M4Lit – Mobile Literature Project.

Sbu hits it off with a girl at a party, but she disappears, leaving him with her cellphone. Who is she? Why doesn’t anyone on her contact list know her? And why is she receiving threatening messages? Tracking the girl down leads Sbu and his friends into a world of action, mystery, and increasing danger…

This last month I’ve been lucky enough to write a cellphone novel called “Kontax” for the Shuttleworth Foundation’s M4Lit literacy project, run by the great Steve Vosloo. The idea is that, because a large number of kids in South Africa have access to a cellphone, it’s an easier way distribute a story than in, say, a magazine. The story is available in Xhosa and English, and a new chapter will be available each day for three weeks, starting on the 30th of September.

However, straight-up educational this ain’t.

M4Lit isn’t just about getting kids to read – it’s about getting them to read avidly, and argue. At the end of every chapter is a comments section and a link to a MXit forum, and there are prizes for the best comments. So the challenge has been to make a story that’s as exciting as hell, that’ll keep kids talking and, ideally, is so much fun that parents will mildly disapprove of it.

Because it’s a multimedia project, there’s also a lot of story extras to flesh out the world, like diary entries of the characters, newspaper articles from the story universe, and a guide to graffiti. The designers from Clockwork Zoo are working on images to accompany each of the 21 chapters. And we’re recording phone messages, so that readers can call in and join the hunt for the missing girl.

What was really helpful was going to Thembani Primary School in Langa and the False Bay College in Khayelitsha, and getting feedback and story ideas from classes of kids. They were bright and funny, and it was a pleasure to spend time with them.

Now, we have to spread the word and get kids across South Africa reading it. So if anyone wants to review it ahead of time, please let me know.