"After being a bona fide hunter for a long time, I thought it appropriate to put my hunting rifle

away and savour the beauty of the animals rather than hunt them. I decided that the

buffalo can run faster than I can now, so I rather observe them than hunt them.”

It’s a monday morning in Cape town and the unexpected mistiness

leaves the traffic gridlocked. An hour later, I arrive at the gate of

wilbur and niso smith’s Cape town home. here, the sky is a

cloudless blue and the birds are serenading a welcoming song for

their esteemed guests.

having owned the house for some thirty years, wilbur admits that

he has a distinct fondness for the property and when they can, they

visit at least once a year. “the great thing about this home is the

garden and the view onto table mountain,” he explains. “It’s in the

city, but it has a feeling of being out in Africa. table mountain is an

iconic part of my life. I feel very comfortable when I come to this

house.”

the majority of their time is spent at their home in the uk, which

is a stone’s throw from harrods, one of niso’s favourite shopping

haunts. they also own a place in switzerland, which they purchased

after their nuptials and when niso was only learning to ski. “now

she is a fantastic skier,” wilbur says, glancing over at niso. “I don’t

ski anymore because I think when you go skiing after the age of 70,

you’re stupid because you’re going to break something (he laughs).

After 70, things are a lot harder to fix. I watch from the terrace as

niso and her nephews go skiing and they tear down the mountain.

she puts the tips of her skis down and doesn’t stop!”

the joie de vivre that is niso forms an integral part of the well-

oiled machine that is wilbur smith. she runs everything with exact

precision to make her 81-year old husband’s life as comfortable

as possible. she is a breath of fresh air and wilbur admits that

he has never been happier in his life. despite their 39-year age

difference, they have been happily married for fourteen years. “we

have absolute respect for each other,” he says, “putting the other

person’s requirements at the head of your list. every morning

when we wake up, I say to niso ‘what do you want to do today?’”.

she is fantastic because she has become the lynchpin on which

everything hangs. she organises and runs all the homes that we

have spoken about. the main thing is that she makes my working

environment absolutely perfect for me. she puts my needs right at

the top of her list.”

niso talks about her husband for a moment. “wilbur is an extremely

complex but wonderful person. he is very kind and he is very

loving. he has never lost his temper with me. he deeply respects

the relationship, so I think that is the key to our happy marriage.

At times he can be difficult. but there are no words in the english

language to describe what a wonderful human being he is.”

born and raised in Zambia, wilbur’s fondest childhood memories

are being driven in his father’s truck at night when his parents were

going to a dance in the next town. “I was in my cradle at the bottom

of the truck and I recall seeing the stars and the trees passing in

the air. when the truck stopped, I heard the night sounds of what

was then northern Rhodesia. my next memory was being on safari

with my mom and dad, and going on fishing trips on the river. “I

still love fishing and obviously living on a ranch as a small boy has

left a lasting impression. many years ago, I used to go on hunting

safaris when there was still an abundance of animals. After being a

bona fide hunter for a long time, I thought it appropriate to put my

hunting rifle away and savour the beauty of the animals rather than

hunt them. I decided that the buffalo can run faster than I can now,

so I rather observe them than hunt them.”

wilbur’s father asked him what he was going to do with his life.

wilbur replied that he wanted to be a journalist. his father’s

response, “don’t be an idiot – you’ll starve to death.”

“so I studied to be a chartered accountant and as soon as I qualified,

In the company ofwilbur SMith

ph

otos

: © h

end

ré l

ouw

60 I South AfricA DEluxE I art & CulturE faces I 61

I immediately went back to writing. writing was the only thing that

strongly attracted me. It was the only thing that I did where I fared

exceptionally well at school - essays, composition and english

language. I just love the written word; I love reading. I think the first

step into writing books is to reading them and to getting the feel, the

pace and the taste of the books. my mother was a great reader and

she encouraged me very strongly. I’m grateful to her for that.”

wilbur’s first novel was never published. he wrote it in the early 1960s

before he was thirty years of age. It was declined with thanks by many

of the publishers around the world. then he gave up writing, because

it was obviously a non-starter.

he received a letter from his agent in the uk who said that the first

book had great promise. “now what about the second?” she asked

me. “I said there ain’t going to be a second. she said there should be a

second. so I took up the challenge and in 1963, I wrote ‘when the lion

feeds’, which was published in 1964. that was accepted immediately

by the first publisher who saw it.”

his first attempt at writing was ‘a monster’ and he made all the

mistakes of a first novelist in the book. It was a learning curve. he jokes

that the one copy that he has will be buried with him in his coffin.

After his first effort at writing not being a runaway success, he

has learnt a great deal from his failures. “the failures are all

learning experiences. they don’t stop the bus as it were. they are

necessary; everybody fails at some time in their lives. the thing is

to rise above your failures and to continue with what you know is

what you have to do.”

where does an international bestselling author go to ‘find’ himself?

“I know myself now, I know my moods and my foibles, like all human

beings sometimes I get tired and I know what to do when I get tired.

sometimes I feel slightly depressed and I know what to do to avoid it.

when I start feeling slightly depressed, I pick up a 950-page novel of

mine and I read it through and I think ‘ok, that’s not too bad’.”

with 81 years under his belt, a full life and many life experiences

to contend with, he has learnt some profound lessons. “the most

telling lesson I’ve learnt is don’t look back in anger. everything is

necessary to live a full live. you have to make the mistakes; you have

to face the consequences and then leave them behind and move on

again. I sit here now with a clear conscience knowing well that I have

tried to the best of my ability and that I will go on trying for the next

fifteen years.”

what does 2014 hold for wilbur smith? “Another good year of living

life to the full, clinging to the good things and discarding the bad.”

my parting question - who is wilbur smith? “he is one of the

superheroes,” both wilbur and niso laugh. “on a serious note, I’m

just an ordinary person who has found something that he likes to do

and which other people like him to do. I’m very comfortable with my

life that I have lived well and look forward to the future. I don’t think

I’m big-headed or conceited, but I know my worth and I strive all the

time to be better.” heléne Ramackers

InsightsI would be nothing without my wife.

Home is where my wife and I are.

My favourite food Is meat.

I get angry when people don’t listen.

The last time I cried was a long, long time ago.

I am a success because I work hard and I want to be a

success.

My favourite saying Almost nothing matters and nothing

matters very much.

Making a difference in someone’s life fulfils my own life.

I love South Africa because of the people and everything

else about it – the mountains that tower above it, open

spaces, the wilderness and the seas that surround it.

Book alert

book number 35 will be published towards october 2014.

It is a taita novel set in ancient egypt.

ph

oto:

© h

end

ré l

ouw

faces I 6362 I South AfricA DEluxE I art & CulturE