In 1972 he spent a year in England and wrote a collection of short stories entitled Pounamu, Pounamu which was awarded third prize in the 1973 Wattie Book of the Year Award and was winner of the Freda Buckland Literary Award. He became a cadet journalist for the Gisborne Herald, and then worked as a journalist in the Post Office headquarters where he wrote and produced the Wellington Post Office newspaper from 1968-1971. He received encouragement to pursue full-time writing after attending a WEA creative writing workshop led by Barry Mitcalfe in 1969. Ihimaera began writing at the age of seven and published his first story, "The Prodigal Daughter," in the 1961 Gisborne Boys' High School annual magazine. In 1990 he began lecturing in the English Department of Auckland University where he is now Professor of English. Ihimaera worked for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as a Career Diplomat from 1973-1989 with postings in Canberra, New York and Washington and two years as a New Zealand consul. He studied at the University of Auckland and Victoria University and graduated with a B.A. Witi Ihimaera was born in Gisborne and educated at Kaiti Primary School, Te Hapara Primary School, Gisborne Intermediate, Te Karaka District High School, Church College of New Zealand and Gisborne Boys' High School.
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