Winnie Motsokono who uses the pen name Winnie Winani Mpala (her maiden name) recently published a novel titled Lea’s Secret.

The 52-year-old mother and a grandmother, teaches English language and literature in English at Nata Senior Secondary school, and is also the Senior Teacher 1- Library.

She joined the teaching fraternity in 1996, and said she has always loved writing, and regularly made time for it. “Writing has always been a part of me. I am an avid reader. From a young age, my appetite for reading was insatiable. The books I read from a young age, influenced my writing,” she said. She also said that she particularly enjoyed writing narrative compositions, and then progressed to writing articles for the journalism club at Secondary School, and coordinated the journalism clubs at Patikwane CJSS and

Ranokanyane CJSS respectively.

Motsokono told Vibe that hard lessons from life’s experiences influenced this book. “Lea’s Secret had been pushing in my subconscious for years to be inscribed. There was no way I could go on and write any other book before I could write it. The traumatic experience of being raped at a young age weighed heavily on my spirit and I had to deal with it. In a way, writing was carathatic for me,” she said.

She further explained that she started writing the book in 2011, when she wrote only a few pages and struggled to continue with the story as it was still painful to deal with the past. Then last year she underwent online counseling. “I had hit rock bottom and my counsellor, Gideon Smart, brought me to the level where I came to terms with my childhood. As the counselling progressed, I picked up my pen and wrote the book, using the incident that happened to me when I was 11 years old, and built a story around it.”

She noted that through the book she wants to send out the message that rape is dehumanising, barbaric, and senseless. “Child abuse kills a child’s spirit, and bullying cripples, and that mental health challenges are real.

These are the fundamental lessons I wanted to share with the world,” she said.

Motsokono said that it is important to believe in your story, as that will give it credibility. “It should connect and sing to your reader’s soul!” She said that in addition, one should read extensively. “Reading feeds your writing and turns it into a masterpiece,” she said.

She added that lastly, it is important to always be yourself. “Let your voice be distinct in your writing. How you narrate your events should be your brand. Don’t clone others. Learn from your mentors, but pave your own path,” she said.

She further noted that writing Lea’s Secret and having it published was like untangling something heavy around her neck. “Now the books that I see lined up in my spirit are countless. I am working on my second novel, which talks about the abuse that goes on in some marriages behind closed doors.”

Motsokono said that our African culture is very rich and there are innumerable lessons that one can draw inspiration from. “Day-to-day routines carry stories that one can use to impact and bring change through writing!”