Northland news briefs: December 19

$100k writer's grant

Applications are now open for the 2013 Creative New Zealand Michael King Writers' Fellowship, worth $100,000. Open to established writers who have already published a significant body of work, the fellowship will be awarded for a significant project that will take two years or more to complete. Previous recipients of the fellowship include Owen Marshall, Vincent O'Sullivan and CK Stead. Creative New Zealand's literary genre priorities include autobiography/memoir, biography, children's fiction, creative non-fiction, essays, fiction, literary criticism, narrative non-fiction and poetry. Applications close at 5pm on Friday 8 March 2013.

Clean camping urged

Campers are reminded to avoid freedom camping in Northland this summer. All campers without onboard toilet facilities should camp in holiday parks and camping grounds to ensure the countryside is not tarnished, says Rural Women NZ. "We have seen some improvement since the Freedom Camping Act 2011 was passed and we need to keep this up," said president Liz Evans. She advises campers to check in with i-Site visitor centres or Department of Conservation centres for information on where to camp, or ask a local in rural areas. She hoped this summer campers would avoid leaving unwanted waste in the countryside, or depositing dirty water down cattle stops or roadside drains. Campers can visit www.camping.org.nz for all details relating on safety, regional facilities and where to camp throughout New Zealand.