As she preps for season two of hit thriller One Lane Bridge, Pip Hall – TV and theatre writer, basketball player, aqua ballerina and Mariah Carey fan – tells Michelle Langstone why, aged 48, she feels like she’s only just hitting her creative stride. Portraits by Edith Amituanai. Spoiler alert: Contains plot points from season … Read more
‘It feels like there is an inner circle of walking that I can no longer break into, some pleasure I have become too stupid to feel. Maybe it’s the internet’s fault.’ Read more from the lockdown letters here. There is a lot of talk about going out for a walk. If you are a writer, … Read more
This piece by Tracey Slaughter is one of the stand-outs from a new compilation, Strong Words, that showcases the best of the latest Landfall essay competition. Landfall editor Emma Neale wrote of it: ‘I could only read this essay in small bursts; as if I had to rebuild the ability to bear the agony and … Read more
A chronic illness is a life-changing experience for anyone – but what if it stops you from doing the one thing you’re best at? Dick Widdison writes about his year writing with a chronic illness. I’ve never found writing hard. It’s the brag that I genuinely never intend as one – it’s just that the … Read more
An online group has been nurturing mum writers for the past two years, organising writing events, retreats, childcare and support. Single mum, writer and group member Nichole Brown reports on how it’s changing lives. We all know what happens when the internet, the media, and the world in general, turn women against each other. We … Read more
Hollie McNish – author, poet, activist, mother, spoken word artist, winner of the Ted Hughes Award – is coming to New Zealand to speak at Word Christchurch. Author and Spinoff Parents contributor Holly Walker caught up with McNish to discuss motherhood and writing. When I read award-winning British poet Hollie McNish’s ‘poetic memoir’ about motherhood, … Read more
The Nobel Committee’s recognition of Bob Dylan shines a light on the transformative power of songwriting – a craft that very much belongs in New Zealand schools, writes Mike Chunn. Listening to a song is like taking a journey. The mechanics of that trip depend on the song, in the main. That is, words and … Read more
This is the final episode for this season of The Get. A new season will start in the near future. In the meantime if you have journalists and writers you’d like us to talk to send your suggestions to jose@thespinoff.co.nz. “It might be a week or even a couple of weeks where you’re on the … Read more
Wellington author Linda Burgess gaily set out to write a book about churches with her husband, former All Black Bob Burgess. Would their marriage survive? ‘Oh how lovely,’ people said. Even people who knew us. ‘How lovely, to do a book together.’ We’ve done it twice now. In 2007 Random House published my book on … Read more