Publisher and writer shares her future plans for publishing company
CREATIVE writer and early childhood educator Paulini Turagabeci released her first book in 2019 and then established her own publishing company – Kulawai Press – later in 2021.
Since then she has published eight books under her publishing company.
The educator and entrepreneur is launching her first children’s book series which will be available for free download for 24 hours from 7 pm tomorrow to 7 pm Saturday June 18, and is published under Kulawai Press.
“My first children’s book was Little Shelby Goes House Hunting, illustrated by local artist Sinukakala Tagicaki. The book is about a hermit crab who’s outgrown his shell and needs to find a new home,” she said.
She described the new series as a little different in that it showcased real lives of local children in a story format using photographs.
According to the author The Living in Fiji Book series is for the enjoyment and education of local children, children in the Fijian diaspora, and children from other countries.
“I believe that early childhood literacy is important and what better way to promote that but by also promoting our beautiful country and way of life to the world? The Living in Fiji book series endeavours to do that.
“The beauty of Fiji goes beyond the appeal of sun, surf, and sand. Our culture and traditions are beautiful aspects of who we are as a nation. Our way of life is unique and that’s what I wanted to share to the world in this simple way.
“This is why I’m giving it away for free downloads so that locals and those living abroad can enjoy it. I hope parents and teachers can use it not only to share about what life is like living in Fiji, but also as an opportunity for shared reading experiences.”
The book series captures the parts of Fijian life that are not usually portrayed to the world, such as going back to school shopping or Saturday chores, and attending a local fair.
She shared that The Living in Fiji Book series would also be translated into conversational I-taukei language, with a launch planned for Fijian language week in October 2022.
In the meantime she also has plans to translate each book in other local vernacular languages like Fiji-Hindi and Rotuman.
The e-book version of the first six titles are available for download on the Kindle App, while paperbacks will be available at a later date.
Some of her novels include “The River” and “One to Borrow, One to Fake, One to Consummate” and short stories, “A Bucket of Biscuits” and “Mr. Narain’s Treasure” has dabbled in children’s books before.
Meanwhile she also has bigger plans for her publishing business in future.
“My hope for the business is that it becomes the Scholastics of the South Pacific. Scholastics is one of the leading publishers of literary resources and educational solutions for children and educators.
“Their book fairs are renowned worldwide and they have a vast online catalogue. I hope to increase my book inventory so that one day Kulawai Press can also have an e-commerce platform where young and older readers, parents, and teachers can order locally published books by local and Pacific authors.
“It would be amazing to have schools order books from Kulawai Press for their annual prize giving prizes, instead of solely relying on books from abroad. I really want to play a small role in Fiji’s literary culture.”
Apart from running Kulawai Press as a side hustle while she continues her day job as an early childhood educator, Ms Turagabeci also provides editing services under Kulawai Press.
“My first editing gig was for a book called The Nehemiah Factors by US writer, Sharon Williams which was published last year. I’m currently in the process of editing an autobiography for a client in the UK and am awaiting confirmation to edit another non-fiction book for a client from South Africa.”
In terms of her creative writing skills Ms Turagabeci said a lot of local creative writers were self-taught because it’s hard to come by writing workshops and Master of Fine Arts programs or even active writing clubs.
“So for me, actively writing and editing in my spare time is both an education in itself and on-the-job training. I’ve learnt so much about creative writing, editing, and critiquing literary work by being a Juror for the
Speculative Literature Foundation’s $US1000 writing grant for older writers. We’ll be announcing a winner in July.”
Ms Turagabeci said it would be a dream come true if she could publish the work of her favourite local writer Mary Rokonadravu under Kulawai Press.
“I’m a huge fan of local writer
Mary Rokonadravu. I look up to her as a leading literary figure in Fiji and in the Pacific.
“To be short-listed three times for the Commonwealth Writer’s Prize and win the Pacific category twice is a huge achievement. I believe she’s the only writer from the Pacific to accomplish that. Few people know how hard it is to even be shortlisted for such a prestigious literary award.”
For more information about writing, Kulawai Press, and how you can get published, the public can sign up for her newsletter and get a free short story “Mr. Narain’s Treasure” sent straight to their email.