Recently, I appeared along with the Poetry Archive of NZ Aotearoa in Jacket2, USA, in a series of commentaries by Vaughan Rapatahana on the small press and poetry scene in New Zealand.
“One such example of sterling input is the invaluable Poetry Archive of New Zealand. As Mark Pirie points out to us, ‘I co-organise the Poetry Archive of New Zealand Aotearoa (with Dr Michael O’Leary and Dr Niel Wright, the founders) collecting poets back to the nineteenth century. There are more good poets than people realize reading mainstream historical anthologies of New Zealand poetry. I have realized this fairly recently after wasted years of looking at and learning from selective, academic anthologies ever since I was a student. Since 2010, I have edited the quarterly Poetry Archive newsletter Poetry Notes. This has featured many forgotten historical New Zealand poets and presented highly original research by myself, Rowan Gibbs, Niel Wright, and Michael O’Leary. The National Library of New Zealand online research tools like Papers Past have been vital to this rediscovery of early New Zealand poetry too. Poets like Robert J Pope, Ivy Gibbs, and A. Stanley Sherratt have had their work republished.’ It needs to be made clear that these three guys receive no emolument for their earnest endeavours and do rely on donations of both funds and poetry texts to proliferate their resource, ‘so very good historical and contemporary poets don’t get missed.’ Stalwarts all, indeed.”
Vaughan Rapatahana also interviewed me on HeadworX, JAAM and publishing poetry in New Zealand and ran a poem of mine as well as mentioning my featuring of Mahinarangi Tocker in broadsheet no. 10.
It was great to be profiled so prominently overseas, and Vaughan gave me considerable understanding and recognition for my literary work.
Here are the links to Vaughan's articles:
Slam, slam ... & thank you Mams, Vaughan Rapatahana, in Jacket2 Commentaries, USA, 2015 (online).
'Small' poetry publishers and publications, Vaughan Rapatahana, in Jacket2 Commentaries, USA, 2015 (online).
A certain 'Je ne sais quoi' — Percutio with JAAM, Vaughan Rapatahana, in Jacket2 Commentaries, USA, 2015 (online).
Ngā Kaituhi Wāhine Māori — Māori Women Writers,'Vaughan Rapatahana, in Jacket2 Commentaries, USA, 2015 (online).