Wairarapa Word’s 10th Anniversary Year

The monthly writers’ series Wairarapa Word wraps up its 10th anniversary season with prizewinning poet, essayist and long-time RNZ commentator Kate Camp talking about her ‘brave and brilliant’ memoir ‘You Probably Think This Song Is About You’ (13 November) and foraging expert and author Johanna Knox discussing her latest book ‘A Forager’s Treasury’ with Caren Wilton, and also leading a creative writing workshop (4-5 December).

Wairarapa Word events are always free entry. Koha is welcome.

Over the decade, the volunteer group has invited many national figures to Wairarapa: singer-songwriter Hinemoana Baker, children’s book author-illustrator Fifi Colston, young adult writer Kate De Goldi, financial journalist Mary Holm, Fiona Farrell and Fiona Kidman in their first North Island appearance together, novelist Lloyd Jones, graphic artist Sarah Laing, NZ’s first Poet Laureate Bill Manhire, publisher Mary McCallum, poet-actor Apirana Taylor, and criminal justice advocate and memoir author Kim Workman, to name a few.

How does a small team on a tiny budget achieve all this? Wai Word, as it is colloquially known, believes in collaborating with aligned groups, with its first partner being the indie bookstore Almo’s Books, since 2013. The bookshop handles book sales, serves as a treasurer, and acts as a base. Proprietor Steve Laurence says, ‘Almo's involvement with Wai Word has been good for the business as it improves our credibility and reputation as booksellers, particularly of New Zealand books. We also help Wai Word as it is encouraging to writers to know that a bookseller will sell their books for them.’

Other partners have included the region’s main museum Aratoi, the community access radio station Arrow FM, the country’s largest arts funder Creative New Zealand through Carterton Creative Communities, the region’s newest and oldest book festivals Featherston Booktown and Yarns in Barns, two premier attractions Golden Shears and Wings Over Wairarapa, the international residency programme NZ Pacific Studio, and the Wairarapa Herb Society.

The 2022 Season also brought a great new partner: Wairarapa Library Service.

Wairarapa Word’s founding coordinator, writer and photographer Madeleine Slavick, says that while there have been many special highlights over the decade – Wairarapa Book Fair celebrating 25 Wairarapa writers, a book festival for kids, kōrero, song and poetry in 20 languages, a 24-hour National Poetry Day festival, events with 16 writers connected to 16 Wairarapa towns, and a panel on journalism that attracted a crowd of more than 300 people (Wai Word’s largest) – ‘it’s the down-to-earth dialogue with writers that I like most. I also enjoy hearing writers read their own work aloud. For writers like me living in semi-rural areas, it’s important to be able to connect with fellow writers every month.

‘Wai Word is looking forward to Kate Camp and Johanna Knox, and we are excited that we have just booked a groundbreaking writer to open our 2023 Season. We’re keeping it under wraps for the moment, but save the date for a performance and a workshop: 18 February, morning and afternoon!’

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