The organisers say their aim is to inspire writers to write. They hope to attract a multicultural audience of aspiring writers from throughout South Auckland. They believe writing can lift people’s spirits, allowing them to share common human frailties and strengths. Their hope is that many of the participants may eventually – if they dare to dream and work hard – become published authors.

Our sponsors – Manukau Counties Writers Fund’s support, enabled presentations from 18 already published Auckland authors, who will seek to inform, motivate and guide writers through workshops, panel discussions, poetry and talks. Mangere East was chosen as the home of the festival, despite not being very South, because of the charm of the Metro theatre and the warmth and enthusiasm of the local community .

The festival starts with children’s writing workshops in the Library on Friday afternoon. In the evening we have workshops with Michel Mulipola and the South Auckland Poets Collective. The final event on Friday night will be a dynamic presentation on graphic novels by Ant Sang and Michael Bennett.

On Saturday there is a variety of writing workshops for most tastes, including memoir, prose and self-publishing, as well as a panel discussion on crime and research. Prices have been kept deliberately low to encourage a range of potential writers to attend.

The team hope that this festival will become a biennial event, but they suggest you don’t wait for next time – make a start on your writing project now by booking a place for one or more of these great sessions.

For more details check out their website wordswillwork.nz
Holly Langley
info@wordswillwork.nz
021 044 7367