fbpx

Our Media Profile and Student Successes

In the past three years, thirty of our students have published books, or achieved national, international awards for their writing.
You could be our next big acheiver…

Student Successes ...

In the last three years, thirty of our graduates have published books, or been successful in national or international writing awards. 

 

A few of our successes …

  • Fiona Sussman’s The Doctor’s Wife is most borrowed novel from Auckland Public Libraries, 2024
  • Kathryn van Beek completes the Robert Burns writing fellowship at Otago University, 2024
  • Duncan Eastwood’ story ‘Wolf’s Lair’ prize winner in the Hammond House anthology, UK, 2024
  • Andrea Pollard’s short story wins broadcast and prize in the 2023 Radio NZ Nine to Noon competition
  • Colleen Maria Lenihan wins the 2023 Māori Writers Scholarship at the Institute for Modern Letters
  • Himali McInnes wins the Commonwealth Short Story Prize May 2023 Pacific Region
  • Maza White wins Best Short Film Script Award 2023 in NZ’s leading international short film festival
  • Eileen Merriman’s novel Catch a Falling Star published by Penguin Random House 2023
  • Heidi North & Danielle Heyhoe finalists for the $10,000 Gifkins prize 2023 for a novel manuscript
  • Andrea Hotere’s novel The Vanishing Point published internationally by Ultimo Press 2023
  • Kathryn van Beek wins the Churchill McNeish Writer Residency in Hungary 2023
  • Drew Baton’s novel Storm Force published by Austin MaCauley, London, 2023
  • Danny Macaroni wins the Forest and Bird Short Story Award 2023
  • Joe Janiszewski wins a prize in the Graeme Lay Short Story Award 2023
  • Leeanne O’Brien wins the $10,000 Sargeson prize Oct 2022, NZ’s richest short story award
  • Shadi Salepour’s short story wins broadcast and prize in the 2022 Radio NZ Nine to Noon competition
  • Fiona Sussman’s novel The Doctor’s Wife published internationally 2023
  • Colleen Maria Lenihan’s book of short stories Kōhine published by Huia Books, August, 2022
  • Lucas Miles’ short story published in the Oxford International Flash Fiction Anthology, May 2022
  • Eileen Merriman’s final novel in her Double Helix trilogy published by Penguin Random House, 2022.
  • Elena Philp’s novel Wolf at My Door published by Palabra Publishing, April 2022
  • Fiona Sussman’s fourth novel Addressed to Greta, Bateman, wins the Booklovers Award (Fiona is a graduate of the forerunner to our 30 Week Fiction Course)
  • Eileen Merriman’s novel The Silence of Snow short-listed for the 2021 Booklovers Award.
  • Katie Newton prizewinner in the 2021 Sunday Star Times Short Story Award (8th consecutive year Hub graduates have been prizewinners in NZ’s best-known short story award).
  • Mandy McMullin wins the NZ Society of Authors Heritage Short Story Award
  • Kathryn van Beek’s short story collection Pet published by Mary Egan Books
  • Pip Mckay wins 2020 1st Pages International Award, and trip to Paris with judge Sebastian Faulks
  • Jude Peters’ second novel, Sanctuary published on Amazon
  • Fiona Sussman short listed for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize, May 2020
  • Suzanne Ashmore’s novel Meltwater short-listed for the 2020 Booklovers Award
  • Jill Varani wins 1st prize in the Sunday Star Times Short Story Award, Dec 2019.
  • Mandy McMullin and Leanne Radojkovich win 1st and 2nd prize in the 2019 Graeme Lay short story award
  • Heidi North’s book of poems We are Tiny Beneath the Light published by the Cuba Press
  • Kirsty Powell’s novel The Strength of Eggshells published by Cloud Ink
  • Eileen Merriman’s fourth novel Moonlight Sonata published by Penguin Random House
  • Suzanne Ashmore’s novel Meltwater published by Mary Egan Publishing
  • Eileen Merriman’s novel Invisibly Breathing published by Penguin Random House.
  • Rosetta Allan’s second novel Unreliable People published by Penguin Random House
  • Jeannie McLean’s novel Caught Between short-listed for the 2019 $10,000 Michael Gifkins Prize
  • Jeff Murray’s novel Melt, published
  • Josie Laird’s novel All About Kate published by Swooping Kereru Books
  • Fiona Sussman, Eileen Merriman & Kathryn van Beek win 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes in the 2018 Sunday Star Times short story award.

Media Comment ...

The Spinoff profiles graduate Himali McInnes winner of the 2023 Commonwealth Short Story Prize (Pacific region) here

NZ Society of Authors profiles Colleen Maria Lenihan, winner of the 2023 Emerging Māori Writers Scholarship here

Newsroom covers graduate Leeanne O’Brien’s win in NZ’s richest short story award, the 2022 Sargeson prize worth $10,000 here

Sunday Star Times and Stuff run a story on Creative Hub graduates who were energised to start their novels during the Covid lock-downs here

Newsroom run stories in April 2020 from our graduates Dr Himali McInnes, and Dr Eileen Merriman, on their work on the Covid front line here 

Stuff on Jill Varani’s first prize in the Dec 2019 Sunday Star Times Short Story Award here.
Scoop reports our three prize-winners in the Sunday Star Times  Short Story Award, December 2018: ‘Small Writing Centre Sweeps Board in National Fiction Award’ … read story

National Radio’s Karyn Hay talks to Creative Hub Director John Cranna, about the vision that has made the Creative Hub NZ’s most successful independent writing centre … here

Hub Director John Cranna was interviewed by National Radio’s Lynn Freeman about running creative writing workshops for marginalised youth in the Far North. Listen here. 

Our graduate Karen Mills’ novel Tasting Stars was widely profiled on TV and in the national media in August 2017. You can read her interview in the Women’s Weekly here.

Fiona Sussman won the 2017 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel. You can read and interview with her in the Sunday Star Times here 

Graduate Eileen Merriman’s novel Pieces of You was published by Penguin Random House in 2017. You can listen to her interview on Radio New Zealand.

Read an account by Kathryn van Beek of her experiences on our 30 Week Fiction Course, published on ‘Elsewhere’ blog, hosted by Graham Reid, former music editor of the NZ Herald.

Listen to a National Radio interview with Creative Hub director John Cranna, and students on the Advanced Fiction Course he