I’m a words guy. Working out of Wellington and Auckland, I offer editorial services, including editing and producing content for websites, corporate and academic documents, presentations and reports.
My background includes 25 years in journalism. I started out as an arts reporter and feature writer for the old Evening Post newspaper. Later, I wrote about international academic affairs for British and American mastheads. An archive of 120 or so of my Guardian pieces can be seen here. My work for The Chronicle of Higher Education is in the publication’s (paywalled) archive.
I’ve produced hundreds of other feature articles and commentary pieces, along with interviews with almost every New Zealand prime minister of the past 30 years and a number of foreign leaders, including former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, East Timorese president Xanana Gusmão and Samoa’s first female prime minister, Fiame Naomi Mataʻaf. Along the way there has been the odd career swerve, including a spell in copywriting and a few years in diplomacy.
My work has been widely published in media outlets, currently including The Spectator, Quillette, Arab News, The Australian and RNZ, the last of which I have provided ongoing specialist commentary and analysis for on the Abuse in Care Royal Commission of Inquiry. Some recent clips can are on this website’s Media page.
I also do a lot of editing, including newsletters and manuscripts, and the arts and food section of the first issue of the recently relaunched North & South magazine. Not forgetting my own books. Massey University Press recently published my seventh, The RNZ Cookbook, a glorious collection of 180 recipes from New Zealand’s best chefs and writers, co-edited with Kathy Paterson. I also pop up at local literary events, most recently the Auckland Writers Festival, where I did a marvellous session on food writing with William Sitwell from the Daily Telegraph.
Away from work, one of my big passions is Middle Eastern dining, which I write about in my popular newsletter. Other pleasures include poetry, comparative religious studies and squash.