• Announcing the NZSA Laura Solomon Cuba Press Prize 2024 shortlist

    Announcing the NZSA Laura Solomon Cuba Press Prize 2024 shortlist We are pleased to announce the four writers who have been shortlisted for an award that celebrates fresh writing with a ‘unique and original vision’ are: Abigail von Ahsen with Flawless, Jade Hallamore with Infused with Magic, Jacqueline Owens with Vividwater, and Tracy Farr with Wonderland. (l to r: […]

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  • Michael Gifkins Prize for an Unpublished Novel 2024 – Longlist announcement!

    The New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi O Aotearoa and Text Publishing are delighted to announce the longlist for the Michael Gifkins Prize for an Unpublished Novel 2024. The longlisted writers are: Geoff Allen, Shriya Bhagwat, Jeffrey Buchanan, Tina Cartwright, Helen E Crampton, Amanda Hanan, Patrick Hunn, Hank Lloyd, Christopher Matson, JS Michaels, Kiri Rodwell, Meredyth Tamsyn, and Casey Taylor. This year’s longlist of 13 […]

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  • 2024 Commonwealth short story prize shortlist announced – 3 New Zealanders feature on a Pacific shortlist of four

      World’s most global literature prize shortlists 23 writers from 13 countries 3 New Zealanders feature on a Pacific shortlist of four: 31-year-old Anna Woods from Auckland, 46-year-old Pip Robertson from Christ Church and 31-year-old M Donato a New Zealander of Filipino heritage, from Wellington Judges hail ‘a dream list’ which will leave readers ‘startled […]

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  • Paul Goldsmith: It’s time for an arts and creative sector strategy, NZ Herald

     Byline: Paul Goldsmith is the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage I was initially resistant to the idea often suggested to me that the Government should deliver an arts strategy. The whole point of the arts and creativity is that people should do whatever the hell they want, unbound by the dictates of politicians in […]

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  • Anne Kennedy to judge $1000 Poetry Prize – Kathleen Grattan IWW Sequence 2024

    International Writers’ Workshop NZ Inc 12 April 2024 Anne Kennedy is the judge of The Kathleen Grattan Prize for a Sequence of Poems 2024 with a first prize of $1000 for the winner. Anne is a Tāmaki Makaurau poet, novelist and teacher. Awards include the Prime Minister’s Award for Poetry, the NZ Post Book Award […]

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  • Huia wins 2024 Bologna Prize, Best Children’s Publisher in Oceania region

    10 April 2024   Books+Publishing Huia Publishers, based in Aotearoa New Zealand, is the 2024 Oceania winner of the Bologna Prize (BOP) for the Best Children’s Publisher of the Year. The Māori-owned independent publisher has been operating since 1991, with a mission to ‘share stories that resonate with our people, that reflect our experiences and that value our culture and […]

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  • Storylines Margaret Mahy National Awards Day & Award Winners

    Congratulations to all of the 2024 Storylines Award winners who were presented with their awards on Sunday 7 April at an event held at the National Library of NZ in Parnell, Auckland. The 2024 winners are; Storylines Gaelyn Gordon Award: The Dragon Hunters written by James Russell, illustrated by Link Choi Storylines Janice Marriott Mentoring […]

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  • PEN International releases War, Censorship, and Persecution caselist 2023

    The PEN International Case List 2023/2024, has been released, highlighting challenges for writers in global conflicts and emphasizing the need to safeguard freedom of expression, especially in war-torn regions. War, Censorship, and Persecution documents 122 cases of writers facing harassment, arrest, violence and even death worldwide. These include 26 people imprisoned, 23 detained, 22 harassed, 14 […]

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  • A shot at literary fame: 2024 Sargeson Prize opens 

    Entries for New Zealand’s richest short-story competition, the Sargeson Prize, are open and last year’s winner is encouraging others to “go for it”.   Fiction and poetry writer Anna Woods won $10,000 in the 2023 Open Division and a two-week summer writing residency at the Sargeson Centre in Auckland with her story ‘Pig Hunting’. “The […]

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  • Ōrongohau | Best New Zealand Poems 2023 captures the spirit of the times

      The latest edition of the online anthology Ōrongohau | Best New Zealand Poems is now live, featuring 25 poems chosen by Poet Laureate Chris Tse from nearly 4000 published in 2023. “These are the poems that surprised and delighted me the most, that made me pause to sit in my own discomfort or revel […]

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  • Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day August 23

    The date for this year’s Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day is Friday 23 August. Event registrations and seed funding applications are now OPEN. Head over to www.poetryday.co.nz for registration forms, resources and more. Let’s come together to make poetry shine! #NZPoetryDay.

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  • 2024 Writer in Residence Ben Brown reconnects with heritage at Waikato 

      Dedicating the year to writing his first novel isn’t the only positive thing about being named the Kaipukahu University of Waikato Writer in Residence for 2024. Award-winning children’s author, poet and writer, Ben Brown (Ngāti Mahuta, Ngāti Korokī Kahukura, Ngāti Paoa), says this year is not only about writing a novel that’s been on […]

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