Stephen Watson, a South African poet, was renowned for his lyrical chronicling of Cape Town's natural beauty and the soul's response to it. He firmly believed in the intrinsic value of poetry and literature, separate from political engagement, and advocated for the possibility of distinguishing between "good" and "bad" work. Beyond his poetry, Watson distinguished himself as a perceptive critic and essayist, exploring diverse subjects from South African verse to the music of Leonard Cohen.
In A city imagined, the editor has asked a number of South Africa's writers to produce a piece of writing in which they express their relationship to Cape Town and, above all, their sense of the unique genius or spirit of this city.