Gina Cole

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Gina Cole
Born1960 (age 63–64)
Occupation
  • Writer
  • lawyer
Education
GenreIndigenous science fiction

Gina Cole (born 1960) is a New Zealand writer and lawyer. Her writing is inspired by her experiences as a queer Fijian woman. Her short story collection Black Ice Matter received the award for best first book of fiction at the 2017 Ockham New Zealand Book Awards. Her first novel Na Viro was published in July 2022.

Background and education

Cole was born in 1960.[1] She is of Fijian, Scottish and Welsh descent.[2] From 1963 to 1966 she and her family lived on Farewell Spit, where her father was the lighthouse keeper.[3] As of 2022 she lives in Auckland.[2] She studied law at the University of Auckland and was admitted to the bar in 1991. She practiced as a barrister until 2018, when she closed her practice to focus on her writing.[4]

In 2013 Cole obtained a Masters in Creative Writing from the University of Auckland,[4][5] and in 2020 earned a PhD in Creative Writing from Massey University on the topic of indigenous science fiction.[6][7] She has said that as "an Indigenous Fijian queer woman writer I feel it is so important that we Indigenous peoples tell our own stories so that we can put forward our perspective and experience".[8] In 2014 she won a writing contest at the Auckland Pride Festival run by Express magazine.[9]

Writing career

In 2017 Cole's short story collection Black Ice Matter received the award for best first book of fiction at the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards.[2][10] A review by Stuff said that the collection "would be a good book on any reckoning but as a first book it is simply outstanding"; it "shows an assurance of tone, a clarity of style and expression, and an ability to handle different voices, that would be the envy of most more experienced authors".[11] She also had an essay published in the collection New Writing edited by Thom Conroy,[12] and a short story published in Black Marks on the White Page edited by Witi Ihimaera and Tina Makereti.[13] In 2021 she was a writer-in-residence at the Michael King Writers Centre through a residency for established Pasifika writers,[6] and had work published in the anthology Out Here: An Anthology of Takatapui and LGBTQIA+ Writers from Aotearoa New Zealand edited by Chris Tse and Emma Barnes.[14]

In July 2022 Cole's first novel Na Viro was published. It is a science fiction novel set in the distant future and featuring Pacific culture.[2] In the week before 15 July 2022 it was the second-best selling fiction book in New Zealand.[15] A review in the New Zealand Listener described it as an "ambitious book", "at the forefront of a new and particularly interesting genre", but noted that the book was challenging to read in some respects, with the story lacking "a single emotional centre and ... some much-needed explanation of things both futuristic and mundane".[16] In the same month she received the inaugural International Residency with Australia, a partnership between the Michael King Writers Centre and Varuna, The Writers' House. She receives a month's residency at Varuna in October 2022 and an appearance at the Blue Mountains Writers' Festival.[17]

Selected works

References

  1. ^ "Black ice matter / Gina Cole". National Library of New Zealand. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d "Pasifika Sci-fi fantasy writer Gina Cole". Radio New Zealand. 6 July 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  3. ^ Sparrow, Brandon (7 October 2006). "Children of dunes". Nelson Mail. ProQuest 274541198. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  4. ^ a b "Law alumna scores inaugural writers' residency". University of Auckland. 14 June 2022. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  5. ^ Rodger, Victor. "Pacific Writing in New Zealand: The Niu Wave". Academy of New Zealand Literature. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  6. ^ a b Tania (23 March 2021). "Gina Cole: 2021 Established Pasifika Writers Residency". Michael King Writers Centre. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  7. ^ "My Doctoral Story: Gina Cole". Massey University. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  8. ^ Lopesi, Lana (27 May 2022). "How does creativity help strengthen Pacific wellbeing and identities?". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  9. ^ Rumbles, Andrew (26 February 2014). "Literary lesbian emerges victorious". Express. Retrieved 3 August 2022.
  10. ^ "Ockham NZ Book Awards: Catherine Chidgey, Victoria University Press the big winners". Stuff.co.nz. 16 May 2017. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  11. ^ Reid, Nicholas (28 September 2016). "Review: Black Ice Matter, Gina Cole". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  12. ^ Heritage, Elizabeth (23 July 2017). "Book review: Home: New Writing edited by Thom Conroy". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  13. ^ Ihimaera, Witi; Makereti, Tina, eds. (2017). Black Marks on the White Page. Auckland, NZ: Penguin Random House. ISBN 9780143770305.
  14. ^ "Out Here: An Anthology of Takatapui and LGBTQIA+ Writers from Aotearoa New Zealand". Vic Books. Retrieved 1 August 2022.
  15. ^ Braunias, Steve (15 July 2022). "This week's best-selling books". Newsroom. Retrieved 2 August 2022.
  16. ^ Cottrell, Jack Remiel (30 July 2022). "Out of this world". New Zealand Listener. p. 51.
  17. ^ "Exporting Cole". The Big Idea. 2 June 2022. Retrieved 1 August 2022.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gina_Cole&oldid=1118277698"