Telling Stories is a six-part series of workshops about writing memoir.
They take place upstairs in the George Room at Thistle Inn, in Thorndon, Wellington (just across the road from Wellington Railway Station). The Thistle Inn was once the haunt of Katherine Mansfield in her early years.
The time and dates are 9.30 a.m. to 4.00 p.m, 18 July, 1 August, 15 August, 29 August, 5 September, and 26 September.
Each day (except 26 September) will consist of a talk on an aspect of writing memoir, free writing time and critique, followed by a guest speaker who has close knowledge of memoir writing. The speakers will all be experienced writers and knowledgeable about their craft.
Morning and afternoon teas will be supplied, and lunch is available in the charming old-world restaurant for those who would like to eat on the premises (at your own expense), but you are free to bring your own.
You do not need to be an experienced writer to come on the course. People write memoirs for many different reasons, often as a record for families, not necessarily for publication. For those who do hope to publish, we offer a range of voices that draw on experience and proven success.
The speakers are Fiona Kidman, Vincent O’Malley, Noelle McCarthy, Mary McCallum, Elizabeth Knox, and Tracy Farr. Their bios and topics are below. In September, there will be a three-week gap between sessions to allow participants to spend time working on their projects, and 26 September will be a full day of workshops and critique.
Numbers are strictly limited to 14.
Speakers
Dame Fiona Kidman
Fiona Kidman
Dame Fiona Kidman (prefers to be called Fiona) has written three books of memoir At the end of Darwin Road, Beside the Dark Pool, and So far, for now. Her 35 titles include novels, short stories, and poems. Her work is published in several languages.
She will provide an introductory session on the first day, before the first speaker, Vincent O’Malley, and supply notes and comments at the beginning of every meeting day.
Vincent O’Malley
Vincent O’Malley
This session will cover the fundamentals of historical research methods, including different kinds of sources and how to evaluate and assess them, and how to write accurately about the past, drawing on examples from Vincent’s own research into Māori and Pākehā relations in colonial New Zealand.
Dr Vincent O’Malley FRHistS FRSNZ is a Wellington writer and historian, and the author of an award-winning and best-selling series of books on the nineteenth-century New Zealand Wars.
Noelle McCarthy
Photo by Kristine Crabb
Noelle McCarthy is an author, broadcaster and producer. Her first memoir, Grand: Becoming my mother’s daughter, won best first book of non-fiction at the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards in 2023. That year, she was the writer in residence at Victoria University’s International Institute of Modern Letters.
Noelle grew up in Ireland and started her radio career at 95bFM in Auckland in the early 2000s before going on to work at Radio New Zealand for more than a decade. She makes long-form narrative podcasts as Bird of Paradise Productions, alongside her husband, John.
Mary McCallum
Mary McCallum
Mary McCallum is a writer and publisher who lives in the Wairarapa and Pōn
Elizabeth Knox
Elizabeth Knox by Ebony Lamb
Author of many acclaimed works, including The Vintner’s Luck and her new memoir Night, Ma.
Tracy Farr
Tracy Farr by Ebony Lamb
Tracy Farr is a writer who used to be a scientist. Her novels have been published internationally, adapted for radio (The Life and Loves of Lena Gaunt) and stage (The Hope Fault), and her debut novel was long- and short-listed for literary awards in Australia. Her third novel, Wonderland, won the 2024 NZSA Laura Solomon Cuba Press Prize, was one of NZ Listener‘s 100 best Books of 2025, and was longlisted for the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction in the 2026 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards.
Tracy loves to use fact in her fiction, but her writing often twists those facts, melds and moulds them, makes them strange. She’ll talk about the process of gathering, using and fictionalising factual elements from historical figures and events – as well as family – for her published novels, and Wonderland in particular. She’ll talk about her current project (which she’s tackling as a PhD in Creative Writing at the IIML), researching the life of a twentieth-century New Zealand scientist on which the central character of her fourth novel will be based, and writing – as well as the novel – a series of linked biographical essays to document the scientist’s life. She’ll also touch on her literary side hustle, Bad Diaries Salon and its sister podcast, and the role of diaries and journals in life writing, memoir and fiction.
Apply for Telling Stories
Download the application for the course (DOC 25kb), fill it out, then send it by email to: info@fionakidman.com
Fees: $1,550.00
On acceptance for the course, you will be invoiced at the beginning of July, and the fee will be due no later than 12 July. Details for payment will appear on your invoice.
If you know that you will not be able to attend on a particular day, but want to do the course anyway, you may receive a $100 discount for that day. The discount is available for a maximum of two days. The discounts are only available prior to the commencement of the course, and will not be allowed after it begins. Partial refunds after the course commences will only be allowed in cases of bereavement or serious illness.>