Ockham NZ Book Awards

If the Ockham Collective had a dating profile we'd definitely be swiping right on anyone who described themselves as 'bookish'. May is the month when Auckland's bibliophiles get to indulge their passion in public at the Ockham-sponsored New Zealand Book Awards. It's one of the partnerships of which we're most proud, and this year the association has gotten even closer, with Paula Morris – chair of the book awards committee and a two-time award winner herself – joining us on the Ockham Collective.

Paula Morris (Ngāti Wai, Ngāti Whātua, Ngāti Manuhiri) is one of only six Māori writers to have won the fiction prize and there's something she's particularly looking forward to at next week's event. "At the ceremony we'll be unveiling a new name in te reo Māori that we've been gifted, which is very beautiful".

Sadly, COVID has meant a scaled-back, invitation-only event this year, which will be held at Q Theatre next Wednesday. However, the full ceremony will be livestreamed from 7pm on the awards' Facebook page and YouTube channel. For the second year in a row, TVNZ's Jack Tame will be the host.

If you want to get prepped before the event, Paula has recently hosted and posted the Ockhams Round Table on the Academy of New Zealand Literature website, featuring all of the nominees in the Best Fiction category. Says Morris, "it's a rare chance for writers to talk about their books in depth".

For more insights into the mysterious world of our literary luminaries, here's a Facebook link to pictures of some of the nominees' writing spaces (featuring chooks, a herd of little ponies and a Fido named Philip) and here's a list of handy writing tips that our nominees have graciously shared ("Read like an MF" being one of the more memorable ones).