False Bay moves through the lives and deaths of a wide cast of characters whose stories overlap through love, trauma, faith, race, sexuality, apartheid, memory, and the sea. I find the novel’s setup entertaining. How did this idea start and develop as you wrote?

I wrote a screenplay 25 years ago and while the industry loved it, no film was made of it. So, I eventually converted it into a novel, updating it and fleshing out the many characters. I used my own life experience for parts of it and invented the rest. It is not auto fiction though. My life has not been that interesting!

The supernatural elements never feel separate from ordinary life. Ghosts, visions, and saints exist alongside braais, gossip, and family fights. Why was it important for the magical and the mundane to coexist so naturally?

Cape Town is a magical place. The story extends beyond reality to the mystical and I wanted to cover these elements in a way which seemed routed in reality but also encompassed the supernatural. By being very specific about the locations, this reinforces the reality element so I could get away with the magical and still tell a “believable” story.

So many characters carry only fragments of the truth. Were you interested in the idea that no single person can fully narrate collective trauma?

Absolutely. As one of the characters says, “what is truth?” So, I wanted to look at the many sides to a narrative and a variety of worldviews. I also wanted to look at the world from the perspective of the marginalised.

What do you want a reader who has never been to South Africa to take from this book — and what do you hope a South African reader finds that they didn’t expect?

Readers who have never been to South Africa will hopefully get a better perspective of the history of colonialism and apartheid and its effects on South Africa today. Also, the themes are universal regardless of where you live. The LGBTQ element speaks to a community often marginalised as well. Sexism and racism are also huge issues internationally. Locally I hope South Africans recognise the legacy of the past injustices and the marginalisation due to race, sex, sexual orientation, economic status, class and diversity in general. Also, I hope they recognise Cape Town and its magical elements.

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