New Zealand Institute of Business Studies

Navigation

About The Tutors

David Pardon: JOURNALISM TUTOR Your tutor will be David Pardon who is a multi-skilled journalist and editor living in Auckland. David served his apprenticeship as a reporter, earning NCJ (London), and Royal Society of Arts diploma in advanced English.

During the last two decades he has been a feature writer, TV columnist and sub-editor for Sunday People (UK), NZ Woman's Weekly, Auckland Star. Later he became editor of Better Business and Sea Spray for 18 years, based in Auckland.

David is now a full time freelance journalist contributing to Sunday Star, NZ Herald, NZ Business, NBR, Examiner, Boating World, Horizon, plus many overseas publications and corporate newsletters. David is also a ghostwriter for sports heroes too busy to write their own books.

CREATIVE WRITING course tutor Michael Morrissey's creative skills are diverse. He writes short stories, novels, poetry, plays for stage, screen and radio. Ten of his recent books have  been published in New Zealand. His entry in the NZ Book Council lists him among notable New Zealand writers (www.bookcouncil.org.nz).

As a Fulbright Scholar in America, he was acknowledged as an Honorary Fellow in Writing by the University of Iowa, International Writing Program.

Michael has taught writing at University of Auckland and numerous community education centres. He has been a Writer-In-Residence, winner of numerous short story and poetry competitions and is an insightful book reviewer.

He has edited five books including The Flamingo Anthology of New Zealand Short Stories. Michael first decided he wanted to be a writer when listening to his father tell colourful and wildly exaggerated stories around the family fireside about the exploits of Irish giant Finn MacCoul.

Joan Rosier-Jones BA, our NOVEL WRITING TUTOR is a professional writer, teacher, lecturer and mentor to new writers. Joan has been a travel agent and extensive world traveller. Joan has been our tutor since 1996.

Her skills cover creative writing, journalism, family history and play scripts. During 1999-2001 Joan was President of NZ Society of Authors. This required her to travel widely and represent NZSA authors in dealing with publishers etc.

Joan's own work includes novels: Cast Two Shadows, Voyagers, Canterbury Tales, Mother Tongue and her latest novel, Yes; a play: The Stars Go Down; instructional guides for writers: Writing Your Family History and So You Want To Write. You'll find Joan very patient and helpful.

PHOTOGRAPHY TUTOR Robert van de Voort, is the owner of Albany Studios and a successful commercial photographer for over 20years in Auckland, Robert trained and worked in Holland then travelled extensively through Europe before migrating to New Zealand in 1973, enticed by the relaxed lifestyle, clean air and a challenging landscape to put on film.

In 1976 Robert gained his NZ commercial qualification from NZIPP. Much of his commercial work was then used to illustrate books, including The New Zealand House which won an award in 1984.

For the last 10 years he has contributed 'how-to' articles for Photography International magazine. His work can be seen in various New Zealand magazines and publications such as Pro Lighting Series and Photographers Mail.

Since 1982 Robert has been a part time photography tutor at Auckland University of Technology, and has been guest lecturer at other education centres such as Unitec. His main work now is commercial studio photography, with more emphasis on stock photos and concept shots. Digital photography is part of his daily routine. His clients have included Air New Zealand, Nestle and 3M etc.

Robert has his own b&w darkroom where he experiments with cyano types and sun plates. In his spare time, Robert enjoys reading, gym exercises, gardening and spending time with his wife Anne Marie and collie Sazu. He also likes learning more about web design and Ecommerce.

Catherine Barr graduated from Sydney University with a Fine Arts degree in photography and art history. For four years she taught photography at Kings College, Auckland, until baby Flynn arrived.

Her photographs are exhibited in the annual Kings College Sale of Fine Arts, being mostly travel, documentary and art photography. She has photographed her way around Europe, South America, Australia, Thailand, and USA

Catherine is a founding member of Photo3, a collectively-owned digital photography agency specialising in event and stock photography. BW Photography is the commercial studio she runs jointly with her photographer husband. They live in Auckland.

Trudy Nicholson is a successful freelance photographer, adult teacher and internationally acclaimed author of several books. She is a director of Nicholson Photography supplying images to magazine and book publishers from her photo library.

She specialises in animal photography and her images are sought after for book and magazine covers. She is kept busy working with several magazines, writing articles, filling photographic commissions and is the photographer for the magazine Paws For Thought. Photography and writing are her great passions and this is evident when you see her books A Way With Horses and A Way with Dogs.

Trudy travels to expand her photographic image library and works from her home studio in the picturesque Tasman Bay on a lifestyle block near Nelson. She enjoys time out with her family, friends and much loved animals: Gus, her horse and his paddock mate Malibu, her dogs Jimi and Buddy, and Kenneth the cat.

Brian Miller graduated with a BSc at Otago University. Most of his working life has been spent in education and media, involving teaching, lecturing, writing, photography, bookselling and publishing.

During many years working in Papua New Guinea he built up an extensive photographic collection, resulting in the highly acclaimed pictorial book ‘The Highlands of Papua New Guinea’.

Brian ran ‘Tapui Children’s Books’ for over 20 years, selling books to schools and libraries throughout the South Island and since selling his bookshop has concentrated on writing and publishing.

After converting to Digital Photography in 2005, Brian found so many people struggling with the conversion to digital that he wrote the pocket book ‘Digital Cameras the easy way’. This book sold over 8000 in the first year and has now helped people all over New Zealand and Australia understand their new digital camera. This successful book forms the core of his Digital Photography course.

Brian lives in Dunedin on the edge of the Otago Harbour, and with his wife, Diane, has just written a history of that part of the Peninsula, titled ‘Macandrew Bay’. He loves the outdoors, particularly Central Otago and the Southern Alps.

Janice Marriott is another of our CHILDREN'S WRITING TUTORS. Janice is the creator of the "Writing Stories for Children" course and has had twelve books published so far. Plus dozens of stories.

Her latest acclaimed book is 'Thor's Tale' which won the NZ Post Junior Children's Best Book Award for 2007. Back in 1996 her children's novel CROSSROADS won the Aim Children's Best Book of the Year Award.

Besides writing stories for magazines and plays for radio, plus a one-hour documentary, Janice is a senior staff member at Learning Media - where the School Journal is created. She has written hundreds of informative and educational stories for children of all ages. Janice has been a Writer-In Residence twice and was the first Foxton Fellow.

She is a favourite tutor at Fiona Kidman's live writing class, visiting tutor at various Polytechnic writing classes and is the Writers' Representative on the board which organises the NZ Post Children's Book Awards event.

Janice is an expert gardener with a secluded garden in the Thorndon hills and has a son who flies a helicopter.

Diane Brown, another of our CREATIVE WRITING TUTORS. During her Buddle Finlay Sargeson Fellowship in 1997 she wrote her first novel If The Tongue Fits (Tandem 1999). Later, Eight Stages Of Grace, her verse novel was a 2003 Montana Awards finalist. Her travel memoir Liars and Lovers (Random House 2004) followed a sojourn in Berlin. She is currently working on a new novel and a poetry/prose work.

Diane is on the National Council of NZ Society Of Authors. She has judged short story competitions and has been a prize winner in poetry competitions. Her writing has appeared in Landfall, Metro, Quote Unquote, Poetry NZ etc.

Besides developing our Creative Writing course, Diane has other teaching duties in poetry and creative writing, in Dunedin. Diane's non-literary interests include walking, cooking, aqua-jogging, intelligent movies and socialising with friends. All this busyness creates a rounded personality.

Dick Ward, your BOOK EDITING, PROOFREADING AND PUBLISHING tutor arrived from the UK in 1989 with his wife and family, looking for fresh challenges in a new land. In Britain he taught English, Social Studies and Economics to apprentices and adults studying for university entrance. He also headed a team of specialist social workers.

In New Zealand Dick held a teaching and research post at Manawatu Polytechnic (UCOL) and ran creative writing courses. After winning a creative writing competition, he started writing a humorous newspaper column, which ran weekly for 10 years. Meanwhile, he became sole journalist and sub-editor on a weekly Wanganui newspaper. Thence to editor of another community paper, Ruapehu Press. Hands-on writing and editing is his strength.

Now Dick does assorted freelance writing work, is associate-editor of an events industry magazine, proofreader and sub-editor of an on-line tourist trade magazine, plus running 11 acres with sheep, dairy goats, poultry, and a friendly donkey, with help from his wife Wendy.

Bartha Hill, another of our Book Editing, Proofreading and Publishing tutors. Bartha lives in the beautiful Southern Lakes district. She trained as a teacher, has a BA and a Diploma of Education. Bartha spent many years teaching English language and cultural adjustment, first with the British Council in the UK, then in New Zealand. She wrote the manuals she used for this work. For seven years she was a full time writer with World Vision New Zealand, researching, writing and editing their monthly CHANGE AGENT magazine. She completed the BPRO course in writing, designing and editing newsletters and continues under freelance contract to proof read and edit for various organisations.

As an active author, Bartha writes books (three published so far) and freelance articles for a variety of publications. She also teaches writing to private clients. She won the DayStar Award for services to Christian writing in 2004 and now judges the Christian Writers’ Guild Level One bimonthly writing competitions. As a member of the NZ Book Council’s ‘Writers in Schools’ panel she conducts creativity workshops in school.

We are fortunate to have had Jean Drew develop our new Romance Writing Course. Jean founded the New Zealand Romance Writers Society, so she is absolutely the best person to teach others how to write romance stories. Her own romance books sell worldwide.

Jean will show novice romance writers (by correspondence course) how to recognise the characteristics which make the ideal hero and heroine; they are never perfect individuals. Each has some personal quirk or fault to overcome as they go seeking their love mate. 

Angela Pyke - Business Communications. Angela has been involved in various aspects of business communication through her work and studies.
 
Her formal qualifications include a Master of Arts degree in Mass Communication from the University of Canterbury and diplomas in Freelance Journalism and Book Editing, Proofreading and Publishing from the New Zealand Institute of Business Studies. She has also won several writing awards, and attended a range of business and communication training courses.
 
She has worked as a business advisor, magazine editor, journalist, publicist, personal assistant, travel consultant, retail supervisor, and tutor of English, music and dance.
 
Currently she is the national communications adviser for a large organisation. This role involves external and internal communication. The external component consists mainly of liasing with media, coordinating interviews and producing quality written, verbal and visual content. The internal focus is on ensuring communication pathways within the organisation are clearly defined and efficient.
 
Both rely heavily on developing and maintaining strong relationships with a wide range of individuals, groups and organisations. In her spare time Angela enjoys playing the flute, dancing and writing. She also goes to the gym if she can’t find a good excuse not to.

Brian Morris is our Principal. He works with all tutors to ensure a smooth flow of information and assistance between students and tutors. He monitors learning outcome standards, course contents, helps develop new courses and handles any course-related problems students have, in conjunction with the Registrar and office people.

Call him for a chat 09,2741917, Monday to Friday.