Children's author Margaret Mahy has pleaded guilty to charges of drink-driving and careless driving after a crash in Christchurch.
Mahy was convicted this week for an incident that occurred in April, in which she crashed her car and was found to have over twice the legal blood-alcohol limit.
She will not comment on the incident but her publicist, Lorain Day, says the author deeply regrets what happened.
"It's not something she has taken lightly at all and she has absolutely taken very responsible steps to make sure that those circumstances never recur."
Ms Day says Mahy's long contribution to literature is immeasurable and she hopes the public will forgive this lapse in judgement.
Mahy was fined $600 and disqualified from driving for six months.
