ABOUT US
PURPOSE
CONNECTION THROUGH STORY
Michael's belief is that the stories of our past (told with balance and empathy)
carry untapped powers of guidance and human connection.
MICHAEL CHARTON
As an uninspired accounting student at Stellenbosch University, Michael developed a side-interest in South African history. It was a discovery of ignorance, as South African non-fiction opened his eyes to how little he knew about South Africa and its peoples.
Accordingly, having qualified as a chartered accountant in 2004, Michael made the unorthodox decision to study history. Initially it was a simple pursuit in curiosity – hoping his studies would close the knowledge gaps he had discovered. However, it quickly developed into something bigger. A passion, whereby any feelings of indifference towards the peoples of South Africa were replaced with curiosity and respect.
The product was a growing chasm between a financial career (putting bread on the table) and a life-passion which was consuming Michael's everyday thoughts.
A trip to the KwaZulu Natal Battlefields in 2005, to witness David Rattray, opened Michael's eyes to the power of a well-told story, and, with it, the possibility of converting his passion into a career. However, that was just an idea, as Michael pursued his financial for another decade. .
INHERIT SOUTH AFRICA (Pty) Ltd
The Zululand trip proved crucial, as Michael wondered whether the storytelling techniques which had described the Anglo Zulu Wars with such balance and emotion, might be applied in telling the broader brush-strokes of South African history ...
It was a question which marinated for ten years, as Michael gradually plotted an approach which might meet the challenge. By 2015, these ideas were sufficiently precise, prompting his exit from finance to found INHERIT SOUTH AFRICA (Pty) Ltd.
Late in 2016, Michael released a story called MY FATHER'S COAT. A story exploring the major forces of South African history, told through through the eyes of five primary characters. The success of that story has enabled Michael to continue writing non-fiction stories hoping to inspire human connection and curiosity in our past.
A DREAM
The name INHERIT SOUTH AFRICA references a belief that human history is a hard-earned gift from our ancestors. A story offering learnings and wisdom for a more fulfilled life.
My dream over the coming years, is to develop a central repository of beautifully-crafted human stories, which might help people to appreciate the complexity of our past; forge fresh human connections; and inspire a level of consensus in South Africa's past, necessary if we are to consider ourselves a nation.