Dunedin Young Writers Fest: 27 Authors Gathered at Karitane

Dunedin Fringe organized the New Zealand Young Writers Festival, bringing together 27 writers aged 18 to 35 for a year of creative development. The event concluded a program that included a residential workshop and a public festival schedule in Dunedin.

For the second consecutive year, the organizing team hosted a wānaka at Puketeraki Marae in Karitane. This three-day residential program followed a tuakana and teina framework to mentor the selected cohort. The session began with a pōwhiri and a Talitali kava ceremony, allowing participants to honor ancestors and set personal intentions. The group also toured Huriawa pā to engage with local history before beginning their writing exercises.

Daily routines at the marae started with karakia and waiata at sunrise. Evenings featured open mic nights in the wharenui where writers shared new and past work. Mentors Eric Soakai and Rauhina Kohuwai-Banks led workshops on life mapping and movement. Industry professionals Antony Deaker and Nick Tipa provided sessions on managing artist funds, taxes, and grant applications.

The public festival opened with the cohort presenting their work at an event called Pou Kōrero, Pou Talanoa: Posts that Speak. The performance concluded with the group singing the official festival waiata, a piece written by the previous year's cohort. The weekend schedule included workshops on slam poetry, zine making, multilingual collaborative poetry, and ritual.

Tara Leckie led a workshop titled 'Talking to the Dark,' which attendees described as a method for exploring difficult thoughts. The Otago Poetry Slam Champs performed on Saturday night. The final day featured a panel discussion with five cohort members addressing themes of courage and revolution in their work. Rachel O'Neill moderated the discussion, which covered topics including lived experience and collaboration. The cohort concluded the event with closing reflections and a poroporoaki ceremony.

The festival is organized annually by Dunedin Fringe. The team has expanded the event each year, adding the residential wānaka component to the public programming. Writers can submit work for future editions of the local magazine Critic Te Ārohi.