News

• Ockham New Zealand Book Awards 2026 Longlist Announced!

  29-01-2026

  Authors’ creativity, intellect and determination recognised

  Authors who are unafraid to tackle the pressing moments of our past, present and future dominate the 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards longlist announced today. Congratulations to all the shortlisters, in particular the 12(!) ANZL members (highlighted below) who made it through.

  Among the 44 powerful, page-turning books are jaw-dropping true stories, fascinating histories, best-selling novels and incisive poetry collections. They were selected from 178 entries and are represented by a record 23 different publishers. There are nine first time authors in this year’s longlist, three in each of the Poetry, Illustrated Non-Fiction and General Non-Fiction categories. Experienced writers vie for the coveted Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction. One, Catherine Chidgey, has won the award twice before.

  New Zealand Book Awards Trust Te Ohu Tiaki i Te Rau Hiringa chair Nicola Legat says this year’s longlist reflects the extraordinary creativity and intellect of both established and emerging writers, and the determination of their publishers to see the books succeed.  ‘This is such an exciting list,’ she says. ‘In a difficult year for the economy and the nation, these authors and their publishers held their nerve and kept the faith, bringing brilliant books and important stories to life.’

  The 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards longlisted books are:

  *represents debut authors

   

  Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction

  1985 by Dominic Hoey (Penguin, Penguin Random House)

  All Her Lives by Ingrid Horrocks (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  Before the Winter Ends by Khadro Mohamed (Tender Press)

  Empathy by Bryan Walpert (Mākaro Press)

  Hoods Landing by Laura Vincent (Ngāti Māhanga, Ngāpuhi) (Āporo Press)

  How to Paint a Nude by Sam Mahon (Ugly Hill Press)

  Star Gazers by Duncan Sarkies (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  The Book of Guilt by Catherine Chidgey (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  The Last Living Cannibal by Airana Ngarewa (Ngāti Ruanui, Ngā Rauru, Ngāruahine) (Moa Press)

  Wonderland by Tracy Farr (The Cuba Press)

   

  Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry

  Black Sugarcane by Nafanua Purcell Kersel (Satupa‘itea, Faleālupo, Aleipata, Tuaefu) (Te Herenga Waka University Press)*

  Clay Eaters by Gregory Kan (Auckland University Press)

  E kō, nō hea koe by Matariki Bennett (Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Hinerangi) (Dead Bird Books)*

  Giving Birth to my Father by Tusiata Avia (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  If We Knew How to We Would by Emma Barnes (Auckland University Press)

  Joss: A History by Grace Yee (Giramondo Publishing)

  No Good by Sophie van Waardenberg (Auckland University Press)*

  Sick Power Trip by Erik Kennedy (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  Standing on my Shadow by Serie Barford (Anahera Press)

  Terrier, Worrier: A Poem in Five Parts by Anna Jackson (Auckland University Press)

   

  BookHub Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction

  Atlas of the New Zealand Wars: Volume One 1834-1864, Early Engagements to the Second Taranaki War by Derek Leask (Auckland University Press)*

  Books of Mana: 180 Māori-Authored Books of Significance edited by Jacinta Ruru (Raukawa, Ngāti Ranginui), Angela Walhalla (Kāi Tahu) and Jeanette Wikaira (Ngāti Pukenga, Ngāti Tamaterā, Ngāpuhi) (Otago University Press)

  Garrison World: Redcoat Soldiers in New Zealand and Across the British Empire by Charlotte Macdonald (Bridget Williams Books)

  Groundwork: The Art and Writing of Emily Cumming Harris by Michele Leggott and Catherine Field-Dodgson (Rongowhakaata, Ngāi Tāmanuhiri, Te Aitanga a Mahaki) (Te Papa Press)

  He Puāwai: A Natural History of New Zealand Flowers by Philip Garnock-Jones (Auckland University Press)*

  Mark Adams: A Survey – He Kohinga Whakaahua by Sarah Farrar (Massey University Press and Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki)

  Mr Ward’s Map: Victorian Wellington Street by Street by Elizabeth Cox (Massey University Press)

  Takoto ai te Marino: Selected Works 2018-2025 by Raukura Turei (Ngā Rauru Kītahi, Taranaki, Ngāti Pāoa, Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki), Greta van der Star, Vanessa Green and Katie Kerr (Raukura Turei)*

  The Collector: Thomas Cheeseman and the Making of the Auckland Museum by Andrew McKay and Richard Wolfe (Massey University Press)

  Whenua edited by Felicity Milburn, Chloe Cull (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāi te Ruahikihiki) and Melanie Oliver (Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetū)

   

  General Non-Fiction Award

  50 Years of the Waitangi Tribunal: Whakamana i te Tiriti edited by Carwyn Jones (Ngāti Kahungunu, Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki) and Maria Bargh (Te Arawa, Ngāti Awa) (Huia Publishers)

  A Different Kind of Power by Jacinda Ardern (Penguin, Penguin Random House)*

  An Uncommon Land: From an Ancestral Past of Enclosure Towards a Regenerative Future by Catherine Knight (Totara Press)

  Everything But the Medicine: A Doctor’s Tale by Lucy O’Hagan (Massey University Press)*

  Hardship and Hope: Stories of Resistance in the Fight Against Poverty in Aotearoa by Rebecca Macfie (Bridget Williams Books)

  Northbound: Four Seasons of Solitude on Te Araroa by Naomi Arnold (HarperCollins Aotearoa New Zealand)

  Polkinghorne: Inside the Trial of the Century by Steve Braunias (Allen & Unwin)

  Ruth Dallas: A Writer’s Life by Diana Morrow (Otago University Press)

  The Covid Response: A Scientist’s Account of New Zealand’s Pandemic and What Comes Next by Shaun Hendy (Bridget Williams Books)

  The Hollow Boys: A Story of Three Brothers & the Fiordland Deer Recovery Era by Peta Carey (Potton & Burton)

  The Middle of Nowhere: Stories of Working on the Manapōuri Hydro Project by Rosemary Baird (Canterbury University Press)*

  The Welcome of Strangers: A History of Southern Māori by Atholl Anderson (Bridget Williams Books and Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu)

  This Compulsion in Us by Tina Makereti (Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Rangatahi-Matakore, Pākehā) (Te Herenga Waka University Press)

  Tony Fomison: Life of the Artist by Mark Forman (Auckland University Press)

   

  This year the General Non-Fiction judges have longlisted 14 titles, a discretionary allowance that reflects the number of entries and range of genres in this category.

  The 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards shortlist of 16 titles (four books in each category) will be announced on 4 March 2026. The finalists, winners and the four Mātātuhi Foundation Best First Book Award recipients will be celebrated on 13 May 2026 at a public ceremony held as part of the Auckland Writers Festival Waituhi o Tāmaki.

  The winner of the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction will receive $65,000 and each of the other main category winners will receive $12,000. Each of The Mātātuhi Foundation Best First Book winners (for fiction, poetry, general non-fiction and illustrated non-fiction) will be awarded $3000.

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are supported by Ockham Residential, Creative New Zealand, the late Jann Medlicott and the Acorn Foundation, Mary and Peter Biggs CNZM, BookHub, The Mātātuhi Foundation and the Auckland Writers Festival Waituhi o Tāmaki.

• IWW 2025 Kathleen Grattan Prize announced

  24-11-2025

  International Writers’ Workshop NZ is delighted to announce that Ōtepoti Dunedin poet Sue Wootton is the 2025 winner of The Kathleen Grattan Prize for a Sequence of Poems judged by Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington poet Anna Jackson. Richard Smith from Porirua is runner-up.

  Sue receives the prestigious $1000 prize for her sequence ‘Holding Patterns: seven songs of pots, jars, bowls and vases’. She says she is honoured and delighted to be awarded this year’s Kathleen Grattan Prize for a Sequence of Poems and thanks the Grattan family for making this award possible, IWW, and judge Anna Jackson.

  Congratulations Sue!

• 2025 Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement announced

  06-11-2025

  Congratulations to the recipients of the Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement, awarded at an event  in Te Whanganui-a Tara. Barbara Else MNZM received the award for fiction, Ross Calman for non-fiction, and Dinah Hawken for poetry.

  The award has been presented annually since 2003. It is managed by Creative New Zealand and decided by the Arts Council following public nominations and recommendations from an external panel of experts. The panel for this year was Nick Bollinger, Witi Ihimaera, Paula Green, and Morrin Rout.

  Read more about the Recipients of the Prime Minister’s Award for Literary Achievement here.

• Tusiata Avia named as 2026 International Institute of Modern Letters Writer in Residence

  04-11-2025

  Acclaimed poet Tusiata Avia MNZM has been appointed Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington International Institute of Modern Letters (IIML) and Creative New Zealand Writer in Residence for 2026.

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  Tusiata’s poetry collections include Wild Dogs Under My Skirt (2004, also staged as a theatre show), Bloodclot (2009), the Ockham-shortlisted Fale Aitu | Spirit House (2016), the Ockham-award-winning The Savage Coloniser Book (2020, also staged as The Savage Coloniser Show), and Big Fat Brown Bitch (2023). Her new book, Giving Birth to My Father, will be published on 6 November 2025.

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  While holding the residency, Tusiata will work on a new collection of poems provisionally titled How to Make a Terrorist. She says the collection will move from the personal to the global, “from inside an MRI machine scanning my brain, to Christchurch five years after the mosque shooting . . . to Hana Rawhiti Maipi-Clark tearing up the Treaty Principles Bill in parliament.”

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  Tusiata takes up the residency at the IIML on 1 February 2026. For more information see here.

• From shattered to shining: Becky Manawatu wins Sargeson Prize for story of a broken vase 

  11-10-2025

  Award-winning author Becky Manawatu has taken out the prestigious Sargeson Prize with a quirky, unforgettable tale of a vase mysteriously resurrected after being smashed during a cousins’ drinking session. With a $15,000 first prize, New Zealand’s biggest short story competition drew a strong field of entries, and winners were announced on Saturday evening at the annual Frank Sargeson Memorial Lecture at the University of Waikato.
  Mrs Manawatu (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Māmoe, Waitaha), author of the award-winning novel  Auē, says winning the Sargeson Prize has given her a “huge boost of confidence as a writer” and ignited a lot of excitement for her in the short story form, which she finds very intimidating.
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  University of Waikato Associate Professor in Creative Writing and accomplished author Catherine Chidgey expressed her delight at the overwhelming response to this year’s competition. “We were swept away by a record-breaking 1,470 entries this year – an extraordinary response that speaks to the strength of short fiction in Aotearoa.
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  The winning stories will be published by Newsroom in its literary section, ReadingRoom.
  For the Radio NZ interview with Becky see here.

• 2026 Ireland Wilson Sargeson Fellowships – applications open

  26-09-2025

  The prestigious Ireland Wilson Sargeson Fellowships, named in memory of NZ writers Frank Sargeson, Kevin Ireland and Phillip Wilson, will provide the opportunity each year for two outstanding published New Zealand writers to write full-time with the support of a stipend. In 2026 the amount of this stipend will be $30,000, shared between the two successful Fellows. Applications for the 2026 Fellowships are now open. To apply, please complete a Word or PDF version of the application form and return to the Trust by Monday 13 October. For more information, including eligibility details and terms and conditions see here.

• Ockham NZ Book Awards 2026 Judges’ Announcement

  17-09-2025

  Journalists, award-winning writers, reviewers, academics, curators and booksellers are among the 12 experts announced today by the New Zealand Book Awards Trust Te Ohu Tiaki i Te Rau Hiringa as the judges of the 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards,

  The $65,000 Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction will be judged by novelist, short story writer and reviewer Craig Cliff (convenor); novelist, poet and Arts Foundation Te Tumi Toi Laureate Alison Wong; and bookseller, writer and reviewer Melissa Oliver (Ngāti Porou).

  Judging the Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry will be poet, musician and multi-disciplinary artist Daren Kamali (convenor); poet, writer, performer and editor Jordan Hamel; and writer, musician and translator Claudia Jardine.

  The General Non-Fiction Award will be judged by journalist, author and reviewer Philip Matthews (convenor); academic and writer Georgina Stewart (Ngāpuhi-nui-tonu, Pare Hauraki); and screen director, producer and author Dan Salmon.

  The BookHub Award for Illustrated Non-Fiction will be judged by art historian and curator Lauren Gutsell (convenor); photographer, moving-image artist, writer and academic Natalie Robertson (Ngāti Porou, Clann Dhonnchaidh); and non-fiction writer and former magazine editor Rebekah White.

  Submissions are currently open for the second tranche of entries for the 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. Online entries for titles published between 1 September 2025 and 31 December 2025 close on Thursday 16 October 2025. Eligibility criteria and entry instructions can be found on the awards website.

  Category longlists will be announced on 29 January 2026, and the shortlist of 16 books on 4 March 2026.The finalists and winners will be celebrated on 13 May 2026 at an awards ceremony held as part of the Auckland Writers Festival Waituhi o Tāmaki.

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards are supported by Ockham Residential, Creative New Zealand, the late Jann Medlicott and the Acorn Foundation, Mary and Peter Biggs CNZM, BookHub, The Mātātuhi Foundation, and the Auckland Writers Festival.

• 2026 Randell Cottage Writers Fellowship – applications open

  14-09-2025

  Applications are now open for one of New Zealand’s top writing residencies: the 2026 Randell Cottage Writers Fellowship. The fellowship comprises a generous stipend, currently set in the order of $32,000, and six months’ rent-free accommodation in one of Wellington’s oldest heritage homes. The residency will run from July to December 2026. The fellowship is open to mid-career New Zealand writers, meaning any writer with a growing body of published work. The Trust is particularly interested in hearing from mid-career and Māori and Pasifika writers. Application forms and further information can be found here.
  The deadline for applications is Friday, 24 October 2025, with applications to be sent to applications@randellcottage.co.nz.

• NZ loses writer Kelly Ana Morey

  03-09-2025

  We are devastated at the passing of Kelly Ana Morey after a brief illness. An award-winning writer of both fiction and non-fiction, she published four novels, poems, numerous short stories, a childhood memoir, three social histories and was in the process of finishing a new work. We will mourn her straight-up character, intellect and acerbic wit, along with the loss of her future literary contributions. Farewell KAM. Kia Tau te Rangimarie ki runga i a koutou.

• Emma Neale awarded 2025 Janet Frame Prize

  02-09-2025

  The Trustees of the Janet Frame Literary Trust are delighted to announce that the 2025 recipient of the Janet Frame Prize is acclaimed Ōtepoti Dunedin novelist and poet Emma Neale, who will receive a gift of $10,000 from an endowment fund that Janet Frame established in 1999 to support and encourage her fellow New Zealand writers.
  Emma Neale is the author of fourteen works of fiction and poetry, the most recent of which, ‘Liar, Liar, Lick, Spit’ (Otago University Press) won the Peter and Mary Biggs Prize for Poetry at the 2025 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards.
  For more information see here.

• New Zealand Poet Laureate 2025 announced!

  22-08-2025

  Congratulations to ANZL member Robert Sullivan, our New Zealand Poet Laureate for 2025-2028!

  The National Library celebrates National Poetry Day by announcing Robert Sullivan (Ngāpuhi, Kāi Tahu) of Ōamaru as Poet Laureate. His appointment follows poets Bill Manhire, Hone Tuwhare, Elizabeth Smither, Brian Turner, Jenny Bornholdt, Michele Leggott, Cilla McQueen, Ian Wedde, Vincent O’Sullivan, CK Stead, Selina Tusitala Marsh, David Eggleton and Chris Tse.

  The value of the New Zealand Poet Laureate Award is $150,000 over the three-year period. The Laureate receives $40,000 per year, with the balance held by the National Library to cover the cost of the Laureate’s tokotoko, and to support their travel and participation in literary.

  For the full announcement, see here.

• Kaipukahu University of Waikato Writer in Residence- applications open

  21-08-2025

  Have you published two or more books? Applications are open for the 2026 Kaipukahu Writer in Residence, jointly funded by Creative New Zealand and the University of Waikato. The award is tenable for 12 months from early January to end December 2026. The stipend for the year is $57,408. Applications close 24 October 2025. For more information see here.

• Submissions open for 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards

  07-08-2025

  Governed by the New Zealand Book Awards Trust Te Ohu Tiaki i Te Rau Hiringa, these prestigious awards provide recognition of, and promote excellence in, the best books for adult readers published annually in Aotearoa. Books with release dates between 1 January 2025 and 31 December 2025 will be considered for the 2026 awards. Publishers are asked to observe the guidelines for sending entries in two tranches, which are in place for ease of sending to judges.

  Submitters are encouraged to read the conditions of entry in the Call for Entries pack in full before completing entries, as some criteria signalled last year have now been changed and some clauses added, including restrictions on the use of AI. For both first and second tranches, click here for eligibility criteria and the Call for Entries information pack, then enter online here.

  The twelve judges for the 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards will be revealed next month, and their longlists for the four awards categories (fiction, poetry, general non-fiction and illustrated non-fiction) will be announced on 29 January 2026. The shortlist will be announced on 4 March and the 2026 awards ceremony will be held in Tāmaki Makaurau on Wednesday 13 May, in collaboration with the Auckland Writers Festival. There is a total of $125,000 in prize money available for the winners. 

  All entries must be submitted online at www.nzbookawards.nz and fees paid by credit card via the online submission form. For any further enquiries, please email Awards Administrator Chris Chan at awards@nzbookawards.org.nz.

• 2025 Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement – nominations open

  11-07-2025

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  Help celebrate our writers! The annual Creative New Zealand awards for literary achievement recognise New Zealand writers who have made a notable contribution to NZ literature in the genres of fiction, non-fiction and poetry. There are three awards of $60,000 available. Nominations are open until 1pm Wednesday 2 July 2025. For more information or to nominate a writer see here.
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• Call for judges of the 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards

  18-06-2025

  Hot on the heels of last month’s culmination of a hugely successful Ockham New Zealand Book Awards campaign, the awards’ organisers are on the search for judges for the 2026 awards.

  Suitable judges must have a deep appreciation and knowledge of New Zealand literature. Applications are welcome from the literature community and from members of the public with relevant experience. Writers, former publishers, editors, festival organisers, academics, curators, teachers, reviewers, critics, booksellers and librarians all have the expertise the Trust is looking for.

  Expressions of interest are particularly welcomed from Māori applicants.

  The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards offer prizes in four subject categories each year: Fiction, Poetry, Illustrated Non-Fiction, and General Non-Fiction. There are also four awards for first-time authors (the Mātātuhi Foundation Best First Book awards) and, at the discretion of a specially appointed judge, Te Mūrau o te Tuhi, a Māori Language Award.

  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 Friday 4 July, and should include a brief resumé demonstrating the applicant’s experience relevant to the judging role.