Coffee With Welcome To Anywhere Joe Ruzvidzo
If you were having coffee with me, we would be catching up with author Joe Ruzvidzo author of Welcome to Anywhere…
Joe Ruzvidzo is a Zimbabwean writer and journalist whose work is celebrated for its sharp wit, evocative storytelling, and incisive socio-political commentary. With a voice rooted deeply in Zimbabwean culture and history, Ruzvidzo explores themes of identity, memory, and the layered complexities of post-colonial life, often weaving humour into poignant reflections.
A finalist for the 2023 Miles Morland Foundation Writing Scholarship, Ruzvidzo holds master’s degrees in journalism and human rights. He is currently based in Geneva, Switzerland, where he is pursuing a PhD focused on reforming the international human rights system.
Welcome To Anywhere is now out and available through various distributors, including; Carnelian Heart (Zimbabwe & International), Amazon (International), Barnes & Noble (North America), Apple Books, Google Books, and other places you get your books.
After I finished writing my review of Welcome To Anywhere, I had questions which anyone interested in the book might eventually have, so I got the answers from the horse’s mouth whose teeth you shouldn’t count…
“A brilliant, heart-stopping novel that charts the emotional effects of Zimbabwe’s national
— Giles Foden, author of The Last King of Scotland
journey through the relationship of a young boy and his mother.”
Welcome To Anywhere Author Interview
Coffee or tea?
Neither, I don’t like hot drinks. I might have an occasional coffee, but I’d rather have a juice.
This book took 10 years to complete; what kept you going through the decade?
The Heist always felt like a bigger story, so I wrote bits and pieces here and there. It’s easy when you have to get it off your chest!
How did the story evolve from The Heist to its final genre-bending form?
The more I wrote, and as I changed over time, and my style changed over time because I was doing lots of academic writing, many new ideas came about. So the story had to evolve slightly, in surprising ways for me, too!
Why Anywhere… Whose story is this?
The title is very purposeful and intentional. When I was workshopping this novel, many Africans told me they recognised the characters, places, and scenarios. So that Anywhere is intentional, because it really could be anywhere!
Geographically, where would you place Anywhere on the Zimbabwean map.
Chegutu! But my parents still live in my hometown, so I let the name slide. That’s why I gave Anywhere a nonsense, meaningless name like Chemadhegudhegu. A random name, because it could be anywhere.
If you could send a message back in time to the “short story” version of yourself, just starting this project, what would you say?
Quit and get a real job!
What’s the oddest piece of research you had to do while working on this body of work.
Actually, I had to go back years to find some scans of yellowed pages that Percy Zvomuya sent me, about Mashayamombe, just because it’s my rurals and we were discussing it. Years ago!
Thank you for being a great sport its been insightful
~B ☕
Becoming The Muse 
Your thoughts.. if you will?