Durban University of Technology (DUT) Photography student, author and poet Dumo Xaba, is all set to release his much anticipated upcoming court drama novel. The release date and title of his drama novel will be soon announced on his website: dumoxaba.co.za and social media platforms.
The 22-year-old is currently enrolled for his Bachelor of Applied Arts Honours in Commercial Photography. His motivation for becoming an author was his love for storytelling. He recently participated in the DUT Mini Book Fair organised by the DUT Library which featured staff and student authors. Xaba got the opportunity to recite his poems and also give insight on his books.
From a young age, he has always been fascinated by the allure of stories and how they are able to transport one into another world. The COVID-19 pandemic which then led to lockdown in 2020 is what encouraged him to explore his writing skills further.
Xaba began writing poetry in February 2020, compiling his first poetry book, Poetic Type of Love, in May 2020, which was released in November of the same year. This collection was the reason he had started teaching himself how to make graphic illustrations. In October 2021, Dear Humanity was released, followed by Poetic Type of Love in February 2022. These were all leading up to The Legacy, a very personal anthology of Dumo’s poetry which some have called a “biography of sorts”.
The Durban-born lad shared his excitement on the sales of his books, not only in South Africa, but also abroad.
“I have published three books to date, one detective mystery novel, A Dubious Alliance, and two poetry anthologies, The Legacy, and Poetic Type of Love: Uthando Lwami. By the grace of God, they are doing well in the markets, domestic and international for the eBooks. At the moment there have been prints available in the United State (US) and the United Kingdom(UK) for The Legacy. I am currently working on getting A Dubious Alliance into print, and having the print books available in South Africa,” he said.
Xaba added that he also attempted to get into the fashion industry, but due to his busy schedule, he had to pause that dream and focus more on writing and studying.
“One thing people don’t know about me is that I have dabbled into fashion design but I have never got around to learning how to sew the designs because my schedule can only accommodate so much, and between writing, studying and being a photographer, there often isn’t much time to learn a new skill,” he said.
Explaining the DUT ENVISION2030 Living Values which he mostly associates with, the dynamic author emphasised the importance of respect,
“Respect has to be the one of my profound values, without it, we would descend into a dysfunctional and unjust society,” shared Xaba.
To know more about his work, please visit his social media pages:
Facebook: Dumo Xaba
Instagram: @dumoxaba
TikTok: @dumoxaba
YouTube: Dumo Xaba
LinkedIn: Dumo Xaba
Pictured: A man of many talents, Dumo Xaba.
Photographer: Mnqobi Ngobese.
Thubelihle Dumakude
