Tag: Wellington

Hataitai Literary Afternoon, Sunday 10 November, 4-6pm, Hataitai Centre, 157 Hataitai Road

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Poster for the Hataitai Literary Afternoon being held on Sunday 10 November from 4-6pm at the Hataitai Centre, 157 Hataitai Road. Costs are adult $20, students & seniors $15, mezze platter $20. Tickets available from www.hataitai.org.nz

I’m very happy to have been asked to join a distinguished lineup of writers in this fundraising event, which is being held at the Hataitai Centre (the former Hataitai Bowling Club). The lineup is:

Jenny Bornholdt
Gregory O’Brien
Dame Fiona Kidman
Tim Jones
Sarah Scott

I’ll be reading poetry, including some climate poetry from New Sea Land and some new poems.

Tickets are adults $20, students and seniors $15. A mezze platter is available for $20.

From the event website:

“Celebrate local writers of Hataitai with live music and a relaxed chat, followed by readings by local poets Jenny Bornholdt, Gregory O’Brien, Dame Fiona Kidman, Tim Jones and Sarah Scott.

Profits raised will go towards sustaining a budding community programme of local creative art and literary events and workshops right here in Hataitai.

Mezze platters with a selection of delicious pairings for your pair with your BYO drink of choice. Vegan options are available.”

See hataitai.org.nz for more information!

All About “The World I Found”: An Interview with Latika Vasil

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I enjoyed The World I Found, Latika Vasil’s new novel, a great deal – so I wanted to ask her more about it. Here is our interview!



Cover image of novel "The World Found" by Latika Vasil

How would you describe “The World I Found” to a potential reader?

The World I Found is narrated by 15-year-old Quinn and closely follows her journey from Campbell Island to the Wairarapa and finally home to Wellington, as she navigates a dangerous and eerie post-pandemic world. It will appeal to readers who enjoy a fast-paced adventure story as well as a dystopian setting. The familiar New Zealand environment in which the story is set may also appeal to readers who enjoy a local setting.

I really enjoyed Quinn as a protagonist. Did you enjoy writing from the point of view of a 15-year-old girl?

I enjoyed writing from Quinn’s point of view very much! I like that Quinn isn’t the perfect heroine. Like all of us she makes mistakes and gets things wrong. She has some wonderful qualities, such as her intelligence, adaptability and loyalty to those she cares about, but she is also impulsive and stubborn and these characteristics often get her into trouble. As the novel progresses, Quinn grows in confidence and also develops a love of nature and I enjoyed writing this.

I admire Quinn’s resourcefulness. Is that a case of her stepping up when circumstances demand, or is that innate in her character?

This is a tricky question and it is probably best answered as a bit of both. In the novel, Quinn finds herself in exceptional and totally unforeseen circumstances. She never expected to face the challenges that present themselves. I think we all wonder how we would react and cope if the world suddenly turned upside down, and all the many things we take for granted and which are essential to the smooth running of our day to day lives, disappeared. Quinn is faced with this reality and realises she has to step up and learn to look after herself. At first this doesn’t come easily but as the story develops, Quinn becomes more confident in her abilities and in her own judgement.

This novel is about a pandemic and its aftermath, and it was written during the Covid-19 pandemic. Did the real pandemic influence the fictional pandemic?

Funnily enough, I started the novel before the Covid-19 pandemic and then fiction became reality to some extent! Coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic I did wonder what things would be like in Aotearoa if a worse pandemic had hit us. I explored this scenario in the novel.

Without giving too much away, society reorganising itself after the pandemic in your novel doesn’t go entirely smoothly. Quinn and her friends Jeroen and Cal all respond in different ways to the situation they find themselves in. What leads them to respond in those different ways?

The trio of Quinn, Jeroen and Cal are all very different characters and all have had different upbringings and life experiences that influence the way they react to the new world they find themselves in. Jeroen, especially, has had huge trauma in his life and this impacts how he relates to people and situations. Quinn is more open and receptive to the way she feels about things. She is intuitive and this allows her to see things through a different lens than Jeroen who is very much operating on surface level and as Quinn observes ‘sees what he wants to see’.

Quinn is on Campbell Island when the pandemic hits. Did you need to do lots of research to write those scenes on the island?

Campbell Island is very remote and inaccessible. It is one of New Zealand’s subantarctic islands, 700 kilometres south of Bluff in the South Island. So, while I would have loved to travel there to get a firsthand experience of the island, I had to settle for second hand accounts. Luckily, Campbell Island is a fascinating place and there is quite a bit of material available describing the island and what it is like to live there. It is uninhabited but is occasionally visited by scientific expeditions and small cruise ships. One day I hope to visit!

You’ve previously written adult fiction. What, if anything, was different about writing YA fiction?

The main difference was being able to create an authentic voice for Quinn as a present-day young person. While all of us as adults have been 15 years old once in our lives and can draw from this experience in our writing, it is important to be in touch with what it’s like to be a young person currently, or in the near future as is the case in The World I Found. Once I found Quinn’s ‘voice’ and she began to feel fully fleshed out and real to me, the writing came easily.

Where can readers of this blog buy copies of “The World I Found”?

The World I Found is available from www.latikavasil.com and selected bookshops (see bookhub.co.nz)

Latika Vasil bio

Latika Vasil is an Indian New Zealander who lives in Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington. She has worked as a university lecturer, a researcher, a creative writing tutor and currently as a freelance writer. Her fiction has been broadcast on Radio New Zealand, and published in various anthologies and magazines, including Landfall and takahē. She has written two books of fiction: A collection of short stories, Rising to the Surface (2013, Steele Roberts Aotearoa) and a YA novel, The World I Found (2023, Black Giraffe Press).

What I’ve been reading: “The World I Found” by Latika Vasil and “Famdamily” by the Meow Gurrrls

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My novel Emergency Weather has got off to a great start and there is more: (“Talking Up a Storm: The Making of Emergency Weather” this coming Wednesday, 12.30-1.30, Unity Books Wellington), but it’s time to talk about two books I’ve been reading and very much enjoying.

Fiction: The World I Found, by Latika Vasil

The World I Found is available from Latika Vasil’s website & via NZ BookHub.

The World I Found is a really good read. It’s a Young Adult novel seen through the eyes of 15-year-old Quinn, who is reluctantly dragged off to Campbell Island by her Mum, who is heading there as part of a scientific expedition. While Quinn is on the island, a worldwide pandemic breaks out, which means life is very different when she returns to Aotearoa and has to make her own choices in a radically changed world while attempting to find those of her family and friends who’ve survived, and deal with her attraction to a boy who can’t be relied on.

Latika Vasil does a great job of showing the world through Quinn’s eyes. She’s brave, resourceful, but also impetuous and at times beset by doubt. She’s a very realistic protagonist – I enjoyed seeing the world through her eyes. If you enjoy YA fiction as so many of us do, or if you’re a high school teacher looking for a well-written book that touches on important issues and tells a strong story through the eyes of a relatable protagonist, The World I Found is for you.

Poetry: Famdamily – Meowing Part 2, a poetry anthology by the Meow Gurrrls

Available in Unity or Good Books, by emailing meowgurrrls@gmail.com or via NZ BookHub

I went to the launch of this new anthology from The Meow Gurrrls, six Wellington-region poets whose work I’ve previously read, admired and sometimes reviewed: Janis Freegard, Kirsten Le Harivel, Mary Jane Duffy, Mary Macpherson, Abra Sandi King and Sudha Rao.

The launch was lots of fun, and so is this anthology of poems on the general theme of family.

With illustrations by Mary-Jane Duffy and photos of the six poets as children, this little book is an attractive package, but the real star is the poetry. I like all the poems, but some particular favourites include “Bikinis plural” by Mary-Jane Duffy, “Our need” by Mary Macpherson, “Fire Mom” by Abra Sandi King, “Les Frères” by Janis Freegard, “Letter to Arun” by Sudha Rao and “After-school mothers” by Kirsten Le Harivel.

Famdamily reminds me quite a bit of Millionaire’s Shortbread, one of my favourite Wellington poetry anthologies – and that’s a definite recommendation!

Wellington decides 2022: Who deserves your vote in the local body elections?

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Wellington is a city facing serious issues. Despite – or because of? – having a centre-right Mayor who’s been consistently outvoted by more progressive Councillors during the past three years, Wellington has made some important decisions to move towards a lower-emissions city that isn’t built on the cult of the car. But water, waste and sea level rise, plus the vital need to turn emissions reductions plans into action, mean there are huge issues to be addressed in the next term.

That’s why I’m thinking carefully about how to cast my votes for Mayor, Council and Regional Council. I haven’t finally decided how I’m going to vote, but here’s where I look for information and what I’m thinking.

Sources of information for voters

Here are some survey results and candidate analyses worth checking out:

Vote Climate (nationwide)
Generation Zero (nationwide)
Policy.nz (nationwide)
Living Streets Aotearoa Wellington candidates survey
Island Bay Healthy Streets candidate rankings

Personally, I vote mainly on climate policy, transport policy, environmental policy, and when it comes to sitting Councillors, whether they have shown the ability to get good outcomes in areas I care about. I always encourage people to pay attention to the Regional Council, not just the City Council, because the Regional Council plays a crucial role in Wellington’s transport system and many areas of environmental matters.

When it comes to existing or former Councillors who are standing again, a big factor for me is what they have actually achieved as Councillors, not just what they say they will do.

The elections I’ll be voting in are Mayor, Pukehīnau/Lambton Ward of Wellington City Council, and Poneke/Wellington Constituency of Greater Wellington Regional Council.

Mayor of Wellington

According to the only scientific poll I’ve seen, Paul Eagle (Labour-endorsed) entered the campaign very narrowly ahead of Tory Whanau (Greens-endorsed), with sitting Mayor Andy Foster not too far behind. These are three candidates the media has focused on.

I will be ranking Tory Whanau first of these three, followed by Andy Foster well ahead of Paul Eagle. Here’s why:

Tory Whanau has come across best on the campaign trail and appears to have the ability to bring a pro-climate action, pro-low carbon transport majority together on Council. My major reservation is her lack of experience in local body politics, but she has considerable experience at national level.

Andy Foster has been a mixed bag as Mayor. He got off to a very rocky start but has improved. He still tends to change sides at the last minute on major decisions, but has mostly supported climate action, low-carbon transport solutions, and the adoption of measures that embody Te Tiriti in local Government – or at least, stood aside and let them happen.

Paul Eagle is a former Councillor who is the current Labour MP for Rongotai. Despite his relative seniority, he has never been a Minister or chaired a Select Committee. The Labour Party want to replace him in Rongotai, and hit upon the solution of endorsing him as a Mayoral candidate. If he wins, this should trigger a by-election and allow Labour to select a more preferred candidate in Rongotai, such as Fleur Fitzsimons.

Paul, who as a Councillor was a known and at times vitriolic opponent of cycleways and other low-carbon transport options, has repaid Labour’s endorsement by running his own slate of centre-right candidates against Labour’s candidates, and refusing to support Labour candidates until put under duress. Instead, he has aligned himself with Diane Calvert, the leader of the right-wing faction on the existing Council.

I fear that the election of Paul Eagle as Mayor will result in Wellington going backwards on climate action, and lead to a hopelessly divided Council. I hope I am wrong about that, and if elected, I would urge him not to undo the good work of the previous term, and not to let his past positions on transport define him.

Of the candidates less talked up by the media, Ellen Blake has a great track record on walking and many other community issues, and a deep knowledge of how Council processes work.

Pukehīnau/Lambton Ward of Wellington City Council

In my local ward (from which three Councillors are elected), five candidates have impressed me. Sitting Councillors Iona Pannett and Tamatha Paul disagree strongly on housing policy, but nevertheless have worked both together and individually to get many important climate, transport, environment and Te Tiriti policies across the line. I’m backing both of them. Ellen Blake would make an excellent Councillor and her experience would be of benefit there.

Afnan al-Rubayee impressed me both when she came to my doorstep and at the Mt Victoria candidates’ meeting, though like all Labour candidates she faces the dilemma of whether she has to follow Paul Eagle’s lead if he is elected Mayor. I didn’t know anything about Jonathan Markwick prior to this campaign, but I liked him based on his presence at the MVRA meeting.

Pōneke/Wellington constituency of Wellington Regional Council

Your Regional Council vote is vital on transport & environment – it’s the Regional Council that is responsible for Wellington’s buses and trains. Five Regional Councillors are elected from this ward and I think seven candidates deserves careful consideration. Thomas Nash and Roger Blakeley have done excellent work throughout the previous term and are my top choices. Daran Ponter has done a good job overall. Yadana Saw impressed me at the candidates’ meeting, as did Chris Montgomerie – and there is a real dearth of women on the Regional Council. Thomas Bryan would be excellent to have on Council due to his personal experience of and knowledge of disability issues, and under the Dad jokes (which seemed to be a hit with the younger crowd at the MVRA meeting!) Chris Calvi-Freeman also knows his onions when it comes to transport.

A note on using your STV vote

I recommend ranking every candidate, with candidates you really don’t want elected ranked last.

As The Spinoff says in its guide: “Ranking someone last, and ranking every other candidate above them, is the best way to ensure a candidate you are really opposed to isn’t elected.”

No Other Place To Stand: An Anthology Of Climate Change Poetry From Aotearoa New Zealand

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Pile of copies of poetry anthology "No Other Place to Stand" ion table, with trees shown through window in background

I’m very pleased that my poem “Not for me the sunlit uplands,” first published in New Sea Land, is included in this new anthology. I’m looking forward to the Wellington launch on 14 July – check out the details below:

Auckland University Press invites you to the launch of NO OTHER PLACE TO STAND: AN ANTHOLOGY OF CLIMATE CHANGE POETRY FROM AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND.

Join editors Jordan Hamel, Rebecca Hawkes, Erik Kennedy and Essa Ranapiri – as well as plenty of special guests – to the celebration and launch party of this brilliant new anthology.

6pm, Thursday 14 July
Meow
9 Edward Street
Wellington
All welcome!

Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/389905359776491

Editors’ note: We’re also planning a Te Waipounamu launch for the anthology with Word Christchurch later in the year. 

Book Review: “The Death of Music Journalism” by Simon Sweetman

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Front cover of The Death of Music Journalism, a poetry collection by Simon Sweetman

Before I say anything else, I loved the cover of this new poetry collection by well-known music journalist – and performer, and blogger, and poet – Simon Sweetman. The cover of The Death of Music Journalism is both highly informative and ever-so-slightly surreal, which really appeals to me.

I’m not sure whether he’d take this a compliment, but I think of Simon Sweetman as an old-school music journalist, the kind who could conceivably have stepped out of the pages of Rolling Stone magazine, a local and latter-day Robert Christgau or Lester Bangs. I think of him writing passionately in favour of bands and albums I like (Bowie!), and equally passionately against other bands and albums I like.

So I had a little trepidation prior to opening this volume – oh my god is he going to have another go at St Vincent?, but my fears were quickly laid to rest. These poems are still passionate about music and life, but they’re also reflective, funny, discursive, and really, really well written. They’re about Simon’s relationship with music – favourite songs, favourite bands, favourite musicians – but also how music has reflected and influenced his relationship with his family, as in “Father and Son”, which isn’t just, or even mainly, about the Cat Stevens song.

You don’t have to know your paradiddles from your palm muting to enjoy this book. Music is the kicking-off point for many of these poems, but they’re mostly about people. If you know who Steve Gadd is or have an opinion about Mark Knopfler’s guitar solos, then that might add a little frisson to your response, but such knowledge is far from essential. The Death of Music Journalism is a sprawling, generous, entertaining and moving collection of poems, and I recommend it.

Book Review: “Five O’Clock Shadows” by Richard Langston

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Front cover of Five O'Clock Shawdows, a poetry collection by Richard Langston

I’ve heard Richard Langston read a number of times over the years, and always enjoyed his work, but at the Southern Writers at Te Awe Brandon Library event in October 2020 I was particularly struck by how much I enjoyed the poems from his new collection Five O’Clock Shadows, published by The Cuba Press. So I was keen to read them as well as hear them – and Five O’Clock Shadows, Richard’s sixth collection, doesn’t disappoint.

Richard enjoys a lot of stuff I also enjoy: Dunedin, Wellington, cricket, music. A collection that includes a poem about Brendon McCullum’s 302 vs India at the Basin Reserve, and a poem about how marvellous Dunedin is, has already gone a long way towards securing my loyalty. But it’s some of the poems I’m not pre-wired to enjoy that most stand out for me here – such as “Bsharri, Lebanon” and “Sons”. This is a fine, humanistic collection.

(For the avoidance of doubt: I do not in any way identify with the subject matter of the poem “Snoring”. Not at all.)




Southern Writers at Te Awe Brandon Library – 20 Oct 2020

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From the Wellington City Library blog:


Image shows books by poets taking part in the Southern Writers event
______________________________
20 October 2020
Te Awe Library – 29 Brandon Street
12.30pm to 2pm
______________________________


Join the Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/2763822373868512/

This event inaugurates the Te Awe event space, with six fine poets and prose writers giving a very special lunch time reading. All hail from Dunedin or Southland.

They are:

Kay McKenzie Cooke, Richard Langston, Tim Jones, Nick Ascroft, Madison Hamill and Jenny Powell, with Mary McCallum reading some of the late Elizabeth Brooke-Carr’s work.

So why not take this rare opportunity, grab your lunchtime sandwiches or buy one from the Te Awe café, and enliven your lunch listening to some of New Zealand’s finest poets reading from their works. Enjoy.

Hop across to the Wellington City Library blog for further details of the poets and their latest books!

Images of authors taking part in the Southern Writers events

Bougainville Library Project Book Fair This Weekend

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There’s a book fair being held this weekend in Wellington to raise funds for a library in Bougainville on behalf of the Bougainville Library Project.

The book fair runs from 10am-4pm on Sat 6 November and Sun 7 November at the Portrait Gallery, Shed 11 , Wellington Waterfront.

The Bougainville Library Project also has a Facebook page.

This book fair sounds like a win all the way round for book lovers and for Bougainville, so I hope that, if you’re in Wellington, you’ll be able to make it along.

You can buy books by Tim Jones online!

Writing Past Each Other? Literary Translation and Community

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I was sent information about this conference by the organisers, who asked me to pass it on to people who may be interested – and what better place to do that than this blog? In particular, the organisers are keen to publicise the call for papers, which closes on 31 March.

As someone with an interest in the translation of poetry, I am especially interested in the sessions they are planning on poetry and translation, which are being organised by poet Chris Price:

As a special feature of the conference, we are also organising translation workshop sessions with noted New Zealand poets (participants should pre-register; details to come). There will also be an evening reading session.

Here is the full announcement. For other details, e.g. how to register, please check out the conference web site.

Writing Past Each Other? Literary Translation and Community International Conference in Literary Translation

Victoria University of Wellington
11-13 December 2010

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS:
Lawrence Venuti
Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak

Announcement and Call for Papers

Metge and Kinloch (Talking Past Each Other: Problems in Cross-Cultural Communication, 1978), explore the ways in which those from diverse backgrounds misread important cultural differences in everyday life.

At this conference we hope to explore how literary translation promotes awareness and appreciation of such differences, while simultaneously creating a sense of community across local and international boundaries, or how a lack of such exchange can contribute to the isolation of literary cultures: how is globalisation affecting international literary exchange? how might translation contribute more to literary communities?

While papers on how these issues are articulated in the Asia-Pacific region are especially welcome, we also encourage paper proposals on a wide range of topics related to practical and theoretical aspects of literary translation and covering cross-cultural linguistic interaction from across the globe. Panel proposals (3 to 4 speakers) are especially welcome. Conference papers are to be delivered in English, but may relate to any of the world’s languages.

As a special feature of the conference, we are also organising translation workshop sessions with noted New Zealand poets (participants should pre-register; details to come). There will also be an evening reading session.

Please send abstracts (title of paper, name of presenter, 250 word outline and a short (50 word) bio-bibliographical note) by 31st March 2010 to NZCLT (at) vuw.ac.nz. We plan to publish selected papers from the conference in a refereed volume. Conference attendees wishing to have their papers published should submit them by 31st January 2011 for consideration.

You can buy books by Tim Jones online!