Journalist Mpho Lukoto has been with Flow Communications only a few days now, and is pleasantly shocked at how cheerful everybody is.
“It is sunshine here – people are so happy! If you’ve ever worked in a newsroom, you’ll understand my surprise,” she says.
A reserved person by nature who enjoys subediting because “it’s just you and your copy”, Mpho joins the Flow team with hopes of getting more experience in the world of social media and online communications.
And she brings a wealth of experience.
“I worked as a subeditor for six years in total at Business Day. I also tried my hand at public relations for 11 months during that time, but then ran back to my comfort zone – I’m not really that good with people, which is why I like subbing, because you never really worry about having to go out and meet people.”
Although she studied journalism at the then-Rand Afrikaans University (now the University of Johannesburg), Mpho has her eye on other things: “Journalism will not be the end of my career life. I’m here at a communications company because I want to challenge myself; I’m trying to grow and upskill, while still dealing with content-heavy work.”
Mpho, who grew up in Pimville, Soweto, and later moved to Florida Glen, doesn’t remember where her love of reading started; all she remembers is reading whatever she could get her hands on. And now her book collection is massive (although, and very unfortunately, “quite a few” of these books remain unread).
She has a great admiration for Nigerian writers, describing them as having “a thing with words”. Her all-time favourite author is Nigerian novelist Buchi Emecheta, who has published more than 20 books (Mpho’s most memorable of Emecheta’s books is the 1976 novel, The Bride Price).
In the unfortunate event of her house catching fire, the first thing Mpho would do is grab her two daughters and get them to safety. “The rest,” she says, “is replaceable.”
And when she’s not making a living from her love for reading, Mpho is watching her kids growing up or hanging out with her friends – oh, and she’s currently trying to stay away from the huge warehouse book sale in Strydom Park.