North Canterbury News: July 29, 2021

NEWS
18 The North Canterbury News, July 29, 2021
Helping young writers find avoice
By DAVID HILL
AKaiapoi­based writer has
found apassion for working
with the next generation.
Originally from the United
States, Claire Wright moved
to Kaiapoi in January 2018 to
be with her fiancee and
began working with young
writers.
‘‘When Ifirst came here I
taught English to Korean and
Chinese children online. I
found Ihad no friends
because Iwas working at
night,’’ Claire recalls.
She signed up for a
creative writing course at
Kaiapoi Library, run by
Christchurch­based Write On
School for Young Writers
director Heather McQuillan.
‘‘I was the only non­retiree
in the class, so it was amazing
as there were so many
wonderful stories.’’
When Heather found out
Claire had adegree in
creative writing she invited
her to come to classes held at
Hagley College on Saturdays
during school terms.
‘‘I volunteered for afew
weeks and then Idid some
relief teaching, and by term
three Ihad my own class. I
really enjoy it and miss it
during the school holidays,’’
Claire says.
After starting with the
youngest age group and
working with teenagers,
Claire has aclass of years 8to
10 students and works with
Express yourself ... Claire Wright encourages young people to
experiment with their writing.
PHOTO:DAVID HILL
correspondence students.
‘‘The biggest thing with this
age group is they have this
need for perfection, but the
point of childhood is to fail.
The kids will often say ‘it’s no
good’, so Itell them it’s OK to
fail because you can rewrite
and improve it.
‘‘I find that the year 8s to
10s are more likely to
experiment and try different
things, and they’re also abit
more confident to try
different things. And they
don’t have the pressure of
exams.
‘‘I always give them a
lesson, but it’s up to them
whether they follow it, as
long as they’re writing.’’
One student is working on a
novel, while another
preferred drawing ‘‘and
that’s fine because it’s still
creative, but he wrote some
pretty cool stories anyway’’.
She is helping another
student who is into Fan
Fiction.
‘‘Fan Fiction often gets a
bad rap, but Ithink if your
children want to do it don’t
discourage them because it’s
agreat way to develop your
skills and find your voice
within the confines of other
people’s characters.
‘‘A lot of famous writers
started out writing Fan
Fiction.’’
When it comes to her own
work, Claire is on her fifth
draft of ayoung adult
romance novel, which her US
publisher has invited her to
‘‘revise and resubmit’’.
She is also working on abig
project on Greek mythology
which she hopes will be
published next year and has
written ahorror mystery
podcast series Fracture,
which can be downloaded
through Apple Podcasts and
Spotify.
Being an American, Claire
says she has no qualms about
working with US publishers,
but she feels for local writers.
‘‘It can be disheartening
for New Zealand writers.
There’s only asmall number
of New Zealand books which
get published each year and
it depends on what they’re
looking for.’’
Despite the challenges,
there are many ways for
today’s writers to express
themselves and writing
books is just the beginning.
There is also film, television,
video, podcasts, video games,
blogging and social media.
Taskforce
ensures Blair
is work ready
Blair Milne is on track to awork­ready
future at E­Cycle, Amberley, thanks to
the Mayor’s Taskforce for Jobs
programme.
E­Cycle is aNew Zealand­owned
company recycling electronic waste.
Blair was placed at E­Cycle amonth
ago and is already reaping the benefits of
life in the workforce.
‘‘The programme helped me to get out
and land this job. Having aroutine and
purpose has really improved my mental
health,’’ he says.
‘‘Working makes having free time and
doing things for fun more enjoyable
because Iknow Ihave earned it.’’
After ashort time working with Blair,
E­Cycle supervisor Aaron Miller has also
noticed positive changes.
‘‘Blair is reliable, and we can always
count on him to show up and do the job.
You can see the structure and skills he is
gaining from working, which is great.”
The Government­funded programme
connects local businesses with those
displaced by Covid­19, creating
opportunities for both parties.
Hurunui District Council business
recovery adviser Chris King says the
partnership with E­Cycle aligns with the
programme’s vision for youth.
‘‘It’s great having businesses like
E­Cycle who provide apathway for
sustainable work. E­Cycle is big on giving
youth achance and that foot in door that
they need for their futures in the
workforce.”
If you are alocal business or know a
young person who would be interested in
joining the venture, contact Joni or Chris
at the council on (03) 3148816 or email
tfj@hurunui.govt.nz.
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