• The Writers Union of Canada calls for AI justice

    July 20, 2023  Open Letter to AI Developers Dear Member, The Writers’ Union of Canada has been studying and discussing the question of artificial intelligence as related to creative professions for many years. Concerns that scanned books would be used for unlicensed “machine learning” were included in submissions made during the Google Books court action […]

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  • Aotearoa’s best bookshop and top publisher revealed – 2023 Aotearoa Book Industry Awards

    Lamplight Books, a recently established bookstore in the Auckland suburb of Parnell, has been named Bookshop of the Year at the Aotearoa Book Trade Industry Awards, held this evening in Rotorua. Organised jointly by Booksellers Aotearoa NZ and the Publishers Association of NZ Te Rau o Tākapu, the awards celebrate the outstanding booksellers and publishers in Aotearoa’s […]

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  • Historical fiction series takes top spot – even more popular with Kiwi readers than Harry Potter!

    Thousands of Kiwi readers vote for a range of diverse genres in the Whitcoulls Top 100 Books List annually and for many years, K. Rowling’s phenomenally successful Harry Potter Series has been their most popular choice. However, this year Kiwis voted overwhelmingly in favour of Lucinda Riley’s historical fiction which Whitcoulls reveal in their 2023 […]

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  • the inaugural AT THE BAY | I TE KOKORU Katherine Mansfield creative writing competition

    Introducing…  AT THE BAY | I TE KOKORU Katherine Mansfield creative writing competition Bring your Sparkling Prose We’re pleased to announce a new competition for a mix of storytelling genres: submit your micros, flash, hybrid work (including poetry and prose combined) or short stories. Win $500 plus publication of your story at AT THE BAY […]

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  • Tina Shaw wins the 2023 Michael Gifkins Prize

    Announcing the winner of the 2023 Michael Gifkins Prize  Tina Shaw has been named the winner of the 2023 Michael Gifkins Prize for her manuscript A House Built on Sand. Shaw wins a publishing contract with Text and a NZ$10,000 advance against royalties.  The prize is awarded annually to an unpublished manuscript by a New […]

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  • GET COMPETITIVE FOR NPD 2023

    The full events programme for Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day 2023 will be announced on 2 August, but inspired poets should head to the NPD Competition Calendar to get into the poetry groove prior to the big day itself on 25 August. Creative organisers have put together a range of delightful challenges for you.Our first […]

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  • BOOKS ALIVE EVENTS TO ATTRACT HUNDREDS OF TAMARIKI

    Hundreds of students in Christchurch and Wellington are set to be entertained and enlightened by finalists in the 2023 New Zealand Book Awards for Children and Young Adults at Books Alive events in the immediate lead up to the awards ceremony.   In Ōtautahi on 4 August, WORD Christchurch will host a selection of shortlisted […]

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  • 2023 Pikihuia Awards Finalists

      The Finalists for this year’s Pikihuia Awards for Māori writers was announced July 13. Robyn Bargh, Chair of Te Waka Taki Kōrero | The Māori Literature Trust is thrilled with the number and quality of entries. “The range of submissions is very impressive; the Pikihuia Awards are a chance to reconnect with some previous […]

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  • COMPETITION – POETS ON THE WRITERS WALK

    The Wellington Writers Walk & Wellington Branch of The New Zealand Society of Authors invite you to enter our competition, POETS ON THE WRITERS WALK. For Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day we’re celebrating the poets and poems that feature in the iconic Wellington Writers Walk. Write a poem that responds to one of five challenges based […]

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  • The Coalition for Books annual Winter Hui series – register now

    The Coalition for Books is hosting four Zoom hui to bring our members and the broader book sector together to discuss current challenges and to promote dialogue about sector needs. The hui are each an hour-long between 27 July – 8 August. More Hui #1 – Thursday July 27th @10.00 am Writers Festivals Post Covid […]

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  • Vale Paula Harris

    Vale Paula Harris   We are sad to hear today that Paula Harris has passed. Paula was a member of The New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi o Aotearoa (PEN NZ) Inc from 2016, winning the NZSA Lilian Ida Smith award in 2017 with an innovative and exciting application for a poetry collection. […]

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  • Give Given Words a try this August! National Poetry Day

    Given Words returns for its eighth year with a new invitation to play with words. This year the words have been chosen by students of López de Arenas Secondary School in Marchena (Andalusia, Spain) and all you have to do is write a poem which includes all five words and send it in before midnight […]

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