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Literary Bulletin
Nau mai ki te panui a te NZSA Te Puni Kaituhi o Aoteroa (PEN NZ) Inc
Kia ora tātou,
The Best News of the Year is that we have signed a contract with MCH for a grant we have received from the Te Tahua Whakakaha Cultural Sector Capability Fund. NZSA is now the delighted recipient of a new grant stretched over 18 months to improve our organisational capacity. This is a game-changer for us, and the $199k contract includes funds for the production, system upgrade, and roll-out for our digital learning hub and professional development programmes, along with the employment of 2 x 0.5 fixed-term roles from August to December 2022 - details about the roles are below and are now open for applications. This is truly wonderful news, and thanks to MCH for awarding this grant.
NZSA remains shocked that the National Library is partnering with a known copyright infringer, currently embroiled in intellectual property violation lawsuits. Sending these books offshore, to make digital copies for a private entity that will then illegally distribute them globally, contravenes the NZ Copyright Act and NZ's obligations under international treaties such as Berne and Tripps. Here is our press release - we have a meeting with the National Librarian August 12, and are continuing to work on this issue. Meanwhile, if your book is available illegally on this site, please issue a takedown notice.
We are grateful to NZ writers and editor Bill Direen who has pulled together this new collection of writing, to protest the 600k book cull. We also acknowledge the work by the Book Guardians Aotearoa on this issue. Article here.
An important survey has come out from Creative New Zealand about artists' remuneration. Have your say in this 10-minute survey by August 22! Fair reward and all that!
“Never be afraid to raise your voice for honesty and truth and compassion against injustice and lying and greed. If people all over the world…would do this, it would change the earth.” - William Faulkner
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Lit news 
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Is your book available on Internet Archive for download without your permission?
Read our post for a link to the Internet Archive, an email address to send takedown notices to, and some sample text you can adapt. Here
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Job opportunities x 2 with NZ Society of Authors TPKOA
Two job opportunities are available with The New Zealand Society of Authors Te Puni Kaituhi o Aotearoa (PEN NZ) Inc. funded by the Ministry of Culture and Heritage as part of the capability building for arts organisations as part of COVID response. These roles are each 0.5 FTE or 20 hours per week and will be a fixed term contract to December 2022 (18 months). The roles are in Administrative Support and Marketing and Communications. Apply by 12 August. Find out more.
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Pronouns in the Workplace
As we strive to create inclusive workplaces, the use of pronouns has become more of a focus. Diversityworksnz have provided us with a guide designed to support a better understanding of pronouns and provide practical strategies for using them respectfully. While this is an issue that can affect anyone, pronoun misuse can disproportionately impact trans and gender non-binary people. The resource
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AGENCY INTERN WANTED
High Spot Literary, a New Zealand member of the Australian Literary Agent's Association, seeks an intern to assist the directors with submissions. Must read widely, quickly and with a critical eye and be organised and able to work remotely with a once a week meeting either face-to-face or via Zoom.
- Training will be provided
- Duration: 1 Month
Please note: This position is unpaid, but it has the potential to lead to a more permanent paid arrangement. More info provided if shortlisted for the internship.
Please send a cover note explaining why you feel you are suitable for the role along with your CV to nadine@highspotlit.com
The directors will only respond to those applications that are shortlisted.
Paid Advertising
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The 2021 Booker Prize longlist
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Hamilton Book Month 2021
It’s almost August and Hamilton Book Month will soon be underway again with 21 events in 2021.
Co-director Catherine Wallace says, ”We’ve got a great line-up this year with both literary icons and exciting new talent. Our audiences love interacting with visiting and local authors, hearing them read, buying their books and then having them personally signed”.
The month kicks off with a fiction panel featuring New Zealand’s best-selling fiction author Deborah Challinor, multiple award-winner Catherine Chidgey and the 2021 Waikato University Writer in Residence Michalia Arathimas, chaired by Maebh Long. The authors will read from their work, talk about themes in their writing and take questions from the audience. Refreshments will be served beforehand and Poppies bookstore will have the authors’ books for sale. There’s no cost but use the Hamilton Book Month website registration link to get your Eventbrite ticket. Read more
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NZWG Seed and Seed Advanced Grants - First round recipients
The New Zealand Writers Guild is pleased to congratulate the recipients of the first round of Seed and Seed Advanced for 2021.
Seed is one of the most competitive writer-only grants for draft feature film scripts in New Zealand. They want to take this opportunity to thank the writing community for continuing to write with spirit, originality and most importantly with resilience! The age-old saying “You gotta be in it, to win it” is so true for this grant. The judges cannot award grants to writers who do not apply. More
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This email is long!
Remember to click 'View entire message' if you see that your email has been 'clipped' by your service (common for Gmail users).
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NZSA Learning Hub
NZSA WebWorkshops
Editing for Authors – Anna Mackenzie
10am to 12pm, Sat, 21 Aug
Finished a manuscript? Well done… Now let the real work begin! Anna Mackenzie offers tips and techniques that will help you craft and perfect your writing. Bring along the first four pages of your manuscript for a hands-on session that will see you honing your work and brushing up your editing skills.
Anna Mackenzie writes award-winning contemporary, historic and speculative fiction, edits magazines and teaches creative writing. She is published by Penguin Random House. Her nine titles have won multiple awards. She lives on a farm in Hawkes Bay. NZSA Members – $30. (Non-members – $60) More
Crossing the Line or Staying Within It? Exploring Hybrid Forms – Diane Brown
10am to 12pm, Sat, 11 Sept
Crossing the line or staying within it? How do you know whether your writing fits into the parameters of prose or poetry? Diane Brown will discuss boundary crossing in hybrid forms that meld poetry and prose. Short exercises designed to encourage spontaneity and play will allow you to explore these forms and see how you might use them in your existing work.
Diane Brown is the author of 8 books of fiction, poetry and memoir, many of which alternate poetry and prose. Taking my Mother to the Opera is a family memoir told in poetic form and her latest book, Every Now and then I Have Another Child, is a poetic novella. She has taught creative writing for over twenty years and runs Creative Writing Dunedin. She has won various fellowships. NZSA Members – $30. (Non-members – $60) More
Look out for a NZSA Web Workshop coming soon from Alice Shearman, NZ Writers Guild on adaptation contracts - details will be released soon.
Regional Roadshows
Napier/Ahuriri Roadshow - 31 July - TOMORROW!
9am to 5pm, Saturday. Napier Sailing Club, 63 West Quay, Ahuriri, Napier
What's on?
Keynote Address from NZSA 2020-2021 President of Honour, Dr Paula Morris.
Workshops & Masterclasses: The Sniff of Something with Rajorshi Chakraborti; Bringing Characters Alive with Catherine Robertson; Creating Best-sellers with James Russell;Masterclass Poetry with Siobhan Harvey; The Structural Puzzle with Paula Morris; Editing with Anna Mackenzie. More
Whanganui Roadshow - 7 August
9am to 5pm, Saturday. The Quaker Settlement, 76 Virginia Road, Otamatea, Whanganui
What's on?
Welcome with Mandy Hager and Keynote Address from NZSA 2020-2021 President of Honour, Dr Paula Morris. Workshops & Masterclasses: The Sniff of Something with Rajorshi Chakraborti; Research for Writing with Mandy Hager; The Structural Puzzle with Paula Morris; Poetry with Airini Beautrais; Marketing with Cassie Hart. More
Save the date for your NZSA Regional Roadshow
- Napier/Ahuriri 31 July Bookings open
- Whanganui: 7 August Bookings open
- Auckland/Tāmaki-makau-rau & Waikato 18 September
- Whangārei: 13 November
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Are Fictional Characters Protected Under Copyright Law?
Jack Ryan, the analytical, yet charming CIA analyst, made an appearance in federal court in Maryland earlier this year. The heirs to Tom Clancy’s literary legacy are fighting over him. Unlike in the movies, he’s not in a great position to fight back.
It all started when Clancy signed the publishing deal for The Hunt for Red October where Jack Ryan made his debut in 1984. In a departure from common practice, Clancy transferred his copyright in Red October to the publisher. A few years later, Clancy realized his mistake and was able to negotiate return of the copyright for the book. He immediately transferred the reverted copyright to his company. read the full article by Kathryn Goldman
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CNZ Requests Feedback on Remuneration Policy for Artists
Creative New Zealand is seeking views on a draft remuneration policy to support the development of more sustainable arts sector careers. The policy proposes a set of principles aimed at ensuring fair remuneration for artists and arts practitioners for the work they do.
They have created a remuneration policy for artists consultation document and are keen to hear your feedback and whakaaro on this document by completing this online survey. The survey will take you around 10 minutes to complete. Please complete by 22 August 2021.
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Did Twitter break YA? (Misshelved #6)
I began this essay because I wanted to explore how and why the young adult book publishing industry in the United States now seems to be primarily targeting adult readers, rather than teens. I wanted to examine what that shift means for actual teenagers—how the segment of the publishing industry created to meet their needs and tell their stories had begun to fail them. Read the full article by Nicole Brinkley
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AUCKLAND WRITERS FESTIVAL 2021 VIDEOS AND PODCASTS AVAILABLE ONLINE
A selection of 2021 videos and podcasts have been added to our website archive. Visit LOOK, LISTEN & LEARN to catch up on the sessions you missed or relive the magic. Including Festival favourites: Patricia Grace; Vincent O'Sullivan; Marlon Williams; Anna Fifield; Alice Te Punga Somerville and Monique Fiso.
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Unleashing the Power & Potential of Creativity
Here is a fantastic report Unleashing the Power & Potential of Creativity launched this week by a new partnership between the UK Creative Industries Federation and Creative England. The report includes new research from Oxford Economics forecasting the post-Covid potential of the sector, and has a particular focus on creativity and the future of work, and creativity and innovation. Most of the findings and recommendations mirror WeCreate’s messaging to our government and we will ensure that it is circulated as widely as possible to our government contacts. Creative UK Group – UKCI Report 2021 Edition
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Writers Protest
Reader for the Love of the Book
NZ writers react to the cull by the NZNL of 600,000 books!
Edited by William Direen, author, poet and musician from Dunedin. Download here. The book will also be distributed free in hard copy by Phantom Billboards, in the spring. More here.
This is a literary action from a collection of writers, expressing a united chorus of protest, and outrage at both the cull, and the disregard for the writers' intellectual property. The NLNZ move signals a dangerous precedent. This is our Live IPAid moment.
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NZSA Peter & Dianne Beatson Fellowship - deadline 20 Aug
Annual award of $10,000 open to writers of fiction, non-fiction, poetry and drama who are members of the New Zealand Society of Authors (NZSA) and who are currently working on a new project. More
Michael Gifkins Prize for an Unpublished Novel 2022 - deadline 14 Oct
Open to published and unpublished authors who are invited to enter manuscripts of adult fiction. The manuscript must be unpublished and not on submission to another publisher. Entries will be judged on the basis of literary merit and commercial potential. The winner will receive a contract for world rights with Text Publishing and an advance to the value of NZ$10,000. More
StartWrite Assessments
Writing Appraisal Service
Only unsubsidised assessments available now for 2021 as all subsidised ones have been utilised. Cost is $200)
The NZSA Writing Sample and Synopsis Assessment Service is an excellent opportunity for writers to get an appraisal of up to 6000 words. This is a fast and efficient way to get you on track with your work - be it poetry, an early draft of an MS, short stories etc. Find out more This programme is supported by CreativeNZ.
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The NZSA New Zealand Heritage Literary Awards 2021 - open
All entries should have some relationship with the theme of the Christchurch Heritage Festival 2021: People and Place - our stories revealed. Deadline 1 August 2021.
Full submission details along with the entry form, fees and terms and conditions can be found at: www.nzsacanterbury.wordpress.com
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NZSA Northland Branch National Short Story Competition 2021
Open Section: Theme is The Wish, 1500-word limit, $12 entry fee first story, $20 for two, $28 for three.
First Prize $300, and a free critique for second and third places. The top three stories will be published on the NZSA Northland website. For entry form and conditions: diana@braefern.co.nz Deadline: 31 August
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NZSA Member Book Giveaway
We have two copies to giveaway, of Charlotte Grimshaw's memoir The Mirror Book.
Many thanks to PenguinRandomHouse NZ for this prize.
Just send us an Email (this draw is only for NZSA members) with your name and postal address by 6 August to enter. The winner will be drawn at the end of next week.
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PEN International 
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Spy Software Used to Track Journalists, Activists is Direct Threat to Free Expression Worldwide
(New York, NY) — Sophisticated software purportedly designed to track international criminals and terrorists has been deployed to hack the smartphones of journalists, advocates, and human rights activists around the world. A consortium including Forbidden Stories, Amnesty International, and multiple news outlets, revealed this week that since 2016 the software sold by the Israeli cyber-intelligence firm NSO Group Technologies was used to hack hundreds of phones belonging to journalists, human rights defenders, and political leaders. Included are those of people close to slain Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and of Azerbaijan investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova, convicted on bogus charges in 2015 and honored with the PEN/Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award in 2016. More
Read about the ongoing investigation on this issue by the Guardian
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Email PEN at PEN@nzauthors.org.nz for issues to do with Freedom of Expression. Email Writers In Prison co-ordinator Lesley Marshall if you would like to be part of the Writers in Prison letter writing team.
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Death by Deadline
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Bestsellers from Nielsen BookScan
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Writers on Radio and TV 
Click here for the lineup for upcoming Books on Radio New Zealand National.
For author interviews on Radio NZ
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