EMIHLE MBANGATHA
Inganathi Malgas’s quest to find the perfect romantic read prompted her to write and publish her own book, which has earned her a nomination for the 2025 Mzansi Arts and Media Awards’ best writer category for her book, Love On A Monday.
In its sixth annual run, the Mzansi Arts and Media Awards recognises talent across the creative and entertainment industry nationwide with nine categories including best DJ, photographer and gospel artist.
Malgas is among 11 other nominees in her category and the only writer from Buffalo City to be nominated — a feat she describes as a dream come true.
Love on a Monday was published in September last year and follows protagonist Amanda Davis, who finds herself falling for her notorious playboy boss, Damian Salvatore. Amanda must navigate the complexities of forbidden romance while also grappling with a shocking revelation that shatters her world — leading readers down a rabbit hole of love and betrayal.
The book took only seven months to complete. She said: “I never thought that a girl from East London would be recognised as the best writer on a national platform.
“I believe this book was created to address the dearth of published writing emerging from the Eastern Cape, especially where romance as a genre is concerned.
“Most Eastern Cape writers focus mainly on human interest stories about the grueling reality of life in the province and I decided that it was time for Eastern Cape writing to diversify in its literary content.
“Reading is important and we need to encourage it and the easiest way to do that is to write about topics, themes and plots that people enjoy, and romance is a genre that stands the test of time.”
Malgas credits her parents and publisher as driving forces behind her literary success and hopes her nomination proves there is a market for more stories from the Eastern Cape — especially the titillating sort.
Publisher, Evelyn50 Publishing Company, is proud to see Malgas’ work garner national acclaim especially as its sales to libraries and municipalities across the country has increased since its release.
Evelyn 50 founder and CEO Marcia Ramodike said the book’s selling power shows that it has potential and confirms what could be a burgeoning career in the literary space for Malgas.
Ramodike said: “Inganathi’s book goes against the grain of what we usually expect from black authors because romance as a genre is associated with white authors from bigger publishing houses overseas.
“Inganathi wanted to prove that SA writing can contribute to the romance genre. She resisted all our advice to write about socioeconomic issues and believed in her story and it’s paying off in terms of sales.
“She has the potential to be one of our best sellers and her nomination for this award is a further testament to this.”
Malgas has another book in the works which may hit the shelves before the end of the year and in the interim, readers across the city can purchase Love on a Monday through Amazon for R190.
To vote for Inganathi Malgas as the 2025 Mzansi Arts and Media Awards’ best writer visit Mzansi Arts And Media Awards Facebook page. Voting closes on March 11.
