Whiti Hereaka is an award-winning novelist and playwright of Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Te Arawa, Tūhourangi, Ngāti Whakaue and Pākehā descent, based in Wellington. She holds a Masters in Creative Writing (Scriptwriting) from the International Institute of Modern Letters. She is the author of three novels: The Graphologist’s Apprentice, the award-winning YA novels Bugs and Legacy. She is also co-editor, with Witi Ihimaera, of Pūrākau. Whiti has been involved with Te Papa Tupu, an incubator programme for Māori writers, as a writer, a mentor and a judge. She is also a board member of the Māori Literature Trust and the Michael King Writers Centre. Whiti teaches Writing for the Young at the IIML.

She is currently working on a new novel: Kurangaituku which retells the story of Hatupatu and Kurangaituku from the bird woman’s point of view. The novel spans from Te Kore to the 1886 eruption of Tarawera.

Follow Whiti on Twitter: @WHereaka and on Instagram: @whereaka

Verb Festival 2020 appearances:
6pm. Nov 6, Verb Showcase: The Best Letter I Never Received.

Read Whiti’s brilliant essay, Knot Worthy, on Verb here.