Maria Samuela

Maria Teresa Samuela (born 12 July 1972) is a New Zealand writer of Cook Islands descent. She began her writing career in the 1990s, writing stories for children,[1] and has been published in various journals and anthologies.

Early life and family

Samuela was born in Wellington on 12 July 1972.[2] Her mother had emigrated from Rarotonga, in the Cook Islands in the 1950s.[3] Samuela studied at Victoria University of Wellington, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2002.[4]

Career

Samuela returned to Victoria University of Wellington, where she undertook the creative writing programme at the International Institute of Modern Letters (IIML). Upon completion of her studies, Samuela attained a Master of Arts degree in creative writing.[5]

Samuela has been the writer in residence at the Michael King Writers Centre and Victoria University Bookshop. In 2018, she was the University Bookshop Summer Writer in Residence, an award made in association with Robert Lord Writers' Cottage Trust.[6] In 2022, Samuela was awarded a research grant to support her work on a novel about young women from the Cook Islands who migrated to New Zealand in the period from the 1930s to the 1950s.[7][8][9] Samuela writes short stories predominantly about the Cook Island diaspora,[10] and her 2022 collection of short stories, Beats of the Pa'u reflects her childhood in the Porirua suburb of Cannons Creek.[3]

Publications
  • Beats of the Pa'u (2022)
  • Love Rules (n.d.)
  • Bluey (2022)
  • The Peach Tree (2022)

References
  1. Kaho, Simone (2 July 2022). "'Maybe that's why it took so long' : Cook Island writer's first book balances realness and representation". TP+. Archived from the original on 13 August 2022. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  2. "Interview with Maria Samuela". Christchurch City Libraries. 15 May 2023. Archived from the original on 15 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  3. "Getting to Know Maria Samuela". www.vicbooks.co.nz. 15 May 2023. Archived from the original on 15 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  4. "Roll of graduates". Victoria University of Wellington. Retrieved 19 July 2023.
  5. "Maria Samuela (Writing for the Page, 2017)". Victoria University of Wellington. 15 May 2023. Archived from the original on 15 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  6. "What I'm reading Maria Samuela". Sunday Star-Times. 27 March 2022. ProQuest 2643266368.
  7. "2022 CLNZ/NZSA $5,000 Research Grants awarded to four New Zealand writers". Copyright Licensing New Zealand. Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
  8. "Cook Islands author gets $5000 research grant". Cook Islands News. 2 September 2022. Archived from the original on 6 October 2022. Retrieved 15 July 2023.
  9. "Arts – Four cash grants awarded to support local writers". LiveNews.co.nz. 26 August 2022. ProQuest 2706344763.
  10. Brown-Pereira, Audrey (6 March 2022). "Beats of the Pa'u: stories of Aotearoa, land of watered-down milk and honey". The Spinoff. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
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