It’s a world of fast cars, merciless villains, beautiful girls and dashing undercover operatives. Duane Aslett, senior lecturer in forensic accountancy on the Potchefstroom Campus, says his wife, Tammy, often jokes that when he starts writing, he immerses himself in a world of his own.

 

The result of Duane’s world is his second Afrikaans novel, Goudduiwel (Gold Devil). This is a fast-paced novel with twists and turns in the tradition of great espionage novels such as Ian Fleming’s James Bond series. Goudduiwel is proudly South African and takes its readers to well-loved local destinations such as Skukuza in the Kruger National Park.

 

The hero is agent Rex Reynecke, undercover operative for the police’s Hawks unit, who has to find the love of his life’s brother when he disappears. It is soon revealed that his disappearance is related to the legendary missing Kruger millions and thus the wheels are set in motion for a roller coaster ride of intrigue.

 

Background serves writer well

 

Duane boasts an impressive resumé. He is a former police officer, state prosecutor and forensic investigator. He says this background, as well as his current research in forensic accountancy, enabled him to write his first novel, Skoppensboer (Jack of Spades), and the follow-up, Goudduiwel.

 

“I am currently busy with my research for a doctor of laws (LLD) degree and prior to that finished my master’s of laws (LLM) degree. I realised that a lot of hard work is put into research and that in the end, except for lecturers, a few students, a language editor and maybe a proud parent, not a lot of people read it. There were a lot of interesting facts for a background story and I wanted to use it in such a way that it would appeal to a larger audience.”

 

He says one of the most exciting aspects of writing novels such as Skoppensboer and Goudduiwel was that he could also educate readers.  “Many people do not, for instance, exactly know what money laundering and racketeering are, and in the books I had wonderful opportunities to explain it.”

 

Drawing inspiration from the greats

 

Duane’s role models include great local writers such as Deon Meyer, Rudie van Rensburg and Karl Kielblock, and also international writers such as Dan Brown and David Baldacci.

 

“I especially admire writers who can fuse fact and fiction in such a way that readers wonder what is real and what is not. If I can achieve this, I will know that I have arrived as a writer,” he says while tapping his finger excitedly on the table.

 

His third novel is already in the pipeline and just as in Skoppensboer and Goudduiwel, it will feature many of the same characters, but will be a whole different story.

 

His advice to aspirant writers? “It is simple, just sit down and start writing; nothing is ever going to happen if you don’t make it happen and that’s fact, not fiction!”

 

* If you know of a colleague who does something extraordinary or interesting in his or her life outside the university,

please send the information to Willie du Plessis at willie.duplessis@nwu.ac.za.