News

• Call for judges of the 2023 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards

  01-06-2022

  The organisers of the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are calling for expressions of interest from readers with adeep knowledge of New Zealand literature who would like to be considered as judges of the 2023 awards.

  Applications are invited from members of the public with relevant experience, and from the literature community. Suitable candidates may be authors, former publishers, editors, event organisers, scholars, reviewers, critics, booksellers, or librarians. The organisers particularly welcome expressions of interest from Māori applicants.

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards offer four principal prizes each year: the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction; the Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry; the Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction; and the General Non-Fiction Award. There are also four awards for first-time authors (the Crystal Arts Trust Best First Book awards) and, at the discretion of a specially appointed judge, Te Mūrau o te Tuhi, a Māori Language Award.

  The judging of each of the four subject categories is undertaken by a panel of three judges with the relevant expertise and experience in that subject. One of the three will be appointed as convenor. The judges begin their reading in mid-September 2022.

  Potential judges may express interest directly or be nominated by members of the literature community and book industry. A panel from the New Zealand Book Awards Trust Te Ohu Tiaki i Te Rau Hiringa, which comprises industry stakeholder representatives, is responsible for final selection and recruitment. Geographic, cultural and community representation, as well as relevant qualifications and experience, will all be considered in the final make-up of the panels.

  Expressions of interest forms and background information on the judging process and judges’ responsibilities can be downloaded from the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards website or supplied on request by emailing manager@nzbookawards.org.nz.

  Applications must be submitted by 5pm on Wednesday 29 June, and should include a brief resumé demonstrating the applicant’s experience for the judging role.

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are supported by Ockham Residential, Creative New Zealand, Jann Medlicott and the Acorn Foundation, Mary and Peter Biggs CNZM, Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand, Crystal Arts Trust and the Auckland Writers Festival.

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• CLNZ | NZSA $25,000 Writers’ Award Open

  01-06-2022

  The CLNZ | NZSA Writers’ Award of $25,000 is one of the highest non-fiction prizes in New Zealand literature, and is now open for applications.

  The award was established to provide financial support for writers wishing to devote time to a specific project, and to cover reasonable research expenses relating to it. We encourage non-fiction writers to consider applying for this award.  Applications over the full range of non-fiction genre are welcome.  Applicants must be New Zealand citizens or permanent residents. It is the clear intention of the CLNZ | NZSA Writers’ Award that a book will be published as a result of being a recipient of the award.
  
  Applications must be completed online by 4pm on Wednesday 29 June 2022. Please read the guidelines before applying. 
  For further information or to organise an interview, please email Nicole Colmar nicole@nzauthors.org.nz or Esme Barber esme@copyright.co.nz
  
  

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• Ockham NZ 2022 Book Awards: winners announced

  12-05-2022

  Congratulations to all the Ockham prize winning writers and their books:

  Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction
  Wellington novelist and playwright Whiti Hereaka (Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Te Arawa, Ngāti Whakaue, Tūhourangi, Pākehā) has won the $60,000 Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction at the 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards for her book Kurangaituku – a richly imagined contemporary retelling of the traditional Te Arawa story Hatupatu and the Bird-Woman, told from the perspective of the ‘monster’ Kurangaituku. Ms Hereaka received the prize ahead of novelist, lawyer and academic Gigi Fenster (A Good Winter); debut novelist and winner of the 2019 Adam Foundation Prize Rebecca K Reilly (Greta & Valdin); and novelist, poet, literary critic and academic Bryan Walpert (Entanglement). The ceremony was held live and in person, emcee’d by Jack Tame at Q Theatre, Auckland.

  Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry
  Canterbury poet, editor and writing tutor Joanna Preston has won the Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry for Tumble (Otago University Press).

  Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction
  Author and senior curator New Zealand Culture and History at Te Papa Claire Regnault won the Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction for the stunningly presented Dressed: Fashionable Dress in Aotearoa New Zealand 1840 to 1910 (Te Papa Press).

  General Non-Fiction Award
  One of this country’s most respected historians, Wellington resident Vincent O’Malley, won the General Non-Fiction Award for his work, Voices from the New Zealand Wars | He Reo nō ngā Pakanga o Aotearoa (Bridget Williams Books).

  The Poetry, Illustrated Non-Fiction and General Non-Fiction category Award winners each took home a $10,000 prize.

  Best First Book Awards

  The Hubert Church Prize for a best first book of Fiction: Greta & Valdin by Rebecca K Reilly (Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Wai) (Te Herenga Waka University Press).

  The Jessie Mackay Prize for a best first book of Poetry: Whai by Nicole Titihuia Hawkins (Ngāti Kahungunu ki te Wairoa, Ngāti Pāhauwera) (We are Babies Press).

  The Judith Binney Prize for a best first work of Illustrated Non-Fiction: The Architect and the Artists: Hackshaw, McCahon, Dibble by Bridget Hackshaw(Massey University Press).

  The E.H. McCormick Prize for a best first work of General Non-Fiction: The Alarmist: Fifty Years Measuring Climate Change by Dave Lowe (Te Herenga Waka University Press).

  Each Crystal Arts Trust Best First Book Award winner received $2,500 and a 12-month membership subscription to the New Zealand Society of Authors.

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are supported by Ockham Residential, Creative New Zealand, Jann Medlicott and the Acorn Foundation, Mary and Peter Biggs CNZM, the Crystal Arts Trust, Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand and the Auckland Writers Festival.

  To find out more about the winners’ books go to http://www.nzbookawards.nz/new-zealand-book-awards/2022-awards/winners/

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• CLNZ | NZSA Research Grants for NZ writers: applications open

  11-05-2022

  Applications are now open for the CLNZ | NZSA Research Grants to help you research for your fiction or non-fiction writing project. Four grants valued at $5,000 each are available to New Zealand writers. One of the grants targets diverse writers and topics, including writers from, and writing about, parts of Aotearoa that are not broadly represented in writing and publishing, and projects on issues or subjects that are topical in present day Aotearoa. 
  These are bought to you by Copyright Licensing New Zealand (CLNZ) and the New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi O Aotearoa (PEN NZ Inc) as part of the CLNZ Cultural Fund.

  While a broad range of fiction and non-fiction writing projects are eligible for these grants, some works and projects are excluded so please check the guidelines carefully.
  First: Read the CLNZ / NZSA Research Grant Guidelines
  Then: Fill in the CLNZ / NZSA Research Grant Application Form
  
  The CLNZ | NZSA Research Grants open for applications 9am Wednesday 11 May 2022, and will close at 4pm Wednesday 8 June 2022.
  
  Submissions must be made online. Unsuccessful applicants will be advised before recipients are announced. Successful recipients will be contacted directly and we will also publish the announcement on the CLNZ and NZSA website and Facebook page.
  
  NZSA is proud to be administering the awards in 2022. For further information or to organise an interview, please email Nicole Colmar nicole@nzauthors.org.nz or Esme Barber esme@copyright.co.nz

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• Ockham New Zealand Book Awards ceremony to be live and in-person

  11-04-2022

  The 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards will be held in Auckland on May 11 2022 as an in-person event, the New Zealand Book Awards Trust has confirmed.  The event will be held at the Q Theatre on Queen Street. In order to comply with the regulations under Red, tickets will be limited to finalist authors, publishers, sponsors and their immediate circles. Should Auckland move to Orange before May 11 these constraints will be adjusted. The proceedings will be filmed and live-streamed for those not in attendance.

  The 11 May ceremony will announce four category winners from a shortlist of 16 books: the $60,000 Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction, the Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry, the Booksellers Aotearoa NZ Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction and the General Non-Fiction Award, each with prize money of $10,000. Four debut writers in each of the subject categories will also each receive a Crystal Arts Trust Best First Book Award, worth $2,500.

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are also supported by naming sponsor Ockham Residential and Creative New Zealand, and staged in collaboration with the Auckland Writers Festival.

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• Tracey Slaughter’s The Longest Drink in Town – now onstage

  11-04-2022

  

  Acclaimed New Zealand author Tracey Slaughter presents The Longest Drink in Town, debuting at The Meteor Theatre (1 Victoria Street, Hamilton) April 27-30, 7:30pm.  A dark, lyrical and brooding snapshot of the fallout of a parental affair; The Longest Drink in Town marks the first of Slaughter’s works to be adapted for the stage. Book at themeteor.co.nz  (Mature Audiences – contains depictions of self-harm, sexual themes and strong language).

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• Sargeson Prize – open for entries

  01-04-2022

  First offered in 2019, the Sargeson Prize is New Zealand’s richest short story prize, sponsored by the University of Waikato. Named for celebrated New Zealand writer Frank Sargeson, the Prize was conceived by writer Catherine Chidgey, who also lectures in Writing Studies at the University. Entries open on 1 April for the 2022 Sargeson Prize and close at 11.59pm (NZST) on 30 June 2022. There is no entry fee, and entries are limited to one per writer, per division. The Chief Judge for 2022 will be Fiona Kidman. Learn more here or for queries email sargeson.prize@waikato.ac.nz

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• Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day – registrations open

  30-03-2022

  Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day is preparing to mark its 25th anniversary with plans for the broadest range of events and promotions yet on 26 August 2022, and registrations are already open for seed funding to support organisers.

  National Poetry Day coordinator Erica Stretton says that after two years of largely online events, the NPD team, poets and organisers are all eager and optimistic about a return to the usual feast of in-person and community events across the motu. Erica urges organisers to register their interest early in hosting an event on or around 26 August, in order to access the seed funding available and to be included in the heavily promoted official calendar of NPD events.

  This year also marks the 40th anniversary of NPD sponsor, Phantom Billstickers. CEO Robin McDonnell says the company has plenty planned to mark its special milestone, but that poetry will always be at the heart of what it does.

  Interested organisers can access registration documents, templates and a full range of planning and promotional resources via the NPD website, or contact Erica if you have any questions. Applications for seed funding close at 5pm on 1 June 2022.

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• Ockham New Zealand Book Awards Judges Announce ‘Surprisingly Diverse’ Shortlist

  02-03-2022

  

  Dazzling and diverse writing that reveals and reflects our changing world is the hallmark of the sixteen finalist books in the 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards, announced today.The shortlist – selected from a longlist of 40 books by four panels of specialist judges (for fiction, poetry, illustrated non-fiction and general non-fiction) – includes both literary luminaries and first-time authors.

  Congratulations to all Ockham shortlisters, in particular ANZL Fellow Patricia Grace and Members Bryan Walpert, Serie Barford, Anne Kennedy, and Charlotte Grimshaw.

  The 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards shortlisted titles are:

  *represents debut authors.

  Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction

  A Good Winter by Gigi Fenster (Text Publishing)

  Entanglement by Bryan Walpert (Mākaro Press)

  Greta & Valdin by Rebecca K Reilly (Te Herenga Waka University Press)*

  Kurangaituku by Whiti Hereaka (Huia Publishers)

  Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry

  Rangikura by Tayi Tibble (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  Sleeping with Stones by Serie Barford (Anahera Press)

  The Sea Walks into a Wall by Anne Kennedy (Auckland University Press)

  Tumble by Joanna Preston (Otago University Press)

  Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction

  Dressed: Fashionable Dress in Aotearoa New Zealand 1840 to 1910 by Claire Regnault (Te Papa Press)

  NUKU: Stories of 100 Indigenous Women by Qiane Matata-Sipu (QIANE+co)*

  Shifting Grounds: Deep Histories of Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland by Lucy Mackintosh (Bridget Williams Books)*

  The Architect and the Artists: Hackshaw, McCahon, Dibble by Bridget Hackshaw (Massey University Press)*

  General Non-Fiction Award

  From the Centre: A Writer’s Life by Patricia Grace (Penguin, Penguin Random House)

  The Alarmist: Fifty Years Measuring Climate Change by Dave Lowe (Te Herenga Waka University Press)*

  The Mirror Book by Charlotte Grimshaw (Vintage, Penguin Random House)

  Voices from the New Zealand Wars | He Reo nō ngā Pakanga o Aotearoa by Vincent O’Malley (Bridget Williams Books)

  The winners of the 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards, including the four Crystal Arts Trust Best First Book award winners, will be announced on 11 May.

  The General Non-Fiction, Poetry and Illustrated Non-Fiction category winners will each receive a $10,000 prize. The winners of the four Crystal Arts Trust Best First Book Awards will each receive $2,500.

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are supported by Ockham Residential, Creative New Zealand, Jann Medlicott and the Acorn Foundation, Mary and Peter Biggs CNZM, the Crystal Arts Trust, Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand and the Auckland Writers Festival.

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• Online Masterclass: The Art and Craft of Book Reviewing

  08-02-2022

  Do you want to write excellent book reviews?

  This two-hour seminar, taught by Paula Morris and Tom Moody, reviews editor for the Academy of NZ Literature, is a practical guide to long and short reviews: research, note-taking, layout, structure, using quotations, presenting an argument, and writing informative, shapely reviews that are more than plot summaries or over-personal musing. Our focus is fiction and nonfiction (with a brief section on poetry reviewing).

  Registered participants will receive a PDF of review samples in advance, as well as links to best-practice examples. Afterwards you’ll receive a recording of the session, plus slides.

  When: Sunday 13th February 2022 from 10:00am – 12.00pm

  Cost of the masterclass is $60, including GST and Eventbrite fee; or $100, which includes all of the above plus personal feedback and edits on a sample book review written after the masterclass.

  Funds from this masterclass will fund reviews on www.anzliterature.com

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• Longlists for New Zealand’s Premier Literary Awards Revealed

  27-01-2022

  

  Books exploring politics, fashion, social change, war, contested histories and family relationships sit alongside works celebrating our natural world and the enduring legacies of our activists and artists in the longlists for the 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards.

  Forty poetry, prose and non-fiction titles make up the longlists announced today. Selected from an impressive and highly competitive field of 160 entries, works range from deftly crafted intimate worlds to full-colour books that soar in scope and scale. Ten of the longlisted works are by first-time authors.

  New Zealand Book Awards Trust spokesperson Dr Paula Morris says that each of the four longlists speak to the diversity and excellence of books published last year, with both experienced and debut writers represented.

  “The range of publishers reflects the ingenuity and high quality across the industry, including the smallest of independents, and the imagination and expertise informing every aspect of our local publishing landscape.”

  Congratulations to all longlisters, in particular the following ANZL members who are among the 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards longlisted works:

  Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction

  Aljce in Therapy Land by Alice Tawhai (Lawrence & Gibson)

  Entanglement by Bryan Walpert (Mākaro Press)

  Everything Changes by Stephanie Johnson (Vintage, Penguin Random House)

  Loop Tracks by Sue Orr (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  She’s a Killer by Kirsten McDougall (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  The Pink Jumpsuit: Short Fictions, Tall Truths by Emma Neale (Quentin Wilson Publishing)

  Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry

  Ghosts by Siobhan Harvey (Otago University Press)

  Sea-light by Dinah Hawken (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  Sleeping with Stones by Serie Barford (Anahera Press)

  The Sea Walks into a Wall by Anne Kennedy (Auckland University Press)

  Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction

  Bill Hammond: Across the Evening Sky by Peter Vangioni with Tony de Lautour, Rachael King, Nic Low, Paul Scofield and Ariana Tikao (Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū)

  General Non-Fiction Award

  From the Centre: A Writer’s Life by Patricia Grace (Penguin, Penguin Random House)

  The Mirror Book by Charlotte Grimshaw (Vintage, Penguin Random House)

  The 2022 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards shortlist of 16 titles will be announced on 2 March.

  The Awards welcomed The Crystal Arts Trust as the new sponsor for the Best First Book Awards in November last year. The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards winners, including the four Crystal Arts Trust Best First Book Awards recipients, will be announced at a public ceremony on 11 May during the 2022 Auckland Writers Festival.

  For the complete list or to find out more about the longlisted titles go to https://www.nzbookawards.nz/new-zealand-book-awards/2022-awards/longlist/

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are supported by Ockham Residential, Creative New Zealand, Jann Medlicott and the Acorn Foundation, Mary and Peter Biggs CNZM, The Crystal Arts Trust, Booksellers Aotearoa New Zealand and the Auckland Writers Festival.

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• ANZL Fellow Keri Hulme has died

  29-12-2021

  

  Haere rā ANZL Fellow Keri Hulme: literary icon, first NZ Booker prize winner, generous, humble, fiercely independent, extraordinary. Our deepest condolences to Keri’s whānau and friends.

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• The Peter Wells Short Fiction Contest – entries open

  20-12-2021

  Calling all New Zealand LGBTQIA+ writers! The Peter Wells Short Fiction Contest celebrates the life and work of Samesame but Different founder Peter Wells, a writer, filmmaker and historian. It gives New Zealand LGBTQIA+ writers the opportunity to prove their creative skills and to promote their work to a wider audience in a safe and supportive environment.

  Deadline for entries is 5 January 2022.

  First prize is $1000 for the winning story, $500 for the runner-up and $500 for the best writing by a promising young writer aged under 25. This makes it one of the leading short fiction competitions in Aotearoa. To read more about the awards or to read the winning entries from previous awards, see here.

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• 2021 Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement – Winners Announced

  04-11-2021

  

  Huge congratualtions to the recipients of the 2021 Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement, in particular ANZL member and award-winning poet, fiction writer, screenplay editor and teacher, Anne Kennedy, who is the recipient of the Poetry category. For full details of this year’s awards see here.
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• 2021 Ngaio Marsh Awards – Winners revealed

  03-11-2021

  Congratulations to ANZL member Brannavan Gnanalingam whose book Sprigs (Lawrence & Gibson) has won the 2021 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Novel. Brannavan receives a trophy and $1,000 courtesy of WORD Christchurch, long-time partner of the Ngaio Marsh Awards. See here for a full list of winners and details.

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