Anna Polson is the Community Outreach Coordinator for Picton Dawn Chorus, a group focused on protecting and restoring native birdlife in the Waitohi Picton area. When she's not working on local projects, Anna loves tramping, sailing, checking traplines, reading, gardening, and getting involved in other environmental projects across the region.

Courtney Clark Michaels is a Marlborough based romance writer. Her passion for writing strong, independent heroines and sexy, smart men is equaled only by her passion for travel, online shopping, and patting other people’s dogs. With a degree in English and Criminology, Courtney writes contemporary romance from right here in Marlborough.

Emma Tucker is an associate at Gascoigne Wicks Law Firm. She is from Marlborough and descends from the iwi that have been here since the 13th century, as well as from colonial families that have been here since the late 19th century. She has a passion for reading and is thrilled her children do too.

Jane Forrest Waghorn has been a session chair at the Marlborough Book Festival since its inception in 2014. Over the course of a diverse career, Jane has worked as a children’s librarian, taught sex education to teenagers, antenatal education to expectant parents, and literacy to primary school students. Jane and her winemaker husband Simon co-own Astrolabe Wines with two of their three daughters, Libby and Arabella.

Liz Ward is the manager of Heritage Marlborough, the Marlborough District Council’s heritage unit. Liz has a PhD in New Zealand Political History and has a varied background, including teaching New Zealand history at University level. She loves to talk all things history, and to encourage New Zealanders to grapple with what Te Tiriti/The Treaty of Waitangi means for us as a country.

Dr Peter Meihana is of Ngāti Kuia, Rangitāne, Ngāti Apa ki Te Ra Tō and Ngāi Tahu descent. He is the author of Privilege in Perpetuity, Exploding a Pākehā Myth. The book is based on Peter’s doctoral thesis, which examined the notion of Māori ‘privilege’ and its role in the colonisation of New Zealand. He has published articles and chapters on this topic and the histories and traditions of Te Tauihu o Te Waka-a-Māui.

Rae Heta (Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Te Kohera) has a background in education and is on the board of Maata Waka. Rae has been a session chair at the festival and a long term supporter alongside Whaia Margy Crosby of the festival’s kaupapa helping the committee extend warm manaakitanga to guest authors.

Tania Miller is Collections Librarian at Marlborough District Libraries. A self-confessed library-evangelist, she believes that children should be issued with two things at birth - a birth certificate and a library card. Tania believes that books change lives and open worlds, and it is her dream to get to interview some of her favourite writers at the Marlborough Book Festival.

Tessa Nicholson has been a session chair at the Marlborough Book Festival since 2014, our very first year. Tessa is a journalist and has worked in radio, daily news and magazines. There’s no way to overstate Tessa’s love of reading books, at times she reads a book a day, but she also finds time for her other passions: horses and following rugby. Tessa and her husband Ross have four adult sons and live in Marlborough with their Samoyed dogs.