Janice Marriott's contribution to NZ children's literature

When it comes to telling children's stories on the page, on screen and in song, few can rival Janice Marriott. Over a three decade long career, she's been a novelist and screenwriter, audio producer, editor and teacher. She's written fiction and non-fiction for children's and young adults, radio plays and documentaries, and scripts for the TV series The Wot Wots, The Prime Minister Jacinda Adern has just presented Janice with the 2018 Storylines Margaret Mahy Award for lifetime achievement, and a distinguished contribution to New Zealand's children's literature. Lynn Freeman talks to Janice about what it was like when she started writing children's literature in the late 1980s.