$25,000 CLNZ | NZSA Award awarded to Vincent O'Malley

Vincent O'Malley has been awarded the 2025 Copyright Licensing New Zealand (CLNZ) and The New Zealand Society of Authors (NZSA) Te Puni Kaituhi O Aotearoa (PEN NZ) Inc, CLNZ | NZSA $25,000 Writers’ Award for his project, with the working title, Whenua: Māori Land Loss Since 1840.

Vincent O’Malley says “Māori land ownership went from 100% of the country in 1840 to a little over 5% by the time of the 1975 Māori Land March. There has been a vast body of research into how and why this happened but much of it is unpublished and inaccessible to the general public.

Drawing on 30 years involvement in the Treaty claims process, I aim to provide a much-needed resource for New Zealanders seeking to understand and explore the history behind these figures in an open, honest and accessible way. The CLNZ/NZSA Writers’ Award makes that possible and I am very thankful to be given this opportunity”

The CLNZ | NZSA Writers’ Award is one of the annual investments made through the CLNZ Cultural Fund and is open to writers of any genre of non-fiction, including writers of education material. The award enables the successful applicant to devote time to a specific writing project. This year's winner, Vincent O’Malley is a Wellington-based writer and historian whose work focuses on the history of how relationships between Māori, European settlers (Pākehā) and colonial governments shapes the development of New Zealand as a nation.

Judging panel convenor Elizabeth Kirkby-McLeod said, “The variety of non-fiction projects writers are undertaking is breathtaking and makes a task such as judging this award a joyful difficulty. How to compare a biography with a self-help guided journal, or the collection of narratives about a lived experience with a mixed-genre work? The ultimate winner Vincent O'Malley's aim to pull together the vast amount of research that iwi and others have undertaken on land loss and present it in an accessible book for a wide audience, has the opportunity to unlock and untangle this topic for a whole generation of readers. He has a proven track record and as a panel we have faith in his ability to deliver this project.”

Judging panellist Jade Kake said of Vincent O'Malley's project, “A timely and important work by a highly respected historian, the project is of huge importance to Māori, who continue to experience the ongoing impacts of colonisation and alienation from whenua, but also to Pākehā and tauiwi seeking a better understanding of the history of Aotearoa New Zealand.”

While Iona Winter, the third judge on the panel, said “A vital project for Māori, Pākehā and tauiwi, exploring the alienation surrounding Māori land loss. This project asks for a historical reappraisal and will produce an engaging and accessible work for diverse audiences, contributing significantly to the shared history of Aotearoa New Zealand.”

Vincent O’Malley’s winning project was chosen from a shortlist of three that included Jessica 'Coco' Hansell’s project Pretty Buzzy and Jane Simpson’s project Alistair Te Ariki Campbell and the landscapes of melancholy: a biography. The judging panel also highly commended the following applicants: James Borrowdale, Michelle Elvy, Melanie Nelson, Sara O'Neil, Hazel Phillips, and Pania Tahau-Hodges.