• New survey shows continued drop in Kiwis reading – Annual NZ Book Council report

      442,600 adult New Zealanders didn’t read a book in the past year, according to new research out today. Books are competing with television and computer screens for our leisure time, and 45-54 year olds had the lowest percentage reading of any age group. The study also found that fewer Kiwi men are reading books. […]

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  • National Schools Poetry Award celebrates New Zealand’s poets of the future

    A year 13 student at Wellington’s Queen Margaret College has won first place in the 2018 International Institute of Modern Letters’ (IIML) National Schools Poetry Award, with her poem ‘Vignettes’.   Ilena Shadbolt receives a prize of $500 and the opportunity to attend a poetry masterclass with poets James Brown and Hera Lindsay Bird at the […]

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  • Illegal book download site Oceanofpdf.com has been taken down

    Piracy website Oceanofpdf taken down Published August 1, 2018 by Charlotte Eyre in the UK magazine The Bookseller Oceanofpdf, a website that was giving away pirated e-books, has been taken down. The website, in operation for seven months, had a US domain name and offered users free PDF or Epub downloads of thousands of books, angering […]

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  • WIN A WEEK AT THE MICHAEL KING WRITERS CENTRE AND A ONE-ON-ONE CRAFT SESSION WITH PAULA MORRIS 

    Writers attending the National Writers Forum in September can enter to win a package of two valuable prizes offered by the Michael King Writers Centre, Aotearoa New Zealand’s national writers’ facility and literary centre. The two prizes are a week’s accommodation at the centre; and a one-on-one craft workshop with the award-winning writer Paula Morris, […]

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  • NZSA Oral History Podcast Series Launching at National Writers Forum

    Spanning thirty years, involving four interviewers and including over twenty writers, the New Zealand Society of Authors is opening its audio history. Hear authors tell their story of fighting institutions, government and sometimes each other to advocate for writers rights. Hosted by Karyn Hay, the series will include interviews from the late 1990’s with writers […]

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  • Joy Cowley to give the annual New Zealand Book Council lecture – Oct 4 Te Papa

    This year’s Book Council Lecture will be given by beloved children’s author Joy Cowley at Te Papa on October 4. In her warm and engaging talk The Power of Story, Joy will draw on a lifetime’s experience of inspiring children to read. Entwining practical advice on how to spark a love for reading with her thoughts […]

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  • Landfall Essay Competition – Now open

    In 1997 Landfall celebrated its 50th anniversary. To mark the occasion, then editor Chris Price launched the Landfall Essay Competition, sponsored by Otago University Press. From 2009, the competition has been an annual award. The purpose of the competition remains as it was at the outset: to encourage New Zealand writers to think aloud about New Zealand culture, and […]

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  • Hamilton Book Month

    It’s nearly August and Hamilton Book Month is about to get underway! We’d love to have you along. See http://hamiltonbookmonth.wixsite.com/2018 for details on all 20 events (15 are free) including our life writing and fiction panels, a play, travel writing and fiction writing workshops, a seminar, storytelling, poetry open mic, a comedian, illustration and design […]

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  • Dr Anita Heiss – one of the NZSA National Writers Forum 2018 Keynote speakers

    Dr Anita Heiss, one of Australia’s best-known authors of indigenous literature is visiting Auckland from 21-23 September as a keynote speaker at the 2018 National Writers Forum. Organised by the New Zealand Society of Authors, this conference is the only national conference for writers from across the profession. Dr Heiss, who is an author, poet, […]

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  • Booksellers NZ Scholarship winners off to learn new tricks in Alberqueque, New Mexico

    Booksellers New Zealand is happy to announce that Pene Whitty, Manager of University Book Shop Canterbury and Ruth Bruhin, Manager of Poppies New Plymouth, are Booksellers NZ’s 2019 Winter Institute Scholars. This year’s 14th Winter Institute conference is being held in Alberqueque, New Mexico, from 22 – 25 January. Bruhin is looking forward to the experience, […]

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  • NZSA National Writers Forum celebrates writing from Oceania SEPTEMBER 21 – 23, 2018

    NWF 2018 John Marsden, Anita Heiss, Lani Wendt Young, Maualaivao Albert Wendt, Mandy Hager, Paula Morris, Pip Adam and Brannavan Gnanalingam are just some of the writers taking part in the NZSA National Writers Forum taking place from 21–23 September at the University of Auckland. They will be joined by writers, publishers, agents, editors, festival directors and a […]

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  • Six Māori writers announced for Te Papa Tupu 2018

     Six aspiring writers have been selected for Te Papa Tupu 2018, a writing programme developed by the M?ori Literature Trust and organised by Huia Publishers. The chosen writers will spend six months working alongside a mentor to develop their manuscripts and improve their writing skills to meet the end goal of a publishable manuscript. To […]

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