News SHOUT - January
- campbellanderson00
- 7 minutes ago
- 9 min read
Welcome to the middle of summer (or winter)! Almost three weeks in to 2026, and I hope it is going for y'all. Personally, the beginning of this year has been one of reflection and optimism for what is to come.
In all honesty, I believe 2026 will shape up to be a year of diverse voices, which is amazing. We have seen a range of voices on the stage, on the page, and everywhere in-between. There is a lot to look forward to; although with possibility comes uncertainty. It's completely alright to feel that way; it's inevitably human.
In this January issue of News SHOUT, I will cover what I've been up to on writing side of things, what I have been reading, an update on my debut contemporary romance, The Chasm Between Us, list some upcoming events in the New Zealand literary landscape, changes to my website's privacy policy, and an announcement of a Valentine's Giveaway! At the conclusion of the newsletter, there is an excerpt from an early draft of 'Justifier', which I have since removed. It was an anecdote in the first draft - more like a short story. Enjoy!
Writing News
While waiting for my fabulous editor to complete developmental and line editing on my psychological thriller manuscript, 'Justifier', I have made a start on the first draft of yet another manuscript. This one is "possibly" a Christian romance set in 1970s/80s New Zealand, incorporating both the history of New Zealand's late arrival to the wine industry and Song of Songs story from The Bible!
I would like to say this manuscript can be best matched with a good glass of wine as that will be a key symbol/theme!
First drafts are A LOT of fun and not as stressful because it's allowed to be messy, any ideas are worthy, and characters/settings can be experimented with in any way. Some writers are using voice-typing technology to do their first drafts, saving time but not traditional. I prefer sitting down to type, therefore that's what I am doing on a Word document.
There's a chance I might apply for a mentorship with it, so fingers crossed the judges will see potential.
Update on The Chasm Between Us
Great news! There have been a couple milestones for The Chasm Between Us over the past ten months including:
- Being selected by a book club in Seattle, Washington for their group to read. (Read for Fun Book Club, Seattle).
- 15% of royalties from all sales go to mental health organisations year-round, including Voices of Hope (April-June sales), I Am Hope (July-September sales), Kites Trust (October-December sales), and Beyond Blue (January-March) sales.
- Considered one of the best covers produced by Tellwell Talent in 2025! Credit to Ralph Cavero, their incredible in-house book cover designer.
- It is currently rated 4.63/5 stars on Goodreads with 19 ratings and 18 reviews. There are 17 reviews of the book on Instagram, too!
- Sales total: $1,051.49 NZD. April was the most successful month for online sales
- Around 34 Email Subscribers via Bookfunnel, thanks to the Stuff Your Kindle event hosted by Indie Authors Aus/NZ! Please note, I am stepping away from Bookfunnel and focusing on other means of promotion.
- Paperback format of title stocked on shelves at Paper Plus, North City.
- Opened doors to collaborate with other local authors, and got a spot to talk to the creative writing club at my old high school about thr book and the craft of writing fiction.
Copies of The Chasm Between Us can be bought on my website nzauthorcampbellanderson.com or from online retailers:
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-chasm-between-us-campbell-anderson/1147216263
Website Privacy Policy Changes
Due to PayPal's Policy changes around enhanced data sharing and AI, I have undated my website Policy on nzauthorcampbellanderson.com because the site uses PayPal to process payment. It is important for customers to understand how these changes affect them. Below is the link to updated privacy policy, which you can view at own interest:
What I'm Reading
I am currently enjoying 100 Great New Zealand Wineries by Douglas Renall (published by David Bateman Ltd, 2017). As the title suggests, it features 100 great wineries in New Zealand from Northland all the way down to Otago in the south. Accompanied by photos of the wineries, this book lets wine enthusiasts in on how the masters do it, and where and when they can attend the locations in person!
I am using it to deepen my understanding of wine culture, industry, and terminology.
Douglas has done an amazing job of putting it all together. It truly shows there's more than one way to skin a cat - or grow a vine!
Valentine's Giveaway!
Because Valentine's Day is coming up on 14th February, this is a perfect opportunity to spread the love with a giveaway
Two winners from New Zealand will receive gift cards for Enamoured Books, New Zealand's very first dedicated romance bookstore. It was founded in 2025 by Ruby Wallace as a place to offer trending romance novels and niche sub-genres like 'Sweet and Spicy'. It is located in Remuera, Auckland.
Enamoured Books <-------
The giveaway will be live on my Instagram and Facebook from Monday 2nd February. You just need to:
- Live in New Zealand
- Follow @campbellanderson_writes
- Tag a friend in the comments of the post
- Every friend you tag is a separate entry
Winners will be announced Valentine's Day, 14th February!
2026 Book-ish Events, New Zealand
29 January: Ockham New Zealand Book Awards Longlist Announced
19 February: NZ Booklovers Awards Shortlist Announced
21–22 February: Hamlit, Hamilton Arts Festival Toi Ora ki Kirikiriroa
24 February: International Booker Prize Longlist Announced
4 March: Ockham New Zealand Book Awards Shortlist Announced
4 March: Women’s Prize for Fiction Longlist Announced
11 March: Stella Prize Longlist Announced
19 March: NZ Booklovers Awards Winners Announced
31 March: International Booker Prize Shortlist Announced
8 April: Stella Prize Shortlist Announced
20–26 April: Global Book Crawl 2026
22 April: Women’s Prize for Fiction Shortlist Announced
May: International Booker Prize Winner Announced
8–10 May: Featherston Booktown Karukatea Festival 2026
12–17 May: Auckland Writers Festival
13 May: Stella Prize Night
13 May: Ockham Awards Ceremony – 2026 Winners Announced
13 May: The Orwell Prizes Finalists Announced
10 June: New Zealand Book Awards for Children & Young Adults Shortlist Announced
11 June: Women’s Prize for Fiction Winner Announced
19–23 June: Wānaka NZ Mountain Film & Book Festival
24–25 July: Booksellers Conference 2026
25 July: Book Industry Awards
24–26 July: Marlborough Book Festival
25–26 June: Queenstown NZ Mountain Film & Book Festival
25 June: The Orwell Prizes Winners Announced
August: Hamilton Book Month
19 August: New Zealand Book Awards for Children & Young Adults Ceremony – 2026 Winners Announced.
28 August 2026: Phantom Billstickers National Poetry Day
3–4 October: Storylines Children’s Writers and Illustrators’ National Hui
10 October: Bookshop Day
1 November: The Women’s Bookshop Ladies’ Litera-Tea
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Thank you for taking the time to read this News SHOUT! If you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions please email me at campbellanderson005@gmail.com. I would be more than happy to hear from you. Best of luck with the rest of your summer (or winter)!
Campbell
Excerpt from early draft of 'Justifier':
THE REAL PLASTIC TREE
It was a perfectly ordinary day when young Mr. Peter Plastic was going for a peaceful stroll in the woods of Greentown. The woods were bland, barren and full of weeds. Not one tree. Peter didn’t mind. What he liked most about the morning walks through the Weeded Woods was the sound of crickets chirping and the swaying, swishing sound the weeds made when Plastic walked through them. Come rain or shine, Plastic was out there wearing his green cap, inhaling the fresh air and whistling a gleeful, dainty tune. One particular day, which happened to be a Friday, the avid morning-walker decided to walk slightly further south-west than he normally would, and had it not been for the heavy gust of wind that pushed him to the left he certainly would’ve tripped over the sapling. Being the only thing that wasn’t a weed in the so-called woods, Plastic crouched down and observed it closely. The thing was rooted into the ground and had about ten small branches with beautiful green leaves attached to them. Its wonderstruck observer had never seen anything quite like it.
For the next nine years, come radiant sunshine, blustery rain, sleet, hail, or treacherous wind, Peter Plastic saw to it that he got to that sapling. It grew up, just as a baby does, into a strong, sturdy tree with an innumerable amount of leaves and wood that was a stunning coffee-brown.
After six and a half years, the tree could be seen from miles away and swayed lightly and happily when Peter climbed it. “You are the best tree in the whole wide world,” piped Plastic, stroking the bark of his wooden friend’s branches. From high up in the tree, the young man could see his township with the tall A-frame-roofed church and slabs of buildings on the main road, such as the bakery, deli, and library. They looked like nothing more than coloured shoeboxes. Finally, just on the outskirts lay an expansive, green, newly-mown field where two armies of white poles formed together, creating two H’s. Boys as small as ants ran between the ran armies. One boy was clutching a white rugby ball. Then a try as one of the black-clothed crusaders touched down the ball at the feet of one of the H’s. Whoop, whoop!
One morning, Plastic left to go meet the tree before the sun came up. Dew sparkled on the weeds, which had grown as tall as Peter Plastic, yet he knew the path to his friend’s roots like the back of his own hands. The world is a labyrinth in itself, but those who traverse it well know exactly where the pot of gold lies. Upon drawing closer, Peter fell to his knees and tears trickled down his cheeks, because the tree’s silhouette at the breaking of dawn was the most breathtaking sight he’d ever seen. Finally, Plastic knew what Genesis chapter one meant when it said, “Then God commanded, ‘Let there be light’ - and light appeared!” The picturesque point of view was ceremonious; it felt like a wedding between earth and sky. The bride - the daylight - walked arm-in-arm with her father - the night - up the aisle, that long strip of weeds, towards her soulmate, standing staunch and proud, his wooden heart beating double inside his wooden chest. Many a day, the tree had spent basking in the love of the daylight. Crickets chirped; a gentle breeze blew; Plastic smiled a glowing grin, facing the brightness of the bride’s brilliance.
Suddenly a shout is heard. “Light the fire! Burn the tree down!” A rag atop a fallen branch is thrown at the base of the tree; as it burns down, so does Plastic’s world. The pair who were standing beneath the tree turn on their heels and are out of sight before Plastic can reach them, leaving Plastic in the smoky, smouldering presence of the tree. He’d been robbed of his roots, cheated by horrible no-gooders. Ash fell from the sky along with the falling burning leaves. The tree burnt down to the ground until it was no more. Now with no shade, Peter Plastic lay in the ashes for several weeks.
After a month, he thought of an ingenious plan to grow something beautiful - or, rather, to make. From dawn to dusk each day, Plastic melted plastic in the shade of a cylinder that was solid with a slightly wider diameter in its base. Once that process was complete, he dressed the entire object in hot glue before carving deep lines through it, lines as random as the ones on his palms. Peter then got even more creative, turning and twisting ordinary logs of plastic, both the thick and thin, long and short, in the shape of branches, which he attached to the top of the seriously girthy trunk of plastic and glue.
Finally, the young man obtained a few hundred sheets of acrylic and set to work cutting out leaves in the two-dimensional shape of spades, lemons, surfboards - but much smaller - and rugby balls. The last part was soldering them all onto the branches that were joined to the trunk.
Peter Plastic slept for a day and then the next he had a crane come to pick it up, as it weighed at least a ton and was as tall as Peter’s double-storey house. The tree’s proud creator guided the crane operator to where the real plastic tree was to be erected - just five-hundred metres east of where the wooden one was burnt down.
From the moment it was set in the dirt, firm and stable, Plastic adored everything about it. How it offered shade; how it was translucent when the sun shined; and how the leaves moved in the breeze, like the real ones did, however they never blew away.
Each morning, come radiant sunshine, blustery rain, sleet, hail, or treacherous wind, Peter Plastic woke up with a smile on his face, pulled on his socks, tied his shoelaces, and set out on his walk to meet the real plastic tree. Peter realised that no matter how plastic the tree was it would never be as plastic as the world can be.