Union to revamp non-fiction writing

The Malawi Union of Academic and Non-Fiction Authors (Muana) wants more people to join its group to expose and promote their writing skills.
To achieve this, the union has planned a number of activities some of which took place in March in Liwonde.

“The workshop was organised for Muana members and other interested people for the purpose of equipping them with tools and skills for structuring and writing journal articles, textbooks and others. Similar workshops are being planned for the immediate future, but currently, we are on a recruiting drive for new members,” said Muana’s board chairperson Pascal Kishindo.
Kishindo, who is also director for Centre for Language Studies and professor of African Languages and Linguistics at the University of Malawi, pointed out that it is organisations such as Muana that can promote the work of non-fiction writers both locally and internationally as well as protect their work from piracy.
Formed in 2013, Muana has five core objectives which are: to build capacity of non-fiction and academic authors, protect intellectual rights and interest of academic and non-fiction authors in the country, promote reading and writing culture, lobby for the increased number of Malawian textbooks in institutions of learning and to promote collaboration between Malawian non-fiction and academic authors and their international counterparts.
“We believe that high quality writing can only emerge when writers are equipped with necessary tools and skills to write and are given the necessary support. High quality writing will inevitably attract readers, which will help to enhance the reading culture in the country,” said Kishindo.