Tuesday, 17 December 2019

News about Chatsworth from Sweden

Pravasan Pillay has been interviewed about Chatsworth in the Swedish magazine Klass, which focuses on working-class literature. He chatted with journalist Beata Hansson about, among other things, melancholy, existentialism, outsiders, the body, class society and chai.
Chatsworth will be published in Swedish next year.
And if you live in Joburg and still haven't read it, you can still get copies at some Exclusive Books branches, and definitely at The Commune, a new bookstore in Braamfontein.

Monday, 16 December 2019

More news on With the Safety Off

I have received an order for Graeme Feltham's With the Safety Off from Paul Wessels, who heads the Master's degree in Creative Writing programme at Rhodes University, Makhanda. It seems Paul worked with Graeme 'a bit' on an earlier version of the  novel - something I was not aware of - I was not even aware that Graeme and Paul (whom I have known since the early 1990s) knew each other. But there you go ... the novel continues to widen its reach.

Sun Ra mail art from Henry Denander



More mail art from the great, generous Henry Denander - a stamp series of his watercolour portrait of Sun Ra - thank you, Hank!

Monday, 09 December 2019

With the Safety Off on Goodreads

Graeme Feltham's novel With the Safety Off, recently published by Dye Hard Press and altoviolet, is now listed on Goodreads. If you have read it and enjoyed it, why not pop in and give it a short review?

Check it out here.

With the Safety Off availability continues ...



Just as well I have been slack in collecting the launch stock of With the Safety Off from David Krut Bookstore ... more copies have sold since launch night!
Oh, and Clarke's in Cape Town has ordered copies!

Did you know ....

Did you know…
That of the 3 million Indians living in Southeast Africa, 1 million live in South Africa?
That Durban is regarded as the largest ‘Indian’ city outside India?
And having asked those questions, have you ever been to Chatsworth?
Well, whether you have or you haven’t, or maybe you’ve lived there or still do live there, get yourself a copy of Pravasan Pillay's Chatsworth, published by Dye Hard Press! It would also make an excellent Christmas gift!
And Chatsworth is now available at Braamfontein’s new bookstore The Commune - so check out this new store too!

Sunday, 01 December 2019

Photos from the launch of Graeme Feltham's With the Safety Off


Hans Pienaar, co-publisher and MC for the launch.


Artist James de Villiers, who was a friend of Graeme Feltham and who wrote an introduction for the book.



Nick Hauser, friend of Graeme Feltham.




Luke Feltham, son of Graeme Feltham.


Gary Cummiskey, main publisher of the book.



James de Villiers, Hans Pienaar and Gary Cummiskey

Friday, 29 November 2019

Facebook post by Derek Davey about the launch of Graeme Feltham's With the Safety Off



James de Villiers talks at the launch of Graeme Feltham's new book With the Safety Off, published by Dye Hard Press. There were some innaresting speeches, particularly one by my old china, Nick Hauser. Nick drew parallels to Fig and Dostoevsky's Raskolnikov, both schismatic characters, and cited similarities between Graeme and Herman Charles Bosman. High praise indeed for a grungy book about drugs in Yeoville in the 90s ..


At the launch of Graeme Feltham's With the Safety Off



South African journalist Dennis Beckett checking out copies of Graeme Feltham's With the Safety Off, at the launch held at David Krut Bookstore on 27 November.

When Spirit Meets Bone



When Spirit Meets Bone, a CD of music by Graeme Feltham, compiled by James de Villiers. The CD was available for sale at the launch of With the Safety Off, published by Dye Hard Press.

Tuesday, 26 November 2019

A final reminder for the launch of With the safety Off by Graeme Feltham

A reminder to RSVP - the launch is tomorrow night!!!


You gotta be the morning aftertaste: an extract from Graeme Feltham's With the Safety Off, published in Mail & Guardian

Fig claws through the cobwebs of some or other muckmare, the details of which he thankfully cannot remember. 
He takes the mirror off the bedstand and snorts the line of coke he prepared before falling asleep like a log.

On the spot he’s awake on the double-bed sponge mattress with a crate on either side, the Hitachi L 17 on the one crate, a few books on the other (no library here, commensurate with his avowed unbelief in property), two other crates that double as chairs scattered on the floor and against the one wall his clothes are folded in wooden tomato boxes. Read more.

Wednesday, 20 November 2019



Exclusive Books Sandton City has ordered five copies of With the Safety Off, so they should be on the shelves soon! I wonder what Fig, the main character, would think of that - at the start of the book he is working for a Sandton ad agency!

Friday, 18 October 2019

RIP Erik Vatne



Two days ago I received the news that US poet Erik Vatne had passed on about a month back. I have been too shocked and depressed about it to process it. Erik and I became friends on Facebook around 2010, just after I became friends with Yannis Livadas and Subhankar Das. It was Yannis who introduced me to Erik's collection Cartographies of Silence. And Sub published chapbooks by all three of us.
For a while Erik and I were very close, exchanging messages, emails, poetry and music videos almost daily. But about four years ago he abruptly left all social media, and would not even reply to emails. I was extremely worried about his silence, especially given Erik's history of addictions and breakdowns. Finally, I managed to get someone to trace Erik down - he was fine - he just needed to withdraw and get some privacy.
Then a year ago he messaged me out of the blue, thanking me for my concern, but again saying he just needed to get privacy. I decided to respect his wishes and did not reply. Then two days ago came the news of his death. I don't know the details.
Here is an interview I did with Erik just after the publication of his collection Mormon Heroin.
RIP Erik.

A circular journey: an interview with Musawenkosi Khanyile, published in The Odd Magazine 19




Musawenkosi Khanyile was born in 1991 in Nseleni, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. He holds a Master’s in Clinical Psychology from the University of Zululand, a Master’s in Creative Writing from the University of the Western Cape and is currently studying towards a Master’s in Public Health at the University of Cape Town, where he also works as a Student Counsellor. His chapbook, The Internal Saboteur, was published as part of the African Poetry Book Fund’s 2019 New-Generation African Poets: A Chapbook Box Set (Sita). His first full collection, All the Places, was also published in 2019, by Uhlanga. His work has appeared in literary journals, both local and international, such as New Coin, New Contrast and Five Points. He currently lives in Cape Town. Read more here.

Ons Klyntji - passport



Chuffed to be published in Toast Coetzer's legendary Ons Klyntji once again - I have a wee prose poem about walls, letters, Syria and Angola included! Thank you, Toast!


Saturday, 12 October 2019

Screenprint of Graeme Feltham by James de Viliers



A screenprint in progress by James de Villiers depicting Graeme Feltham. James designed the cover of With the Safety Off and contributed to the introduction.

Brain Cell mail art from Ryosuke Cohen



Brain Cell mail art from Ryosuke Cohen in Hyogo,Japan - what a wonderful surprise in the post!!

Saturday, 28 September 2019

Wednesday, 25 September 2019

Sunday, 22 September 2019

The presences in spring


Received in the post (continued)



A beautifully produced chapbook of poems by Musawenkosi Khanyile. The Internal Saboteur is part of set of chapbooks, collectively titled New-Generation African Poets: A Chapbook Box Set, published by Akashic Books, New York, USA.

Friday, 20 September 2019

In Naked Field hits Pretoria


It has taken two months for a copy of In Naked Field to get from Johannesburg to Pretoria, which is less than an hour's drive away! Perhaps I will still receive the book posted from France in April ...

Received in the post



It is always a delight to receive surprise mail from Henry Denander - here we have art stamps, a postcard, a small collection of 12 collages, and of course a mail art envelope!

Monday, 09 September 2019

New from Dye Hard Press: With the Safety Off by Graeme Feltham


Newly published by Dye Hard Press, in collaboration with altoviolet:
With the Safety Off by Graeme Feltham
It’s Yeoville in the mid-1990s. Enter Fig, a copywriter with a penchant for living on the edge – staying up all night, having casual sex and snorting cocaine. Drifting from seedy clubs to grotty flats, Fig continues his aimless odyssey … until the day he falls asleep in a client presentation and is fired.
Nine months later Fig is hooked on heroin and turns to drug-dealing for survival. If his previous lifestyle skirted close to the danger zone, it’s now gloves off as he drops all pretence of respectability and descends into a world of syndicates and violence.
From now on, he’s living with the safety off.
A novel not for the faint-hearted ...
Graeme Feltham was born in 1965 and grew up in Uitenhage. He completed a degree in journalism at Rhodes University and moved to Johannesburg in the late 1980s. In addition to being a writer, he was an experimental composer and performance artist. His novella One Hundred Naked Beers was published by Brevitas in 2002. His work also appeared in literary journals such as New Coin and donga. Feltham died in December 2017.
With introductions by Luke Feltham and James de Villiers.
220 pp.
ISBN 978-0-9869982-6-3
Available directly from Dye Hard Press for R220, including postage. Should you want the book couriered, the price will be R250. Retail details due soon.
Currently South Africa only.

Saturday, 31 August 2019

Wednesday, 28 August 2019

Forthcoming from Dye Hard Press: With the Safety Off by Graeme Feltham


It’s Yeoville in the mid-1990s. Enter Fig, a copywriter with a penchant for living on the edge – staying up all night, having casual sex and snorting cocaine. Drifting from seedy clubs to grotty flats, Fig continues his aimless odyssey … until the day he falls asleep in a client presentation and is fired.
Nine months later Fig is hooked on heroin and turns to drug-dealing for survival. If his previous lifestyle skirted close to the danger zone, it’s now gloves off as he drops all pretence of respectability and descends into a world of syndicates and violence.
From now on, he’s living with the safety off.
A novel not for the faint-hearted ...

Graeme Feltham was born in 1965 and grew up in Uitenhage. He completed a degree in journalism at Rhodes University and moved to Johannesburg in the late 1980s. In addition to being a writer, he was an experimental composer and performance artist. His novella One Hundred Naked Beers was published by Brevitas in 2002. His work also appeared in literary journals such as New Coin and donga. Feltham died in December 2017.

With introductions by Luke Feltham and James de Villiers.
220 pp.
ISBN 978-0-9869982-6-3
Available directly from Dye Hard Press for R220, including postage. Should you want the book couriered, the price will be R250. Currently South Africa only.

Sunday, 28 July 2019

Dye Hard Interviews: John Dorsey: Hittin' the road

John Dorsey lived for several years in Toledo, Ohio. He is the author of several collections of poetry, including Teaching the Dead to Sing: The Outlaw's Prayer(Rose of Sharon Press, 2006), Sodomy is a City in New Jersey (American Mettle Books, 2010), Tombstone Factory (Epic Rites Press, 2013), Appalachian Frankenstein (GTK Press, 2015), Being the Fire (Tangerine Press, 2016) and Shoot the Messenger (Red Flag Press, 2017).  More recently he has published a limited-edition chapbook titled Dying like Dogs, published by Tangerine Press.  He is the current Poet Laureate of Belle, MO. His work has been nominated for the Pushcart Prize. He can be reached at archerevans@yahoo.com.

DH: When did you start writing poetry? When was your first collection published?

JD: I started writing very bad poetry about 30 years ago. My first collection, which contained much of that early work, was published in 1995 by Jesse Poet Publications, and was entitled When It's Over and Other Poems.  Read more.

Saturday, 27 July 2019

The Edge of Things: South African short fiction selected by Arja Salafranca



Dye Hard Press has FOUR copies left of The Edge of Things, the short fiction anthology edited by Arja Salafranca, which was published a few years back and received much critical acclaim. The Edge of Things contains 24 short stories by Jayne Bauling, Arja Salafranca, Liesl Jobson, Gillian Schutte, Karina Magdalena Szczurek, Jenna Mervis, Jennifer Lean, Fred de Vries, Margie Orford, Aryan Kaganof, Bernard Levinson, Hamilton Wende, Pravasan Pillay, Beatrice Lakwana, Hans Pienaar, Rosemund Handler, Tiah Beautement, Angelina N Sithebe, Jeanne Hromnik, David wa Maahlamela, Perd Booysen, Gail Dendy, Silke Heiss and Dan Wylie. 

The cost is R190 per copy, including postage, for South Africa. For overseas the cost is R240, including postage. Send an email to dyehardpress@iafrica.com to order.

pushing from the riverbank by alan finlay


Dye Hard Press has just FIVE copies left of pushing from the riverbank by Alan Finlay, published in 2010.
Consisting of 19 poems, this is a beautiful production by one of South Africa's finest poets.
Other titles by Finlay include Burning Aloes, No Free Sleeping and The Red Laughter of Guns in Green Summer Rain, with Philip Zhuwao. He was editor of Blek-Sem and donga, as well as New Coin.
Available at R90 per copy, including postage, for South Africa. For overseas, R140 including postage. Email dyehardpress@iafrica.com to order.

Friday, 12 July 2019

Coming soon from Dye Hard Press: With the Safety Off by Graeme Feltham


Graeme Feltham's novel With the Safety Off is in the final stages of production, and I hope to get it to the printer later next week!

Watch this space for more details!

Copies of Beyond Touch by Arja Salafranca still available


Dye Hard Press still has copies in stock of Arja Salafranca's poetry collection Beyond Touch, which was published by Modjaji Books and Dye Hard Press in 2015.
Beyond Touch is Salafranca's third poetry collection and was co-winner of the SALA Poetry Award in 2016.
Copies are available at R145, including postage, for South Africa. For overseas orders, the price is R190, including postage. Contact dyehardpress@iafrica.com to order.

Who was Sinclair Beiles?, edited by Gary Cummiskey and Eva Kowalska


A copy of the original edition of Who was Sinclair Beiles? is selling at abebooks.com for R1 400!!!!

But you can buy a copy of the revised edition for much less. Who was Sinclair Beiles?, edited by Gary Cummiskey and Eva Kowalska, is now available at Balakudu.com for R170.

Please follow the link below to order. https://www.balakudu.com/9780986998249.

You can also still order directly from Dye Hard Press. Send an email to dyehardpress@iafrica.com for details.

Copies of Kobus Moolman's Left Over still available for sale



Dye Hard Press has unearthed some more copies of Kobus Moolman's poetry collection Left Over, published in 2013.

Available for R150, including postage, in South Africa. For overseas the cost is R190. To order please send an email to dyehardpress@iafrica.com.

Saturday, 29 June 2019

The latest issue of Graffti


I have five short poems in this recent issue of Graffiti, published in Kolkata, India, by poet Subhankar Das.

Graffiti is a bilingual poetry journal. Other poets in the English section are Adrian Manning, Henrick Aeshna, Jayeeta Bhattacharya, Jay Passer, John Dorsey, Linda King and Neeli Cherkovski.

Friday, 28 June 2019

Thursday, 27 June 2019

In Naked Field by Gary Cummiskey: Order details



In Naked Field is a chapbook of 20 poems by Gary Cummiskey, published by Concrete Meat Press in
Leicester, England. It is limited to 50 copies. To order click here.

Forthcoming from Dye Hard Press: With the Safety Off by Graeme Feltham



To be published by Dye Hard Press, in collaboration with altoviolet. 
With the Safety Off, a novel by Graeme Feltham.

Wednesday, 19 June 2019

Pravasan Pillay's Chatsworth to be translated into Swedish




Pravasan Pillay's short story collection Chatsworth, which was published by Dye Hard Press last year, is going to be translated into Swedish! It will be published by Lil'Lit Förlag in Stockholm and be out by the end of this year!

Sunday, 16 June 2019

Coming soon from Dye Hard Press and altoviolet: With the Safety Off by Graeme Feltham

It’s the mid-1990s. Yeoville, along with the rest of South Africa, is in the midst of change. Enter Fig, a copywriter with a penchant for living on the edge – staying up all night, having casual sex and snorting cocaine. Drifting from seedy clubs to grotty flats, Fig continues his aimless odyssey …  until the day he falls asleep in a client presentation and is fired.

Nine months later Fig is hooked on heroin and turns to drug-dealing for survival. If his previous lifestyle skirted close to the danger zone, it’s now gloves off as he drops all pretence of respectability and descends into a world of syndicates and violence. There is no going back, but Fig doesn’t care.

From now on, he’s living with the safety off – no matter where it leads him.

At once harrowing and humourous, despairing and cynical, Graeme Feltham’s stark novel With the Safety Off plumbs the depths of mid-1990s South Africa, capturing both the exhilaration of freedom and the insecurity that comes with change.

216 pp 

ISBN 978-0-9869982-6-3

Jointly published by Dye Hard Press and altoviolet.

Pricing to be confirmed.

Cover art (provisional): James de Villiers

Graeme Feltham was born in 1965 and grew up in Uitenhage. He completed a degree in journalism at Rhodes University and moved to Johannesburg in the late 1980s. In addition to being a writer, he was an experimental composer and performance artist. His novella One Hundred Naked Beers was published by Brevitas in 2002. His work also appeared in literary journals such as New Coin and donga. Graeme took his own life in December 2017.

Mail art received from Henry Denander



Mail art received from Swedish artist, poet and publisher Henry Denander, including a stampsheet of portraits of Dr Hunter S Thompson. Am wondering whether Henry has done any portraits of Dr John, who died last week?

The stories my grandfather told me


Thursday, 30 May 2019

Original collage by Bruno Sourdin


This is the original collage by French poet and collagist Bruno Sourdin that graced the cover of my latest poetry chapbook, In Naked Field, published by Concrete Meat Press in Leicester, England. In Naked Field is limited to 50 copies.