Says Cindy: "People often say that writing fiction is an escape from reality. I’ve never found that to be true. For me, it’s the opposite — a headlong dive into reality’s deepest waters. Fiction exposes what life tries to conceal. It rattles the bones, shakes the mind, and leaves you raw. It’s not a gentle process. At times, it’s been brutal — I’ve lost hair to stress, teeth to neglect, and sleep to sentences that refused to end.
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It’s taken me sixty-two years to bring my first novel into existence. Nine months were spent typing; the rest were spent living. And what a lifetime that’s been: I’ve been terrible at people skills, operated switchboards, posed as a model, drag-raced for adrenaline, filed papers for a paycheck, and, when I finally grew up, wandered the world with a camera and a notebook.
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Every one of those lives has found its way into my story. Fiction, after all, isn’t make-believe. It’s memory — reshaped, refined, and retold until it reflects something truer than truth itself."
Author
Over the years, Cindy-Lou has written five books, each reflecting a distinct chapter of her life.
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Her first was a practical guide for aspiring writers, shaped by the lessons of her own path. Two followed as coffee table volumes — visual narratives drawn from assignments marked by discovery, hardship, and grace.
More recently, she has turned to children’s adventure stories inspired by rural rhythms and the animals that share her landscape — tales of curiosity, friendship, and quiet courage.
She is now at work on her first novel, set during the height of apartheid. It follows a young girl constrained by rigid faith and violence, who finds strength through unexpected allies — a perceptive teacher and a steadfast domestic worker. The story confronts violence, belief, and reckoning without flinching, yet at its core is resilience without bitterness and hope without illusion.
Readers drawn to the layered humanity of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, the epic sweep of Courtney series, or the memoir grit of Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight may recognize a familiar thread — a deep respect for Africa’s complexity and the endurance of its people.
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© 2025 Cindy-Lou Dale