There is a lot of literary activity on the ground in Zimbabwe. New voices are eager to enter the world stage, to be heard, to tell their stories. Rise they should, these voices, because Zimbabwe is a rich literary landscape. New platforms are cropping up, taking advantage of the web Web  technologies and the access to computing devices. One such platform is Ztorie Bhuku, whose tagline is “Literature from a #Rule_Breaking generation”.

Ztorie Bhuku was created by young writers Lenni Mdawini Sibanda and Leroy Mthulisi Ndlovu ,and its main aim is to develop writing talent and build an audience for local creative stories. The key words a “young”, “develop”, “talent” and “audience”.  Most of these writers already have a voice that communicates immediately with the increasingly connected world; it’s an informed group of writers who understand the importance of rule-breaking (whether it is a breaking of rigid literary conventions, or of some the rules of society that may threaten creativity). The reach of their subject-matter is wide and expanding, unique, but relatable experiences which cause the reader to ask from some more. And that’s what art should do, create an interest in the reader, expand the horizons of creativity.

Ztorie is new and growing, but work sampled on their website is full of promise: the seed that, once nurtured, would turn into compelling literature. Of course, the challenges of any new platform is resources. Currently they operate on a blog (and while far-reaching, blogs cannot be the ultimate avenue with which writers utilize their creativity).

The existence of platforms like Ztorie Bhuku then is like a sign of the potential that only greater opportunities can help harvest. Munyori Journal found out that Ztorie Bhuku facilitators are looking for resources to help them publish some of the best works that have appeared on their website. They are currently working on an audio book and a short story collection to be released before year end 2013.