Otherhood: a conversation with Lil O’Brien and Paula Morris

The Tāmaki Untold series celebrates the taonga, stories and creativity of Auckland. In this episode listen in to the conversation held at Nga Pātaka Kōrero o Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland Central Library on Otherhood: Conversation about being childless, childfree and child-adjacent with guest writers Lil O'Brien and Paula Morris. Facilitated by librarian reading engagement specialist Alison Fitzpatrick. Otherhood was published in 2024 and is available for loan on the libraries catalogue: discover.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz "In Aotearoa the number of people who will never have children is growing - and they're pushing back against the narrative that if they don't, their lives will be somehow 'less than'. Otherhood's essays are by writers who've felt on the outside looking in, who've lived unexpected lives, and who've given the finger to social expectations. Some chose to be childfree, some didn't get to choose, and some - through bereavement or blended family dynamics - ask themselves: Am I a mother or am I other? Thought-provoking, moving and often hilarious, Otherhood opens a more inclusive conversation about what makes a fulfilling life."--Publisher's website. Profile of speakers: Lil O’Brien contributed to and co-edited Otherhood. They are the author of beloved Kiwi coming-out memoir Not That I'd Kiss a Girl, published in 2020. Lil’s writing has been described as “admirably frank.” Even better is her ability to recount what it's like to come to terms, as fully as one can, with one's own place in the world. They are an award-winning copywriter by day, and have been published in The Spinoff, takahē, Ensemble magazine and more. Lil is currently writing the screenplay for Not That I’d Kiss a Girl with South Pacific Pictures. Dr Paula Morris (Ngāti Wai, Ngāti Manuhiri, Ngāti Whātua) is an award-winning novelist, short-story writer, editor and essayist. She is an associate professor at the University of Auckland, where they direct the Master’s of creative writing. Paula is the founder of the Academy of NZ Literature, and Wharerangi – the online Māori Literature Hub. She is also editor of the Aotearoa New Zealand Review of Books. She is the editor of the anthologies A Clear Dawn: New Asian Voices from Aotearoa New Zealand (2021, with Alison Wong), and Hiwa: Contemporary Māori Short Stories (2023). Otherhood: Essays on being childless, childfree and child-adjacent. Edited by Alie Benge, Lil O’Brien, and Kathryn Van Beek, published by Massey University Press (August 2024).