a fair bit in writers who come from a film background. That being said, this was not a deal breaker for me, but it did poke my buttons somewhat, and I can't help but feeling that this book would do really well if it was developed as a film or series where these sorts of withholding of information would not be an issue since we'd be outside a deep point of view. This is the one niggle I had with regards to an overall fantastic and highly engaging read. And for those of us who function in a daily routine that doesn't allow much time for reading – the short chapters were cherry.

Libraries of Ancient Egypt lecture

A bastion of knowledge, The Bibliotheca Alexandrina was founded in 2001 and is dedicated to recapturing the spirit of openness and scholarship of the original great library of Alexandria. Joseph Koetsier will start his lecture with an overview of ancient libraries around the world before sharing his impressions of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. The Egyptian Society of South Africa invites you to attend this lecture at St George’s Grammar School in Richmond Street Mowbray on February 25, at 7.30pm. Parking is available on the premises. Lectures are free for TESSA members; visitors pay R30. Refreshments cost R10.

We're launching, baybeeeeeeeee

Anyhoo, I'm super stoked that The Company of Birds will be launching at the Exclusive Books in the V&A Waterfront on March 8 at 4pm. I have specifically requested that there are chocolate cupcakes, so please join me for a sugar rush and all things bookish on the day. The Company of Birds is currently only available to South African readers, so this is like totes super exclusive. I chat briefly with Marius about the book here, but do come on the day where I'll be in discussion with fellow SFF author Masha du Toit. And yeah, please RSVP so we can have just the right amount of nice things for folks. And bums on seats and all that. See you there!