If you intend to attend and haven’t already done so, please don’t forget to RSVP to the launch of The Writing Life – we would love for you to join us to celebrate this event.

‘The Writing Life: Oral history into book the stories of twelve New Zealand authors’
Date: Thursday, 15 November, 2018
Time: 6:00pm to 7:00pm
Cost: Free. You don’t need to book.
Location: Te Ahumairangi (ground floor), National Library, corner Molesworth and Aitken Streets, Thorndon
Contact Details: events.natlib@dia.govt.nz
Join Deborah Shepard to hear her account of the genesis of the book The Writing Life.

The book began with an oral history project for the New Zealand Society of Authors, that was funded by an Award in Oral History in 2015. The history project was to record the stories of senior members of the New Zealand literary community:

Joy Cowley
Marilyn Duckworth
Tessa Duder
Chris Else
Patricia Grace
David Hill
Witi Ihimaera
Fiona Kidman
Owen Marshall
Vincent O’Sullivan
Philip Temple, and
Albert Wendt.
Deborah will outline the process from oral history into book and the surprises and discoveries she made along the way about the challenges and pleasures of the writing vocation from 12 of our most experienced and brilliant practitioners.


Cover of The Writing Life: Twelve New Zealand Authors by Deborah Shepard.