Jacques Coetzee tutored English literature at the Universities of Cape Town and Stellenbosch for several years before becoming a full-time poet and musician. In 2003, he obtained an M.A. Degree in Creative Writing from the University of Cape Town with a collection of poems entitled Singing Through. His English translation of Eugene N. Marais’ Dwaalstories, published by Human and Rousseau as The Rain Bull and Other Tales from the San in 2009, was nominated for the 2009 SATI Award for Outstanding Translations and Dictionaries.

In June 2008 he performed at the Grahamstown Arts Festival alongside Tossie van Tonder in an improvisational piece called Intiem Et Cetera, making use of both movement and voice. Together with poet Barbara Fairhead he is currently involved in a musical project, Red Earth & Rust, which released its first album of original songs, Look For Me, in 2008.

Lyrical poet and musician, Jacques Coetzees poems are born out of the need to surprise himself now and then. In his words: “Writing them is like taking a walk without knowing where it will lead”. His evocative and sensory poetry comes from a desire to bring attention to the place where the inner experience and the world meet.