Creative New Zealand has announced that more than half of the additional funding it received from the government in May for the literary sector will supplement the New Zealand Authors’ Fund. Administered by Creative New Zealand, the New Zealand Authors’ Fund compensates local writers for the loss of income through royalties when their books are borrowed from public libraries. Receiving an increase of NZ$1 million per year, Creative New Zealand said the funding would result in increased payments to most authors registered with the Fund when the annual payment is made in mid-December. According to a statement, the additional funding will take this year's total payment to 1371 writers to NZ$1.5 million, an increase of NZ$500,000 on the previous year's payment. Following the funding decision, representatives from Creative NZ and the Ministry for Culture and Heritage met with a writers’ consultative group to draw up recommendations on the best use of the funds. As well as enhancing the Authors' Fund, the money will be used to establish three Prime Minister’s Literary Awards to be administered by Creative NZ. Each award will be worth NZ$60,000 and awarded annually in the categories of fiction (including scriptwriting), non-fiction and poetry. A multi-year fellowship, available annually and valued at NZ$100,000, will also be established. New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark said authors had long played an important role in expressing and projecting what was unique about New Zealand. 'We are delighted that the additional government funding will broaden the range of opportunities offered to New Zealand writers as well as significantly increase the resources available to the Authors' Fund,' she said.