2005 PM's Awards for Literary Achievement

Media release
Date: 29 March 2005

2005 Prime Minister’s Awards
for Literary Achievement
Creative New Zealand calls for nominations

Readers, writers, other individuals, groups and organisations are invited to nominate their choice of an outstanding New Zealand writer in the genres of poetry, fiction and non-fiction for the Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement 2005.

Worth $60,000 each, the annual Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement recognise writers who have made a significant contribution to New Zealand literature. Previous recipients are Janet Frame 2003, Maurice Gee 2004 (fiction); Hone Tuwhare 2003, Kevin Ireland 2004 (poetry); and Michael King 2003, Anne Salmond 2004 (non-fiction).

Fiction includes the categories of novel, short story, play, children’s fiction and scriptwriting. For non-fiction, there is no restriction in the subject matter and the quality of work is the main determinant.

The annual Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement are administered by Creative New Zealand. They were established in 2003 as the result of additional funding to the literary sector, announced by the Government in May 2002.

Peter Biggs, Chair of Creative New Zealand, says this is a chance for people to nominate outstanding New Zealand poets, fiction writers and non-fiction writers whose work they admire.

“New Zealanders are well-known for their love of books and reading,” Mr Biggs said. “By nominating writers worthy of this honour, they will be ensuring that their choice will be considered in the selection process.”

The recipients of the 2005 Prime Minister’s Awards for Literary Achievement will be announced at a special ceremony later in 2005.

Nominated writers must be New Zealand citizens or resident in New Zealand. They should have written a body of work that has received national acclaim and/or international recognition. Nominations close at 5pm, Friday 29 April 2005 and will be assessed by an expert literary panel. Its recommendations will be forwarded to the Council of Creative New Zealand for approval.

Nomination forms are available from any of Creative New Zealand’s offices (Auckland Tel: 09-373 3066; Christchurch Tel: 03-366 2072; Wellington Tel: 04-473 0880). You can also download the nomination forms from the resources section of Creative New Zealand’s website (www.creativenz.govt.nz). Alternatively, simply email your nominations to Creative New Zealand (pmawards@creativenz.govt.nz), including a brief statement about why you have nominated the writer/s.

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