Helen Heath is a poet, essayist and academic from the Kāpiti Coast, Wellington. Her debut collection of poetry Graft was published in May 2012 by Victoria University Press to critical acclaim. Graft won the NZSA Jessie Mackay Best First Book for Poetry award in 2013 and was the first book of fiction or poetry to be shortlisted for the Royal Society of NZ Science Book Prize, also in 2013. Her poems, essays, articles and reviews have appeared in a range of Australasian journals and magazines. Helen holds a PhD in Creative Writing from Victoria University. Her thesis explores how contemporary poetry can actively participate in the interpretation of scientific or philosophical ideas – allowing public engagement with cultural dialogues. Her most recent collection of poems, about the intersect between people and technology, is Are Friends Electric? (VUP 2018).
