Thirty-seven students and three teachers took a bus to attend the Auckland Writers Festival. After a lengthy time, they reached their destination. Although everyone was tired, eagerness showed on their faces. They entered the Aotea Centre, where it was being held. The auditorium was opened, seats were filled, an introduction was made, and the first speaker came on stage.

The first speaker was Jason Reynolds, and he spoke about how he grew up as a black kid in the USA, always being told by the teachers to read books, yet he never did. Jason’s reason for why he didn’t read was because they were always about some man chasing down a whale and never about a black kid growing up in the hood. He explained his life meaningfully yet still managed to incorporate humour in a way that had the audience roaring with laughter. Jason has written more than fifteen books, some of which have earned him awards. His talk was inspirational, and the main message was ‘to tell your story’ and ‘to be yourself’.

The next speaker was Chloe Gong, a Young Adult fiction writer with four bestselling novels. She talked about how to write a book, providing everyone with helpful tips. She also spoke about her writing journey, from posting stories on a certain orange app (Wattpad) to releasing novels. Chloe Gong’s ‘Secret Shanghai’ talk was informative and interesting.

After a lunch break, filled with book signings and book shopping, it was time for the third speaker, Chris Tse, a famous New Zealand poet and the 13th NZ Poet Laureate. His talk was about how he struggled with his identity, how he came out as a gay man and about his Chinese heritage. He also talked about the top 10 topics poets often wrote about, such as death, love, war, etc. Chris’s talk was compelling to listen to, as there was beautiful poetry in his talk, which he read. He was joined by Claudia Jardine & Amber Esau, who shared some of their poetry, fitting the themes he discussed.

The last speaker was Dr Monty Soutar, a New Zealand historian. His talk was called ‘For Such a Time as This’. His talk was mainly about his book, published last year, Kāwai: For Such a Time as This. It’s a book which tells the story of pre-colonial Aotearoa. It follows a young Māori man wanting to learn the stories of his ancestors. There is lots of knowledge of science, medicine and religion of the Māori. It shows proud tribes who live in harmony with nature. Dr Monty Soutar also explained how he got the idea to write a book like this. It was all because of a voice in his head. He also gave the audience advice, the most popular one being; to not listen to naysayers. Dr Monty Soutar’s talk was very enjoyable.

It was an enjoyable day for all the students and the teachers, leaving many with the desire to return next year.