Craft, Care and Soul.

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Craft, Care and Soul. 〰️

A woman with flowers covering part of her face and arms crossed over her chest, standing behind an open book with plants growing from its pages, surrounded by butterflies and a bee on a light green background.

Hello, and welcome.

This is a space for lovers of literature, for the curious, the imaginative, and those drawn to the quiet magic of story.

Rooted in Cape Town, South Africa, we are also part of a wider, wandering constellation of readers and writers—people reimagining language, deepening communication, and tending to relationship through craft, study, and shared creation.

Here, you’ll find offerings designed to support your creative journey and nourish your practice—pathways into writing, reflection, and connection.

If you feel the pull, follow it. Sign up, join in, reach out. We always welcome an email < tanika@hatuakali-storytelling.org > or simply keep exploring to learn more about who we are and how we work.

We hope to meet you, in words, or in person.

Stories are how communities remember, imagine, and change.

Creative Writing in Cape Town is a storytelling school rooted in the belief that imagination is a resource — and that the stories we tell shape the societies we build.

Born from the wider work of Hatua Kali, a Pan-African storytelling studio, school, and research centre, our programmes guide writers, artists, and thinkers through the process of bringing ideas into form — from the first spark of inspiration to the steady craft of shaping it into language.

We see storytelling as more than technique. It is a practice of listening: to memory, to culture, to community, and to the environments we inhabit.

Drawing on Pan-African and indigenous knowledge traditions alongside contemporary creative practice, our course explores creativity as a relational act — one that moves between the spiritual, psychological, somatic, and social dimensions of human life.

Here, writing is not only about producing work. It is about learning how to think clearly, feel deeply, and communicate with care.

Our Creative Services Include:

  • Tuesday Sessions — Weekly 60-minute online writing sessions and community support

  • 8-Week Creative Writing Discovery Course — A holistic introduction to the creative writing process, from idea to finished work

  • Manuscript Margin Notes & Editorial Feedback — Written feedback to help you develop and refine your work

  • Manuscript Feedback + Online Debrief — Detailed written feedback followed by a 60-minute conversation

  • 1:1 Creative Writing & Book Coaching — Personalised support to develop your writing practice and creative project

  • Storytelling Workshops — Practical, focused workshops exploring storytelling and creative writing

  • Storytelling Events & Meetups — Opportunities to share work, connect with other creatives and experience live storytelling

What our Writers are Saying:

  • A diverse group of people attending a meeting in a conference room with large windows and natural light.

    Lindsay | Muizenberg | 8-Week Course

    “I finally stopped overthinking and started writing. The feedback, structure, and community made all the difference.”

  • A woman with wavy light brown hair, light skin, wearing a nose ring and earrings, and a brown scarf around her neck, speaking or explaining something inside a room with orange and yellow painted walls.

    Chloe | Observatory | 8-Week Course

    “I really appreciated how structured and intentional the course is, which isn’t always the case with creative programmes. I learnt a lot.”

  • Two women having a conversation in a cozy living room, one with short gray hair and the other with long blonde hair, surrounded by art and decorations.

    Debbie | Muizenberg | 8 Week Course

    “I returned to the 8-week course several times over the year, working on an essay that slowly became a public speech. With each round, the work deepened—and by the end, I found the courage to stand before an audience and share my story, something I never thought possible.”

  • Two people seated on a couch in a brightly lit room with blue window shutters. The person on the left is a man wearing glasses and a light-colored shirt, holding a book. The person on the right is a woman with blonde hair, wearing a white jacket over a dark shirt, with one hand covering her mouth. There's a coffee cup and bowls on a table in front of them, and a fan or heater is visible at the bottom of the image.

    Dimitri | Online | 8-Week Course

    “The weekly sessions became an anchor point in my week, gently building a habit that kept me connected to my creative goals. Even after the course ended, I’ve continued writing consistently each week.”