NZSA celebrates Book Week with a grass roots campaign

MEDIA RELEASE

12 October 2015

NZSA Book Week 2015

October 26 – November 1

New Zealand Society of Authors (PEN NZ Inc) celebrates Book Week with a grass roots campaign.

Facing a second year with no NZ Book Month, the NZSA has taken the initiative and is running a grass roots campaign with the message 'Read NZ Buy NZ'. NZSA Book Week will take place October 26 to November 1.

NZSA Book Week 2015 incorporates the inaugural NZ Bookshop Day – Your Place, Your Bookshop on Saturday October 31. 175 Booksellers will be hosting local events and celebrating with authors in their shops for book signings, readings, window displays and helping out in the store, seminars or chatting to customers.

Back in 1936 NZSA, then known as the PEN Centre, instigated Authors Week which was a successful event for many years, so it is fitting that the Society is promoting Book Week as a campaign for recognition for books written by New Zealand authors.

Old newsletters of the Society report “NZ Books emerged from the back shelves of booksellers’ shops and into the window display”. We aim for the same in 2015 – and more.

Posters featuring the slogans ‘Read NZ Buy NZ’ and ‘Read Our Stories’ will spearhead the campaign and author activities include in-store events, workshops and forums together with a NZ Books campaign on Facebook and Twitter. Everyone is welcome to use the posters which can be downloaded fromwww.authors.org.nz

“Positive spin-offs of the week are seeing such a wide variety of grassroots activities being developed in response to this initiative, and providing an opportunity for booksellers and authors – who should be natural allies – to come together,” said Kyle Mewburn, President of NZSA.

This is an opportunity for book groups around the country to choose the work of a New Zealand writer, or for clubs to invite a local author to speak to their group.

For more information, or to find an author to speak to your group, contact NZSA National Office or your nearest NZSA Branch.

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