Chase Rhys

Chase Rhys (they/them), is a novelist from Cape Town, South Africa acclaimed for their groundbreaking use of non-standardized languages like Kaaps/Afrikaaps in their writing. Their debut novel, Kinnes, won the 2019 South Africa Literary Award, -K. Sello Duiker Prize, and the kykNET-Rapport Prize. The Kinnes novel is an adaptation of Chase's Adam and Rosalie Small Award-winning play by the same name. Chase is a prominent columnist and regular contributor to South Africa's most read Afrikaans Sunday newspaper, Rapport. Their second book, Misfit, is a compilation of creative columns which explores their nuanced experiences of being neurodivergent, queer, and non-binary while rooted in the complex community of Cape Town's Cape Flats. Chase's contributions to literature and media have earned them the Prince Claus Seed Award in 2023, recognizing their significant impact on the arts and social advocacy of their community