Rage of Angels by Sydney Sheldon

 

Leaving Alexandra Magistrate Court after a protection order victory

When I first read this book , I was a teen trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life career wise..

The film Range of Angels.. The book was turned into a film

 I was really into art but living with my father that was not a career.

Leaving the Johannesburg High Court after the victory to have my lights switched on by my body cooperate 

Whether I ended up being a famous actress or singer. To him then, that meant I was going to end up being a drug addict so a back up career plan was needed.

                                             Fake court documents have been doing the rounds

But my other fathers- Yes, I lived in a community with many people who fathered me- probed me in the fame game. 

Cover of the book, from the internet

"What are you going to be famous for?

New advocates sworn in at the Johannesburg High Court in 2024

When the people see you, what are they going to celebrate about you?  They asked. 

So my back up career was law. Journalism or writing was something that came naturally to me  so little did I know that that was something that can do and make money out of it. 

One of the stories I did while at the Sunday Times

Yes, in my era, Nelson Mandela had just released from prison and had gone from being in prison.

Attending a family law workshop at the Alexandra Township offices of ensAfrica 

 He was a lawyer before he went to prison and became active in politics. One of my favourite South African  actor, Joe Mafela was doing a killer job as an interpreter of a law firm on SABC comedy, Going UP. 

Jennifer the main character in this book had paved the way for me.Besides growing up in a Christian Community and having a very religious background, I knew many father Ryan who will make my career an easy path.

With Adapt founder Mam'Khumalo

In this book, father Ryan is a clergy man whose clients, mostly people who are outcasts in the society are never in the wrong.

As father Ryan would tell you, there were either the victims of their background, upbringing, society etc. 

At one of ADAPT community outreach programmes

It is never really them but their surroundings that made them do the things that got them in trouble and Jennifer as a budding lawyer had to somehow find a way to help them from the harsh justice system.

                                               Joe Mafela on Going up interpreting for Mr Clover 

Jennifer's father was a lawyer, she used to help his father with little administrative work during school holidays to earn extra cash.

A short lived victory.

However, she falls in love with the profession and goes into it with the innocent hunger for justice for everyone regardless of their financial status in the society.

She enters the Lion's den the first day, few hours after she was sworn into profession within a few minutes her reputation was tarnished by a mafia who took advantage of her innocents and stupidity as an intern.

                                              Sokhulu and partners on Sabc was a tv series focused on law and educating the SA public on the new constitution.

Not to mention her unfortunate fate of reporting to an arrogant boss who didn't forgive easily and was always revenge hungry. But she rise from her humiliation, thanks to few good people that believed in her.

One of them is a lawyer that didn't act based on people's assumptions and media reports.

My favourite actor, Zweli on Sokhulu and partners

But he went all out to investigate all the claims labelled against her. He used common sense.

PS... Please note that this is our last book this year. I won't be able to write anything about books until next year. I'm off to writing exams. I might do stories every now and then, but will continue with books next year. I hope you enjoyed by selections, looking forward to your feedback 

I am a born story teller...Thank you Mr Richard H Nosworthy and WGSA

I am a born South African story teller. Even if I am not paid or work in a commercial set up, I will tell stories not even aware that what comes out of my mouth is attention grabbing to slow the production of any group work. Whether people believe the stories I tell to be true or not. I have really outgrown that stage of trying hard to convince them. But I do still trying hard almost everyday to hone my skill. But from when I was young, story telling has been around me and has been the only or major way to get my attention or teach me something. Whether these came in a form of a family evening gathering under tree and fire wood down in Engxongweni in Port St John's Ceskei in the early 80s. Or watching and imititating the Chinese movies starring Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and other 90s Chinese movie with the line "You killed my mother and father, now I've come to kill you" at the Port Elizabeth township bioscope. Or better yet, spending my evening at my aunt's house in 3rd Avenue Alexandra Township watching and learning all kinds of story telling platforms from action movies, drama, comedy, soapies, romantic to reading different genre of books and ended up being a collector of amongst other favourite authors then, Sydney Sheldon an American screenwriter. Inspired by him, especially his novel Rage of Angels- a novel released in the 80s about a female lawyer who beds both powerful politicians and dangerous gangsters- I wanted to study law as it is said story tellers are best lawyers in the world...LOL!*Winks*. But anyway, driven by my passion to try other platforms of story telling that would open doors for me for screenwriting or writing. I saw myself in Mafatsane Hall, Evaton,South Africa. Attending a Scriptwriters workshop hosted by Writers Guild South Africa( WGSA) with the late Mr Richard H Nosworthy the main tutor. The week long free event was organised to benefit writers from the previously disadvantaged community. That is creative writers in South African who cannot either afford training or access to information about the industry due to their financial background. The guilt also protect the writers rights as many of them in South Africa are freelancers and do not get royalties on work repeated on other platforms of media in the African continent. The guilt was established in 2009 and aims to train more local writers in their South African vernacular language and also helps with their business education planning. They work with International Affiliation of Writers Guilds (IAWG) and American Guilt and had been instrumental in getting writers included in the South African Film and Television Awards. Mr Nosworthy was a very paient man as he encourages most of us to believe in ourselves. Knowing that I was a writer for print, he wanted me to know that the very same words written must know be acted out on stage, tv, through music, film or animitation. "The must be a reason why you telling the story," his words as I battled to polished my short film, Holly Gangsters. The film was a test of our knowldge gained from the workshop and if selected stood a chance to be entered in the Muse awards with the overall winner announced at the SAFTAs of that year, 2019. Anyway,I think due to Covid19 WGSA is still to issue me with the certificate and results of the film. Being a passionate writers of what is now going on in South African churches. Especially after my mother's death. The film, Holly Gangsters focused on a family of a woman seeking justice after a man of "God" and congregants conned community members and preyed on those desperate for long term illness healing. Based on my experience and a series of articles that I have written while with main stream media. Mr Nosworthy helped bring the emotions of trust and disgust as I reveal how the grieving family is expected to pay transportation and accommodation for one of their leaders to conduct the service. The family was also not getting anything from the R10 000 funeral burial plan taken by the deceased in the church. Even though, she had constantly paid monthly fees for years. Close members of the family revealed how in the last days the church discouraged her from taking her medication and instead should rely on the water and salt the church was offering for healing.