Here are the facts: Statistics show that only 14% of the South African population are active book readers, and a mere 5% read regularly to their children.

Of course, things are a bit more complicated than that. Books cost money, under-representation is a hot topic. Combined, these result in a significant barrier to entry to would-be bookworms and storytellers.

But everyone has a story to tell.

“Imagine if we could collectively tell our stories. What would these stories reveal about who we are? What hopes, anxieties, ambitions could you get across if we had the chance?” asks Lee Molefi of NEWSZA, the youth-owned start up agency that is running the campaign.

Creating A Collective Story

NEWSZA is looking to bring together our stories in a groundbreaking collective storytelling mission.

#1KAuthors is a crowdsourcing campaign that aims to collect one thousand 140-character submissions and turn them into a cohesive story that will live in five chapters. Simply put, if you share your story with #1000Authors in under 140 characters, you could be a published author.

You can either tweet your story with the hashtag #1KAuthors or #1000Authors . Alternatively, you can submit your 140-character story privately by direct messaging @NEWSZAnarrative. Submissions are open from Monday 28 August to Friday 1 September.

The book will be edited by a team of five young editors, who will introduce a new tone and language to local literature by selecting, collating and editing a book written entirely by ordinary South Africans via social media. The book will be launched at the South African Book Fair, an annual literary festival, on 8 September 2017.