June 21, 2024
Mentors matchet to emerging Māori writers
Five emerging writers have been chosen for the first New Zealand Society of Authors Kaituhi Māori Mentorship and Kupu Kaitiaki programmes.
They will each work closely with an acclaimed Māori writer to evolve and refine a work toward a publishable state.
Taranaki writer Emma Hislop will mentor Ōtepoti based freelance illustrator and poet Jessica Hinerangi Thompson- Carr, whose first collection Āria was published in 2023.
Novelist Steph Matuku will mentor Aroha Te Whata from Wellington, who wants to branch out from report writing to writing fantasy.
Poet, editor and publisher Kiri Piahana-Wong will mentor Jorja Heta from Ngāpuhi, Te Rarawa, Te Aupōuri.
Arihia Latham will mentor fellow poet Miriama Gemmell.
The Kupu Kaitiaki Mentorship, to help refine a manuscript written in whole or part in te reo Māori, goes to Te Ura I Te Āta, an advisor on bilingual and immersion education, who will be mentored by Vaughan Rapatahana.