Authors

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Dr Joanna Prendergast is a parent, psychiatrist and stand-up comedian based in Christchurch. Over the course of her career she has worked with children, teens and adults in a wide range of settings in Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. She moonlights as the comedian Jo Ghastly, and is passionate about tackling big subjects in a lighthearted way. When Life Sucks is her first book.

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Joanna Preston is an Australian-born poet, editor, and freelance writing tutor, who lives in a small rural town in Canterbury. In 2008 she won the inaugural Kathleen Grattan Award for Poetry for her first collection, The Summer King (OUP), which went on to win the 2010 Mary Gilmore Award for the best first poetry collection by an Australian author. Preston has edited/co-edited seven poetry anthologies; and has been co-editor of Kokako magazine and poetry editor for takahē magazine.

Dame Gaylene Preston is a writer, producer and director. In 2001 she was the first filmmaker to receive an Arts Foundation Laureate Award, and in 2002 she was made an Officer of the NZ Order of Merit for her services to the film industry. In 2010 she received the inaugural lifetime achievement award for outstanding contribution to documentary from Documentary Edge, a Screenwriters Mentorship Award, and a WIFT NZ Award for outstanding contribution to the New Zealand Screen Industry. In 2016 she received the SPADA Industry Champion Award and a New Zealand Woman of Influence Award for Arts and Culture. In 2017 she was given the Premium Moa Award for services to cinema. In 2018 she was visiting scholar at the Intellectual Forum, Jesus College Cambridge. Gaylene Preston has been making films for 50 years. She has produced, directed and written many feature films, feature documentaries, television series, television documentaries, commercials and video installations. A full filmography is available at gaylenepreston.co.nz.

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Chris Price's work often hovers around the intersections between literature and science. She is the author of three poetry collections including Husk (Best First Book of Poetry, Montana NZ Book Awards, 2002), The Blind Singer (2009) and Beside Herself (2016), as well as the hybrid 'biographical dictionary' Brief Lives (shortlisted, Montana NZ Book Awards' biography category, 2007). Chris is a former editor of the literary journal Landfall. Since 2009 she has convened the MA workshop in Poetry and Creative Nonfiction at the International Institute of Modern Letters. Bruce Foster's work meditates on the dialogue between the natural and human-altered environments, and is held by major museums and art galleries throughout New Zealand. He was one of nine artists on the 'Kermadec Project: Lines Across the Ocean', an initiative to articulate the issues facing one of the few pristine ocean sites left on the planet.

Jane Prichard spent her early years on a poultry farm in Herbert, North Otago. In 1954 she began studying at Otago University, and later worked in Wellington for two years until her marriage to Owen. In 1963 they moved to Auckland. When their two children, Hugh and Martha, were at a more independent age Jane was able to renew her membership of the Federation of Graduate Women and take up a number of roles in the Presbyterian Church. For the next 30 years she worked tirelessly to make gender equal society a reality in Aotearoa New Zealand, with full human rights for all. Assisting women at the edges of society to make their voices heard has always been a key concern. To further these objectives, she established the Bridgebuilders Network for Presbyterian and associated church women nationally and regionally, Pacific Women’s Watch (New Zealand) as a liaison to Asia-Pacific Women’s Watch, and the Asia-Pacific Regional Council for the International Council of Women (ICW). These currently robust organisations have carried out a vigorous agenda of activity for over 20 years. Uplifting the principles enshrined in the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) has been a focus. Jane continues to act as an advisor and is a member of the ICW’s Committee of Honour. She also made it possible for the International Federation of University Women to begin its Network for Pacific Graduate Women.

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Dinah Priestley is a New Zealand artist, writer, actor, cartoonist and broadcaster. Her books include