The Trust

CHAIR

Mel (Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga, Ngāi Tahu), is the Managing Director of Hachette Aotearoa New Zealand and has over 25 years’ experience working for multinational book publishers both in the UK and NZ. She also sits on the Copyright Licensing NZ Board.

The Trust welcomed Melanee as a trustee in December 2023 and as Chair of the Trust in June 2024.

DEPUTY CHAIR/TREASURER

Nicki is a qualified chartered accountant living in Devonport with her family.

While beginning her career in audit with Deloitte, she has worked across a range of industries including investment banking, publishing, and in several countries including the UK, China, and South Korea.

In the last ten years Nicki has worked with several not-for-profit entities preparing both management and financial accounts, and in her current role as a Chartered Accountant with accountants Singelton Mercer, she consults to not-for profits, and small to medium business’s on all aspects of accounting and tax. Her interests outside work include enjoying literature and cooking.

Nicki joined the trust in October 2016

Sāmoan, Tuvaluan, Chinese, American, New Zealander Madeleine is the recent past editor of The Spinoff and a former senior editor at North & South magazine. She is the author of Jacinda Ardern: A New Kind of Leader and the co-author of Steven Adams’ bestselling autobiography My Life, My Fight.

Madeleine joined the Trust in March 2023.

Jacquie (Tainui) lives in Te Arai, Northland. She is a writer of short stories and novels. She has been published in several short story anthologies, including Stories on the four winds. Her first young adult novel The Scent of Apples, won a gold medal in the Independent Publisher Book Awards (the ‘IPPYs’) and it was selected by the International Youth Library in Munich and received a White Ravens label. She has a Masters in Creative writing with first class honours. She mentors for NZSA on both the adult and youth mentor programme. She has been a mentee and mentors on the Te Papa Tupu programme. Jacquie has run workshops at the Raglan and South Auckland writers festival and appeared at the Auckland readers and writers festivals. Her novel, The Liminal Space was a finalist in New Zealand book lovers awards for best fiction 2022. It was also a finalist in the PANZ awards for best fiction cover. She has twice held residencies at the Michael King Writers centre and is currently working on an historical novel about two resilient women. One from the Isle of Skye and the other from Te Wai pounamu. It is set in a time of great turbulence for both countries.

Jacquie joined the Michael King Writers Studio Trust in July 2024.

Gina is a Fijian/Pākehā, queer writer living in Tāmaki Makaurau. Her short story collection Black Ice Matter won Best First Book Fiction at the 2017 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. Her fiction, poetry and essays have been widely anthologized. Her science fiction fantasy novel Na Viro (2022) is a work of Pasifikafuturism. She holds an LLB (Hons) and an MJur from the University of Auckland. She has a Masters of Creative Writing (MCW) from the University of Auckland, and a PhD in creative writing from Massey University. In 2023 she was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit (MNZM) for services to literature.

Gina held a residency at MKWC in 2021 and in 2022 was the inaugural writer from Aotearoa to travel to Australia for the residency exchange with Varuna Writers House in Katoomba, NSW. In February 2024, Gina joined the Trust.

Sherryl is Head of Communications and Public Relations at Southern Cross, with more than 20 years’ experience leading communications across a range of sectors, including health and financial services. Her work centres on reputation management, strategic communications, and stakeholder engagement.

Sherryl grew up in Tāupo, lives in Devonport, but holds the deepest affinity with her family place at Pahi on the Kaipara Harbour.

The MKWC Trust welcomed Sherryl in September 2025.

CENTRE MANAGER

Jan has held roles in administration and events management in the Arts for over 20 years and has been Manager of Michael King Writers Centre since 2016.

CENTRE ADMINISTRATOR

Tania has a BSocSc from Te Whare Wānanga O Waikato and has worked in various HR and arts administration roles. In 2007, she started a temporary contract as the administrator at MKWC when the Trustees were building the foundations of what has become Aotearoa’s National Writers Centre – like the books that line the shelves of the centre’s library, Tania has become a permanent part of the collection!