May 20, 2024   The Auckland Writers Festival Waituhi o Tāmaki has broken all attendance records, ushering in a bold and exciting new era for the Southern Hemisphere’s largest literary festival. Held at Auckland’s Aotea Centre from 14 – 19 May, attendance reached a record high of more than 85,000. The programme was designed to bring the bookshop to life, flinging open the doors to all and dazzling with 167 events featuring 240 talented participants from around Aotearoa and the world. The pop-up bookstalls, run by The Women’s Bookshop, reported their biggest year for book sales in the Festi ..read more

New Zealand/Australian writer Mercedes Webb-Pullman died in Kapiti in July 2023. Mercedes’ family has decided to use any future royalties from her published works to fund an annual poetry award in her name, which in 2024 will be $500 NZD.   For this inaugural award, and in honour of Mercedes’ revolutionary spirit, entries are invited from New Zealand and Australian writers of one previously-unpublished poem per entrant, on the topic of REBELLION. The word count is not to exceed 430 words. The inaugural award will be made on the first anniversary of Mercedes death at a celeb ..read more

MEDIA RELEASE 17 May 2024 Text Publishing and the New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi o Aotearoa (PEN NZ Inc) are thrilled to announce the shortlist for the 2024 Michael Gifkins Prize for an Unpublished Novel. Four standout manuscripts by New Zealand writers have been shortlisted for this year’s prize: Beneath by J. S. Michaels, a beautiful literary novel that speaks of love of the land and the complex relationships between abuse, grief and class. The Birds Began to Sing by Jeffrey Buchanan, a warm and humorous coming-of-age story set in small-town New Zealand during the 1960s as a ..read more

The New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi o Aotearoa (PEN NZ Inc) are proud to announce the launch of this new award which supports the completion and/or publication of new fiction by mid-career fiction writers from New Zealand. The NZSA Shaw Writer’s Award was established by novelist Tina Shaw to encourage the development of great novels by mid-career fiction writers who are working on a new project. All applicants must be New Zealand citizens or permanent residents.  Shaw says, “It’s true that our New Zealand writers frequently express the feeling that their mid-career progress ..read more

The four secondary school students selected for mentorships will each be matched with a professional writer/mentor in their genre, as part of the NZ Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi O Aotearoa (PEN NZ Inc) 2024 Youth Mentorship Programme The young writers will hone their writing skills and develop their craft through the year, working on their chosen writing project. We congratulate them on their success. 2024 Youth Mentorships have been awarded to: Abbie Mackay – Epsom Girls Grammar School (Auckland) Siti Nur Aina Binti Mohd Nazlee – Nga Tawa Diocesan School (Marton) Xavier Penfold ..read more

Applications open for cash grants to support NZ writers   Applications are now open for the CLNZ | NZSA Research Grants to help writers research a fiction or non-fiction writing project. Kua tuwhera ināianei ngā tono mō ngā Karāti Rangahau o te CLNZ | NZSA hei āwhina atu māu e rangahau tō hinonga, tō kōrero paki, tō kōrero pono rānei. 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 publis ..read more

Hawke’s Bay Readers & Writers Trust, in conjunction with Black Barn Retreats, is excited to announce a brand new residency for Aotearoa writers.    Applications are invited from writers who are currently resident in Aotearoa, working on any of the following forms: short stories, the novel, poetry, creative non-fiction, memoir and graphic novels. Applicants will need to have one work already published/self-published that is currently publicly available to Aotearoa readers, and provide a link to this in their application. The residency includes nine free nights’ accommodation ..read more

  Come and enjoy a free family weekend at the Auckland Writers Festival. From 18 – 19 of May, Pukapuka Adventures will take over the top floor of the Aotea Centre. Expect book readings, dancing, singing, drawing, zine-making, crafting activities and more. The interactive line-up has been inspired by all the wonderful words and illustrations from newly released children’s books and it is designed to appeal to a variety of ages so the whole family can attend (from babies to tweens). The team invites children and their adults to bring the secret ingredients of curiosity and play to ..read more

THE ARTS FOUNDATION KATHERINE MANSFIELD MENTON FELLOWSHIP The Katherine Mansfield Menton Fellowship is for an established creative writer to spend three months or more in Menton in southern France to work on a project or projects. Applications are now open for the 2024 Fellowship, and close on the 14th June 2024. What can you write?The residency is open to creative writers across all genres including fiction, children’s fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction and playwriting. What do we cover?The residency provides: A grant of $43,000 to cover all costs including travel to Menton, insuran ..read more

1 May, 2024 – For immediate release The Christopher G. Moore Foundation is delighted to announce the jury for their eighth annual literary prize honouring books that feature human rights themes. The Prize has been established to provide recognition to authors who, through their work, contribute to the universality of human rights. This unique initiative is awarded annually, as chosen by a panel of judges whose own work focuses on human rights.   The 2024 Moore Prize jury is comprised of Europe-based Burmese investigative journalist, Thin Lei Win; New York-based human rights author, journa ..read more