‘He pī ka rere’ tēnei kua whai wāhi atu ki te kaupapa rangatira whakatipu kaituhi a Te Papa Tupu. He kaupapa tēnei e whakahaerengia ana e Te Waka Taki Kōrero, arā, ko te Māori Literature Trust me Huia Publishers, e tūhono ana i ngā kaituhi Māori me ngā mātanga tuhi Māori, hei āwhina i a rātou ki te whakairo i ā rātau kōrero. Ko ētahi mahi a ngā kaituhi nei ko te haere ki ngā whakangungu me ngā taiopenga kaituhi ki Aotearoa, ki tāwāhi hoki, te tūhono atu ki te hapori kaituhi me te whiwhi tahua āwhina hoki.

Ka tae mai te waea kōrero a Eboni ki a au kua whakaae taku tono ki te kaupapa nei, ka tino harikoa taku ngākau. Ka tohutohutia mai e Eboni me rite ahau inā hoki e whakapono ana rātau o Huia Publishers ki ahau otiia, ki a mātau katoa ngā kaituhi i pōhiritia ki te kaupapa.

Ka tau atu mātau ngā kaituhi pī ka rere nei ki te wānanga tuatahi ki roto o Pōneke ka tū haere mātau ki te mihimihi, ki te whakatakoto anō i ā mātau kaupapa e pā ana ki ā mātau pakiwaitara. Nōku e noho ana ka whakarongo haere ki ōku hoa kaituhi, ka uru mai te āmaimai ki roto i a au me te pātai ake ki a au anō, ‘I nei, he kaituhi au?’ Ka tae mai ki a au ka whakatakoto i taku kaupapa pakiwaitara, mutu ana kua whakaae ki a au anō, āe he kaituhi ahau! Waihoki, koia tērā te whakahau a Robyn Bargh mā te Zoom ki a mātau i te wānanga nei: ‘Me kōrero koe ki a koe anō, he kaituhi koe – whakapono rawatia!’

Nā, ka tūtaki atu mātau ki ō mātau kaiārahi tuhituhi, ā, ko taku kaiārahi ko Manu Te Awa. E hia pakiwaitara kua oti kē i a ia te tuhituhi, taku waimaria hoki. Ka noho tahi māua, ka kōrero rautaki kia pai ai taku whakaoti haere nei i taku pukapuka. 

I te tīmatanga, he kai mārō ka kōrerohia mai e Manu otiia, nā tana mōhio, tautōhito hoki i  tēnei ao a te tuhituhi, me whakaiti au i a au anō, ka āta whakarongo pīkari ai ki āna tohutohu, āna kupu akiaki mai ki a au – me pēhea kē hoki e kore ai, he pī ka rere tēnei, he manukura tērā.

Nā te mea hoki, tokoono mātau ngā kaituhi i te wānanga he kapua whakaohooho kua tau nei ki roto i te rūma e mahi ana mātau, me te aha, maringi noa ana ngā whakaaro auaha me ngā kupu e whakairohia ana ki te pepa. Manohi anō, koia tērā me āta whakatakoto e mātau he rautaki anga whakamua kia hoki mātau ki ō mātau anō kāinga. Ko tā te kaituhi mahi he noho moke, ka mahi i tāna mahi. He pēnei tēnei mahi a te tuhituhi i ngā momo mahi katoa, me whakarite hāora kia tuhia mai e te kaituhi i roto i te rā. Otiia, te pai o tēnei mahi he mahi auaha tonu. 

He mana nui tonu tō te kupu e taea ana te kawe ake ngā whakaaro ki ngā wāhi katoa o tēnei ao otiia, ki ao kē noa atu kai te hiahiatia. 

Heoi anō, he kaupapa rangatira a Te Papa Tupu e tautoko mai ana i te hunga kaituhi, ā, ki te kore tēnei Kaupapa, kua kore taku mahi tuhituhi e rangatira ake ai. 

I tēnei tau tonu e whakanuia ana e Huia Publishers tōna tau 30 e haere tonu ana te pakihi nei. I roto i taua tau, tata ki te 500 ngā kaituhi Māori kua whakaputaina e Huia, tae atu ki te mano pukapuka kua tāia ki te reo Māori hoki. Ko te whāinga matua hoki a Huia Publishers ko te tuku i ngā kōrero me ngā wawata o Aotearoa, ā, na runga i tēnā ka whai wāhi atu te reo Māori, ōna kaikōrero, tōna ao, ōna wawata hoki ki te ao tuhituhi. 

Hononga whaipānga:

- Te Papa Tupu

Kāti, ko tā He Muka he whakaputa kōrero ki te reo Māori. Ko ngā tirohanga, whakaaro rānei kei roto i te tuhinga nei he mea whaiaro nō te tangata nāna te kōrero i tuhi. Ka mutu, kāore i te whakaatu i ngā whakaaro o, i ngā kōrero a, rānei, Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori, āna kaimahi, tana pae whakahaere, tana poari rānei, tae atu rā ki ngā tari, ngā pakihi rānei e whai pānga ana ki Te Taura Whiri i te Reo Māori, ahakoa te hononga, hāunga i ngā mea kua āta whakahuatia ake ai.  Ehara ēnei tirohanga, whakaaro, kōrero rānei i te mea whakaiti, whakahē rānei, i te iwi, i te hapori, i te rōpū, i te tari, i te pakihi, i te tangata rānei.