'When I was reading King of Rabbits, I was reminded of writers like Andrea Dunbar and Barry Hines, writers who clearly lived what they were writing about.' Johny Pitts, author of Afropean: Notes from Black Europe
King of Rabbits tells the story of Kai, growing up on a rural council estate in Somerset. It is a compelling novel that explores realities of growing up with addiction, racism and poverty. Join Karla Neblett as she talks to Zakiya McKenzie about writing nature, mental health and the south west.
About the speakers
Karla Neblett is a writer from Somerset. While studying for an MA in creative writing at Bath Spa University, she was awarded the Janklow & Nesbit prize. Her debut novel, King of Rabbits, is told from the perspective of Kai, and is a novel about poverty, race, mental health and addiction. Nowadays, she's a freelance content writer specialising in addiction. On the side, she writes fiction with a keen interest in the surreal and morbid.
Zakiya McKenzie is a PhD candidate with the Leverhulme Trust-supported Caribbean Literary Heritage project at the University of Exeter researching Black British journalism in the post-war period. Zakiya is a writer and storyteller and was the 2019 writer-in-residence for Forestry England during its centenary year. In Bristol, she was 2017 Black and Green Ambassador and is a volunteer at Ujima Community Radio station. She regularly leads nature, art and writing workshops, including one on Caribbean storytelling for primary schools. Her work has featured at the Cabot Institute for the Environment at the University of Bristol, the Institute for Modern Languages Research at the University of London, the Hepworth Wakefield Gallery, the Free Word Centre, at Cheltenham Literature Festival, on BBC’s Woman’s Hour, Farming Today and Inside Out West. She has written for Smallwoods Magazine, the Willowherb Review and BBC Wildlife Magazine.
About the event
Africa Writes – Exeter is brought to you by the Royal African Society and Saseni! working in partnership with the University of Exeter, local independent bookshop Bookbag and Roots Resistance.
Africa Writes – Exeter has been launched through Exeter’s UNESCO City of Literature Programme.
Sat, 18 June 2022
17:00 – 18:00