Children's writers share craft at library night

Children's author Susan Brocker

Hawera Library's author night is a highlight of a four-day authors' tour in South Taranaki to mark the 100th anniversary of World War I.

Tomorrow night at 7pm, two New Zealand award-winning writers, Philippa Werry and Susan Brocker, will talk about how they researched their material and turned it into a children's book.

And they will explain where their inspiration came from.

Over four days, the two authors will speak to hundreds of South Taranaki children about their books which highlight New Zealanders at war.

Werry's latest book, Anzac Day: The New Zealand Story, was a finalist in the 2014 LIANZA Children's Book Awards. Brocker's latest novel, 1914: Riding Into War, is a first novel in a series and revolves around a 17-year-old farm boy who joins the Mounted Rifles Regiment but ends up fighting in Gallipoli.

Philippa Werry is a children's writer who has published non-fiction, poetry, stories and plays. Her work has appeared in the School Journal, other educational publications and various anthologies, and some stories have been broadcast on Radio New Zealand.

Her most recent book is Lighthouse Family (Scholastic, 2013). Living in Wellington, she is part of the Writers in Schools programme.

Susan Brocker is the author of more than 50 children's books. She lives near Tauranga on a small farm and has a history degree.