Over the weekend of the 2nd to 3rd of November 2024, I attended the Readers and Writers Akaroa (RAWA) festival in Akaroa as a fellowship awardee, in recognition of my work as a gay writer. Copyright New Zealand sponsored ten RAWA fellowships for members of the Canterbury branch of the New Zealand Society of Authors, and I was honoured to be chosen.
Since this was my first time at the RAWA festival, I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect. As a writer with short stories, poetry, news articles, blogs and plenty of business writing under my belt—but with a novel still very much in the editing stages—I went in feeling like I was punching above my weight. However, what I encountered was a welcoming and inspiring community of writers at various stages of their own writing journeys.
During the festival itself, I absorbed a wealth of knowledge from talented authors and writers from throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. The discussions and panels offered me far more insight than I anticipated, and the sheer breadth and depth of talent on display was awe-inspiring. In addition, even spending time with other writers and chatting informally were just as valuable as the scheduled events.
One of my biggest takeaways was RAWA it affirmed my path as a writer. Listening to, and being surrounded by, so many creative people providing their own perspectives, stories, struggles and triumphs brought home to me the reasons I write in the first place. I left the festival reinvigorated, wanting to tackle my own projects. It gave me the drive to press forward on my own work even when my own self-doubt would rear its ugly head.
The RAWA festival had an incredible energy—the kind that sparks new ideas and connections. I left Akaroa feeling deeply grateful for the experience, extremely inspired in my own work as a writer, and more connected than ever to the literary landscape of Aotearoa New Zealand.
Scott Andrew Fack 
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