Some of the poets featured in Loud Thoughts

BY TAFADZWA KACHIKO

EIGHT young poets launched their debut poetry collection, Loud Thoughts, on Saturday at Batanai Gardens in Harare.

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Vongai Masuka, Sean Sizalobuhle, Wayne Chiripanyanga, Tanyaradzwa Tiffany Nyikadzino, Energy Mavaza, Addriana Munyuki and Takaedza Mandinyenga contributed poems to the collection.

Mavaza, who roped in the rest of the poets, said he was excited about the project after a long struggle to publish the work.

“I am very excited that after a tiresome journey characterised by financial constraints, we have finally launched our first project. It could not have been a success without contributions from these poets. I thought of involving more women than men because I felt that they have the loudest thoughts,” he said.

“We enjoyed working together and as a result we came up with a title as a team. The anthology contains those loudest thoughts regarding gender, religion and Africanism among other issues. It communicates equivocal issues that make noise inside the minds of today’s youths.”

In her poem, Single-Married Mum, one of the poets, Nyikadzino, reflected on women in marriages that are not working.

“My poems relate to life experiences. They paint a picture of what happens in this world. Single-Married Mum illustrates the sufferings of women who are in burdensome marriages. The marriages no longer work, but they can’t move out because they fear to be ridiculed or for the sake of kids. These are as good as single,” she said.

Three-time winner of Kwayedza’s Detembai Tinzwe poetry competition Applaud Masuka told NewsDay Life & Style that her sister Vongayi was so much into poetry and urged the poets to keep on nurturing their talents.

“She puts most of her energy into poetry to the extent that the time you think she is studying she will be writing poems. I would like to say to the poets keep on nurturing your talents,” she said.