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Kia ora,

October is proving to be a book-fuelled month both here and abroad. New Zealand Book Month is well underway, with a huge range of events still coming up in the later part of October.  You can find a full events list here. I am currently attending the Frankfurt Book Fair, which runs from 14th-18th of October. I’m busy meeting a host of industry specialists, courtesy of Creative New Zealand, and am enjoying the buzzing atmosphere in Frankfurt, alive with the legacy and exciting future of books, publishing, and writing.

October is also proving a month for the celebration of new writing in New Zealand, with Wellington writer Alice Miller winning the premier category of the 50th BNZ Katherine Mansfield Awards, her winning entry judged by Dame Fiona Kidman. Congratulations also to Karen Phillips who won the Novice category and Emma Robinson who was the winner of the Youth category. Ten writers have also been shortlisted for the Sunday Star-Times Short Story Competition 2009, judged by leading writers Elizabeth Smither and Fleur Beale. Voting is now open for the people’s choice award from amongst the shortlisted entries. One of the finalists is our very own Emma Gallagher, coordinator of the Writers in Schools programme. You can read the entries online and vote here until October 23rd.

It was also interesting to read the Sunday Star-Times feature ‘Why don't we read more kiwi-made books?’ in which several of New Zealand's most prestigious writers including, CK Stead, Emily Perkins, Deborah Challinor and Chad Taylor . You can read the full article and add your own comments here.
 
kind regards,

Noel Murphy


Janet Frame Memorial Lecture this Thursday

The New Zealand Society of Authors, together with Random House New Zealand invite you to attend the Janet Frame Memorial Lecture at Te Papa this Thursday, with their compliments.

The lecture will be given by the New Zealand Society of Authors President of Honour, William Taylor.

Where: The Marae, Level 4, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
When: Thursday 22nd October, 6 – 7pm

This free lecture is a New Zealand Book Month event
A new sponsor, a new face … New Zealand’s Changing Book Awards

The New Zealand Book Awards have existed in various guises since 1973, and from 1996 until this year were sponsored by Montana New Zealand Wines. Earlier this year, Booksellers NZ announced New Zealand Post as the 2010 naming rights sponsor of the awards. This has given Booksellers NZ as administrator of the awards an opportunity to re-think the awards, and a few weeks ago, they announced a new awards structure. We had a chat to Anna Burtt, Marketing Manager of Booksellers NZ about the changes and what they mean for the book-buying public.

What are the main aims of the national book awards?
The national book awards exist to celebrate and encourage excellence in New Zealand writing and publishing. It is important that the awards take leadership – identifying books that truly push boundaries, and continue to raise the bar in terms of what is possible. When a book receives an award it is hoped that for the book-buying public, it will become a symbol of outstanding quality of authorship and production – a must-read!

What are the main benefits of the new book awards structure? How is it ‘simpler’ than the previous model?
Fewer categories, more judges and bigger prizes are key features of the structure of the New Zealand Post Book Awards.

Books will be judged in four main categories: Poetry, Fiction, Illustrated Non-fiction and General Non-fiction, with a finalist list of 16 (3 Poetry, 3 Fiction, 5 Illustrated Non-fiction and 5 General Non-fiction finalists). A ‘Book of the Year‘  will be chosen from this finalist list. Previously books were judged in eight categories, with a finalist list of up to 26. The bigger the finalist list, the more difficult it is for booksellers to stock and promote, and for the public to understand and use as a buying guide.

The judging panel has been increased from three to five, with the intention that a wide range of skills be represented, with the addition of Te Reo advisor /Maori Language Award judge if these skills are not already represented on the panel. In order to increase transparency surrounding the selection of judges, this year, for the first time, we put out a public call for Expressions of Interest from those interested in sitting on the panel. In the past it has been more a process of identifying the skills and expertise required and approaching individuals identified by the Awards Advisory Committee, representing stakeholders. The judging panel will be announced in late January 2010.

With fewer categories, the prize pool has been substantially increased, with the overall winner of Book of the Year award receiving $15,000. Winners of the four category awards will each receive $10,000, the Māori Language Award $10,000, Readers’ Choice Award $5,000, and each of the winners of the three NZSA Best First Book Awards, $2500.

What changes, if any, will there be to the judging process?
The judging process will remain the same as in previous years. All books will be put before the panel of five judges. Books will be judged in the categories in which they are submitted, and a finalist list of 16 selected and announced on Tuesday 22 June 2010. Winners of the three NZSA Best First Book Awards for Poetry, Fiction and Non-fiction, and the Māori Language Award if awarded will also be selected and announced at this time.

The judges then re-read and review the finalist list, and select four category award winners, and an overall Book of the Year. In previous years when books were submitted in eight categories, specialist subject advisors were appointed for each. They read all titles within the category and prepared a report which was put to the judging panel for reference when making their decision. With the larger panel under the new structure, it is anticipated a wider range of skills will be present, and additional advisors not required.

If, in exceptional circumstances, the panel requires additional subject-related advice, the judges will ask the awards administrator to seek this advice.  An example of this might be a book that includes detailed scientific or historic content, that having been identified as a contender by the panel, may need to be fact-checked by an expert to confirm accuracy.

Why an overall winner, ‘Book of the Year’, across all categories?
This award is to acknowledge excellence overall, identifying a true ‘stand out’ book by a New Zealander published that year – it could be a work of fiction, poetry or non-fiction. A title will be judged ‘Best Book’ on its writing, production and significance to New Zealand culture. It will be a true product of its time, which in years to come, will symbolise the very best writing and publishing produced that year.

Do you think this new structure will change public perception of the awards? In what way?
The hope is that the simpler structure will make the awards much easier for the book-buying public to understand. Similarly with the selection of just one overall Book of the Year, the message is clear. This in turn enables booksellers to stock most, if not all of the finalist titles, and actively promote them to their customers in-store. With a smaller list, the hope is that finalists and winners will be seen for what they are – the best of the best selected in that year.

Thank you to Anna Burtt and Lincoln Gould for sharing this information.  If you are a publisher and wish to submit a book for the NZ Post National Book Awards 2010, applications are now open. Please go to the Booksellers website to find the subscription form and for further information.
Storylines Auction 4 Charity

Storylines' second fundraising auction is an opportunity for you to bid for once-in-a-lifetime experiences and artworks. The auction, held entirely through the Auction 4 Charity website, also features a range of donated art works that include an original watercolour sketch of Hairy Maclary created specially for the auction by Dame Lynley Dodd, a cartoon sketch of the winning bidder by Ant Sang, one of Bro’ Town’s creators, and a cartoon tribute to Michael Jackson by artist Angus Gomes.

Full details of all items are online until 9pm on 29 October when the auction closes. Bidding takes place through a secure online system developed by author and Storylines supporter Brian Falkner. A hard-copy catalogue and ‘proxy’ bids or offline bids can be made by contacting Storylines on childlitnz@storylines.org.nz.
Words on Wheels heading to Taranaki

Another brilliant line-up of NZ writers is preparing to take to the road for the Book Council's 2010 Words on Wheels tour.

Poet and novelist Alison Wong, play and scriptwriter Briar Grace-Smith, novelist and scriptwriter Duncan Sarkies, Teen writer David Hill, and environmental writer Janet Hunt will be on the bus visitng towns big and small in February 2010.

We are now hard at work, putting together a 6-day itinerary for the writers. If you live in Taranaki, and would like to host an event at your cafe or hotel, or would like to be the coordinator for a local event, please get in touch with Sarah Forster - email: sarah@bookcouncil.org.nz, phone: (0800) 258255.
Five Easy Questions with Coral Atkinson

Coral Atkinson is a Christchurch-based writer of historical fiction. Her previous books are The Paua Tower and The Love Apple. Students of the Whitireia Polytechnic Diploma in Publishing worked to help publish her most recent publication Copper Top, a junior fiction novel.

1. What drew you to set Copper Top in the West Coast goldfields of the 1860s?
The West Coast of the South Island has always fascinated me, maybe because it has that damp, wistful, haunted quality of Ireland, where I spent my childhood.  I set my first adult novel, The Love Apple, there and after writing it I felt I had still more to say. The 1860’s gold rush was such an extraordinary time on the Coast. Suddenly from nothing the whole place rocketed into life, thousands of people poured in seeking their fortunes and a community was born.

2. Did you know at the outset that Copper Top would be a novel for young adults?
Yes, though I think I’d say Copper Top was really more junior fiction than young adult. I envisage the book being mostly read by the 9-13 year-old set.

3. Why do you think you are drawn to write historical fiction?
I have always been fascinated by the past.  I did my degree in History; I both taught the subject and have written some school text-books in this area. I think the Irish have traditionally had a predilection to look behind.  We are always retracing the path back.

4. Which books particularly inspired you as a writer?
When I was a child I particularly loved the junior historical novels of people like Rosemary Sutcliff, Geoffrey Trease, Ronald Welch and Henry Treece and very early I decided I wanted to write similar books. I made my first attempt when I was about eleven with what was intended as a story about the English Civil War called Lady Without a Name. This petered out after about four laboriously handwritten pages. In adulthood, and as a historical novelist, I am particularly interested in the work of Rose Tremain. I also am hugely impressed by Toni Morrison and closer to home, Maurice Gee, especially Plumb. My all-time writing favourite is Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life.

5. What’s on your bedside table right now?
The Slap by Christos Tsiolkas which I haven’t started but am looking forward to, The Great Lover by Jill Dawson, the novel about my girlhood crush Rupert Brooke which I am so enjoying, and Spunk and Bite: A writer’s guide to bold contemporary style by Arthur Plotnik; an engaging and entertaining book.
 
Coral Atkinson is running a seminar on how to write historical fiction at South Christchurch Library, on Saturday 24 October. More information here.
Residency and workshop applications

Joy Cowley Writing Workshop 2010 – Writing From The Heart
Joy Cowley will run a two-day interactive workshop in Auckland in February 2010. This intensive course will cover all aspects of writing for children and young adults (getting started, plot, character, voice, humour, writing disciplines, picture books, chapter books, YA novels, presenting a manuscript, getting support). There will be a maximum of 30 participants and sessions will run from 9am to 4pm. Applications will be accepted on a first come, first served basis.

To register, please send payment of $500 with your full name, address, email and phone number. A receipt will be sent. Make cheques payable to ‘Storylines Children’s Literature Trust’ and send to: Storylines Children’s Literature Charitable Trust of New Zealand, PO Box 96 094, Auckland 1342. For internet banking use Storylines’ bank account: 123067 0187408 03. Please use your name as “Particulars” and “JC Workshop” as a reference so we can trace your payment. Please watch Storylines’ website for further information.

Award and competition applications

NZSA and Manchester Trust Writers' Award 2009

For the first time, in 2009, the New Zealand Society of Authors together with the Manchester Trust is proud to offer an award to recognise the oeuvre of published work by a mid-career writer. The purpose of the award is to recognise an author who may not necessarily have previously achieved a high level of publicity for their work. The award will be open to writers of fiction, poetry, short fiction collections, and literary non-fiction, and is worth $3,500. The closing date for nominations is 6 November 2009. Information from programmes@nzauthors.net.nz or visit the NZSA website.
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NZ Book Month ASB Wordbank Competition

What are words worth? We think they’re worth plenty and New Zealand Book Month, together with ASB, need your help to prove it. Our Kiwi books are inspirational, they tell our stories, in our voice, and take us to new places where we can meet choice characters and have cool adventures. If a Kiwi book has made you think or act or see something differently we want to hear about it. AND we want to give out prizes!

Download your entry form and promotional materials at the New Zealand Book Month website. 

 
The New Zealand Book Council receives core funding from Creative New Zealand. We are extremely grateful to our funding partners, who enable us to deliver our programmes. We also value your membership, which supports our work in schools and communities throughout New Zealand.
    
The winners of the two copies of Living as a Moon (Random House) the new collection of stories from master short fiction writer  Owen Marshall, were Dr Dianne Bardsley and Lesley Brennan.
 


This month we have two copies of Copper Top (Whitireia Publishing), the new junior fiction novel by Coral Atkinson. To learn a bit more about Coral and how she came to write this book, check out the Fast Five.


Awa Press' 100 Best NZ Films, by Hamish Douall, takes us on a journey through New Zealand's biggest and best films. They have donated two copies for us to give away to our readers.

Please enter the draw for either of these books by emailing reception@bookcouncil.org.nz, with the title of the book in the subject line and your mailing address in the body of the email. Entries must be received by 12 noon on Tuesday 27 October.



The Good Word New Zealand Book Month Debate aired on TVNZ7 on Saturday night, and will air several times over the coming few weeks. For the schedule, go to The Good Word site on TVNZ.

If you're interested in digital publishing, you can keep up-to-date with developments on the New Zealand Society of Authors site. The International Children's Digital Library's online collection is also a fantastic resource, and it includes children's books selected and digitised by the National Library.

Follow New Zealand writer Kathy White on her blog as she takes part in the International Writing Program (IWP) in Iowa City, a UNESCO City of Literature, for three months, courtesy of Creative New Zealand.

Feeling poetic? Check out New Zealand poets on the Scottish Poetry Library site.

One of our favourite book interest sites this week is Book By Its Cover, a blog that features the best in text and graphic based publications.


Writer Philip Simpson was presented the $100,000 Creative New Zealand Michael King Writers’ Fellowship by the Minister for Arts, Culture and Heritage Chris Finlayson on 7 October. The fellowship is the largest for New Zealand writing, and it will allow Simpson to research and write a comprehensive natural and cultural history of the totara tree.

Wellington writer, Alice Miller won New Zealand’s top short fiction award at the 50th BNZ Katherine Mansfield Awards, confirming her place as one of the nation’s most talented emerging writers. Miller took the $10,000 premier prize for The Windmill, a love story that award judge, Dame Fiona Kidman says ‘tripped her heart’. Far-North resident, Karen Phillips won the Novice category and Emma Robinson, a Year 12 student at Awatapu College, Palmerston North won the Youth category of the Awards.

Victoria University of Wellington will confer an honorary degree on Anthony Reid, a prominent historian on Southeast Asia. Reid will receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Literature in May 2010.

The Feet First Picture Book Competition was designed to get schools (Years 1-8) thinking about active travel. A class (or group within a class) had to write and illustrate a picture book based on active travel. The winner was Room 2 from Otanga School in Rotorua with their book Lucky Pancake. You can view their story and read the judges comments here. A professional picture book writer/editor and illustrator will visit the class to workshop their book and help to prepare it for publication.

Vaughan Rapatahana has been longlisted for the Proverse Prize in Literature for his poetry collection, Home, Away, Elsewhere. The Proverse Literary Prize for Unpublished Writing aims to encourage writers and promote a range of excellence and usefulness in writing.

Aotearoa People's Network Kaharoa (APNK) was this week awarded the 2009 3M Award for Innovation in Libraries, administered by the Library and Information Association of New Zealand Aotearoa (LIANZA). The 3M Award, established in 1996, promotes excellence and innovation in library and information services and is made to the librarian, information specialist or team who has applied an innovative and entrepreneurial approach to their business.


Please note this is only a sample of events from the events page on our website.

Janet Frame Memorial Lecture
22 October, 6.00pm
The New Zealand Society of Authors, together with Random House New Zealand invite you to attend the Janet Frame Memorial Lecture at Te Papa this Thursday. The lecture will be given by the New Zealand Society of Authors President of Honour, William Taylor. In association with New Zealand Book Month.
Venue: The Marae, Level 4, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa
Cost: Free

Woollaston Poetry in the Vineyard
26 October, 3.00pm
Drink a complimentary glass of wine as poets Vincent O'Sullivan and Cliff Fell read from their collections of poetry. For more information contact Jaquetta Bell at jacq@nelsonmedia.co.nz or phone 03 546 9661. Bookings through Everyman Records or www.nelsonartsfestival.co.nz. This is a New Zealand Book Month event.
Venue: Woollaston Estates, Nelson
Cost:  $14/$16

Launch of Narratives with Nosh by Tauranga Writers
28 October 6.00pm
This is a publishing project intended to raise funds for young writers in the Bay of Plenty. Narratives with Nosh is a compilation of stories about food with the recipes and includes contributions from writers in the Bay and beyond. Editor Margaret Beverland will host the evening, and there will be readings by contributors. Contact: twinfo@clear.net.nz or phone 07 576 3040
Venue: No 1 The Strand Tauranga
Cost:  Gold coin entry

The Tree of Life with Carol Drinkwater
29 October 2.00pm
When Carol Drinkwater, the new owner of a run-down olive farm in Provence, heard about a 6000-year-old olive tree in Lebanon, she knew she had to find it. The Olive Route and The Olive Tree resulted, and she is now working with UNESCO on a film series on a Mediterranean Olive Heritage Trail. A Tauranga 2009 Arts Festival Event sponsored by Books a Plenty, Grey Street, Tauranga. $10 advance booking (recommended) or $5 on the door. Bookings: www.ticketdirect.co.nz or phone 0800 484 2538.
Venue: TVNZ Crystal Palace, The Strand, Tauranga
Cost:  $5/$10

Short story reading
29 October 6.00pm
A reading by contributors to The Penguin Book of Contemporary New Zealand Short Stories, featuring Fiona Kidman, Damien Wilkins, Duncan Sarkies, Anna Taylor and Jo Randerson (MC). This is a free event, and is part of New Zealand Book Month. All are welcome.
Venue: Unity Books, 57 Willis Street, Wellington
Cost:  Free event

Pleasure Gardens with Karl Maughan and Lynda Hallinan
31 October 2.00pm
Painter Karl Maughan and editor Lynda Hallinan discuss what creates maximum pleasure in a garden and how to pursue paradise in our own backyards. Bookings: www.ticketdirect.co.nz or phone 0800 484 2538.
Venue: TVNZ Crystal Palace, The Strand, Tauranga
Cost:  Visit Ticketdirect

Dame Fiona Kidman - Authors and Afternoon Tea
1 November 3.00pm
Booklovers B&B presents afternoon tea with author Fiona Kidman. Book by phoning Jane on 04 384 2714 or email booklovers@xtra.co.nz.
Venue: Booklovers B and B, 123 Pirie St, Mt Victoria, Wellington
Cost: $20

The KM Birthplace Book Club - Mark Williams
8 November 12.30pm
Hear Professor Mark Williams speak on Lolita as part of the Katherine Mansfield Birthplace Book Club 2009 programme. 12.30pm - 1.30pm.
Venue: Wellington Bridge Club, 17 Tinakori Rd, Thorndon
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Wellington 6011, New Zealand