RENE VAN ZYL WEAVING HER WAY THROUGH DIFFERENT GENRES

Her full-time career as wife to successful Hartbeespoort minister Anton van Zyl meant that on becoming René van Zyl, she had to leave the hustle and bustle of a full-time career in journalism behind her. This however did not quell her passion for the written word and it was through this and her love of Ireland and Scotland that Wee Monk’s Tale, The Secret of Immortality was born. This book kicked of her successful career in writing. In 2023 she will publish her 20^th novel.  

Wee Monk’s Tale is a medieval action-packed adventure and tells of three unlikely child-warriors who are propelled, rather reluctantly, into terrifying situations and forced to think on their feet outsmarting Vikings, druids and witches. These dangers however are nothing compared to the internal forces in each of their lives that continuously threaten to derail them. And no one is more surprised than our young adventurers to find that deep inside of each of them lives a true hero.

René wrote the book primarily to teach her children, two daughters, Michelle and Chantal, and her brain injured son, Sean-Jacques, that when trusting in God, no dream is impossible. As Sean’s brain damage (the result of oxygen shortage from a virus at 15 months of age) was something that would cripple him mentally for the rest of his life, she wanted to write an alternative story – one where Shaughn (as he is named in the book with its Irish setting) has adventures and spreads the Gospel in his own unique way. Sean-Jacques actually does this in real life with his smile, his enthusiasm, his limited vocabulary and his love for all people – not minding culture or color. He is an extrovert who thinks he is the greatest gift to mankind, and he lives every day to the fullest, spreading love wherever he goes.   

Wee Monk’s Tale is set against the backdrop of the year 795, a time of superstitious beliefs in dark forces, a 14-year-old orphan named Shaughn finds himself without his adopted Scottish family when Viking marauders attack and burn the monastery where he lives. He flees to Ireland accompanied by his adopted and crippled brother Connor (who dreams of becoming a knight) and an outspoken, superstitious gypsy girl named Heather. Never far behind them is a cold-blooded, murderous Viking, Thorvald, who is after the Book of Kells that Shaughn rescued from the burning monastery of Iona. Journeying desperately from one medieval predicament to another, the trio find themselves stranded in ‘bewitched’ castles, threatened in gloomy dungeons and even, bizarrely, at a Viking tournament Thing.

In the end God’s grace and love prevails and shines through on everyone including an orphan, a Viking, a king, a princess, a knight, a midget, a druid and a monk. Our three friends, with their different beliefs and outlooks discover that it is this, more than anything, that is their greatest weapon.

Through this journey of outsmarting medieval foes, the bickering children, barely equipped to deal with the threatening choices of real life, touch the lives of many hurt and lost people and also find real friendship. The journey teaches them to trust God unconditionally and to find the hero inside themselves.

An adaptation of the screenplay has found a home with an agent in Hollywood and is being offered to producers with the view of turning it into a movie. Rene said she has no expectation and believes that if her baby finds his way onto the movie scene it will be pure destiny.

Interesting fact on the Altar Bible:

Fact: The Gospel of Colmcille is considered the most important treasure contained in the Trinity College Museum, Dublin. During the Viking raids on Iona in 795, the Bible disappeared and mysteriously reappeared at the monastery of Kells, Ireland. How it ended up there nobody knows…Fiction: Well, might it be that three canny teenagers rescued it?

René set out to write a book that would be enjoyed by young and old alike and with the Christian theme of good vs. evil manages to keep it fresh, hip and interesting throughout.

Her supportive husband, minister at an informal and independent Christian Church in Hartbeespoort, Kuierkerk, applauds the energetic and worldly way in which this story is being told and has this to say: “We need to provide the youth of today with supernatural, but Biblical, stories as they crave secrets, intrigue and adventure. One just has to look at the popularity of books like Harry Potter and Twilight to confirmation this.” The book is still available on Amazon.com as an e-book.

Since writing this adventure novel and publishing it in 2012, René has published twenty books, among them two conspiracy novels, Die Alfadokument and Die Omegakomplot as well as various Romance novels and in 2023 two more adventure novels for the teenage market.

 Besides her books Rene has a passion for Christian Puppet Theatre. She realized years ago that this was the way to go if you want to teach small children about the word of God. She is also a playwright of interdenominational Christian musical plays with a humoristic twist – true to Rene’s personality and writing style.

She finds her inspiration from an ever-curious mind, her husband and three children, Michelle (28), Chantal (25) and Sean-Jacques (30). He still lives with them, but attends the Kuierkidz learning Center in Hartbeespoort, a school for special needs children of all ages that was started in 2008 by René and Anton.

Be sure to check out this remarkable woman’s blog for some tongue in the cheek stories. Some hilarious but with a sincere depth behind them. You can also find a list of her books and info on Op Pad Na Grysberg, a project where 22 of South Africa’s most popular Afrikaans writers each wrote one chapter of a fantasy novel. The outcome was unique and fascinating.     

Renevanzyl.blogspot.com and www.Kuierkidz.blogspot.com