2026 Randell Cottage Writer’s Residency Awarded To Essa May Ranapiri

The Randell Cottage Writers Trust is delighted to announce that essa may ranapiri has been selected as Aotearoa New Zealand Writer-in-Residence for 2026. They will take up the six- month residency in July, and will use this opportunity to work on their first novel, Te Rama Tuna | Eeling by Torchlight, a coming of age story about two young trans Maaori friends/lovers.

essa may ranapiri (Ngaati Raukawa, Ngaati Puukeko, Te Arawa and Clan Gunn) is a poet, writer and academic living in Kirikiriroa Hamilton. They have published a large amount of poetry, reviews and essays over the past eight years of working as a writer, most notably their two poetry collections, ransack (2019) and ECHIDNA (2022), and a forthcoming third collection, Puke, to be published in 2026.

"ranapiri's project impressed the Panel for its boldness and groundbreaking nature. It stood out amongst a very strong pool of candidates," says Panel Chair, author and poet, James Norcliffe. “We couldn't think of another New Zealand novel that would be akin to what ranapiri is working to create – and which they have a track record for being able to achieve.

"The Randell Cottage Fellowship is specifically designed for mid-career writers for whom a longer period of dedicated writing time would be significant. The panel feels that ranapiri is at the right point in their career where the residency would be an important next step to finishing their novel.”

Trust Chair Christine Hurley says, “We are delighted to welcome essa, and are especially grateful for the donors to Randell Cottage who have made it possible for us to offer this valuable residency again in 2026, consisting not simply of a $32,000 stipend to cover living costs but also six months of rent-free accommodation in central Wellington.

“Our generous supporters include the Friends of Randell Cottage and members of the wider Randell family, who have stepped up to make this opportunity possible.”

The Randell Cottage residency has most recently been held by Saraid de Silva, whose time in residence in the cottage in 2025 was used to make substantial progress writing her second novel, the follow-up to her acclaimed debut Amma.

The Trust and Friends of Randell Cottage are working together to find ongoing sponsorship for this prestigious writing fellowship, which has demonstrated its success and impact over more than two decades. If you can help, please contact us on info@randellcottage.co.nz or the Trust Chair, christine.hurley1@hotmail.com.

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