The Signalman’s House Series

Media Release

12 May 2011

The Signalman’s House Series

DEVONPORT: A DIARY By BILL DIREEN

The Holloway Press, which specialises in limited-edition, hand-made books, is launching a new series of books called The Signalman’s House series, to celebrate the work of writers awarded a fellowship at the Michael King Writers’ Centre in Devonport.

The series will be launched with the publication of Devonport: A Diary by Bill Direen, written during his tenure of the University of Auckland/Michael King Centre/Creative New Zealand Writer’s Residency in 2010.

The Holloway Press, in association with the University of Auckland and the Michael King Writers’ Centre, plans to publish a work by each of the annual fellows who occupy the Signalman’s House on Mount Victoria in Devonport, the home of the Michael King Writers’ Centre. Through these publications the link between the University of Auckland and the Michael King Centre will be strengthened.

Bill Direen, a writer and musician who has a writing career that goes back at least 25 years, held the six-month residency in 2010. Originally from Christchurch, Bill now lives in Paris. Devonport: A Diary (which is accompanied by Esplanade, a brief related fiction) is a lively, thoughtful and idiosyncratic collection of observations on his return to New Zealand.

The Holloway Press was established at The University of Auckland, New Zealand, in 1994. It specialises in hand-made, limited edition books.

Devonport is designed, letterpress-printed and bound for The Holloway Press by Tara McLeod. The edition is 100 copies.

Devonport will be launched at the Michael King Writers’ Centre, Mount Victoria, Devonport on Sunday May 22. Copies bought on or before publication day are $80. The price after publication day is $100.

For information about The Holloway Press, see http://www.hollowaypress.auckland.ac.nz/index.htm

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