In the first installment from our new bi-monthly series 'Talanoa with a Tusitala' produced in partnership with Tagata Atamai - Danielle Kionasina Dilys Thomson talks to her creative journey and what inspires her.  

Who are you? Where are you from?

Talofa lava! O lo’u igoa o Danielle Kionasina Dilys Thomson. I am a Samoan (Falealili, Falelatai)/Welsh author, artist and business owner from West Aukilani, Aotearoa. In September 2023, I founded Tagata Atamai, and I published my debut poetry collection, Tusitala, in September 2024.

What do you do? How did you find your way to your current role(s)?

Raised as a proud daughter of the diaspora, I was no stranger to multidisciplinary storytelling and lofty ambitions. Heavily influenced by my Samoan grandmother (and favourite person in the world) Afioga Tiumaluali’i Letelemalanuola Imelda Taito Tusa Thomson, I articulated myself through writing, dancing, singing, public speaking and visual arts from a young age. When people asked me who I wanted to be when I grew up, my response alternated between “Rihanna” and “Pippa Wetzell” (multitalented indigenous baddies - duh?!). 

Two years ago, I was a primary kaiako at Fruitvale School in West Aukilani. I had just graduated from the Auckland University of Technology with a Bachelor of Education (Pasifika Primary Teaching), and I was itching to pour into my creative practice. Everywhere I looked, there were important stories about Moana and Māori people that needed to be told. So, I started writing about all the brilliant leaders who inspired me, and Tagata Atamai was born. 

Today, I am a student support adviser in the Faculty of Arts and Education at the University of Auckland | Waipapa Taumata Rau by day, and an author, artist and business owner 24/7. Tagata Atamai has grown into a thriving storytelling platform, creative community, Moana bookstore and publisher. As a girl who was once afraid to call herself a writer, I am grateful to everyone who has invited me to take up space.

What drives you?

My top three reasons for continuing my creative malaga (journey) through Tagata Atamai are:

1. Amplifying Moana voices through art and upu (words) to deepen individual, communal and societal understandings of our diverse
ways of knowing and being.

2. Utilising Moana perspectives, skills and knowledge to enhance our agency as we determine and implement effective strategies for improving the health, education and economic outcomes of Moana people.

3. Developing mana-enhancing, reciprocal relationships that enrich and value Moana creative/entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Where have you seen your mahi have the greatest impact (social, environmental etc.)?

When queer afakasi wāhine (women) tell me that they feel seen when they read my upu, I know I am making sense of the world while reimagining it for the better.

What are the biggest challenges in your creative career and how do you navigate them?

In the beginning, I said ‘yes’ to every opportunity to work in the spaces that I cared about. Now, I aim to say ‘no’ to everything once a week. Rest is crucial to my well-being (which is crucial to my creative career), so I am making a real effort to ensure that one day out of seven is devoid of prior engagements. On that day, I (try to) move intuitively, and I don’t rush around like a headless chook wearing all the hats at once. That nonsensical behaviour is reserved for the remaining six days! haha

How do you think we (communities, institutions, individuals) should awhi creatives and their mahi?

I think we need to ensure that we are filling the cups that pour into us. Often, creatives are engaging in deeply transformative mahi that enriches our lives, and I believe that we have a collective responsibility to acknowledge their value. In order to do this effectively, we should be responsive to their diverse needs and strengths while enhancing their mana (spiritual power). This might look like spreading the word about a creative’s kaupapa (initiative), paying them adequately for their art or offering them a cuppa and some kai (food) when they enter our spaces.

Who and what are you excited about right now? Where should we be looking for inspiration to keep making, learning and building our creative careers?

I am frothing about creatives who are daring to take up space - giving themselves permission to wield their ancestral gifts. I am invigorated by movements that are encouraging Moana and Māori communities to walk together. I am awestruck by the courage of young people who are living unapologetically authentic lives with their future mokopuna (grandchildren) in mind.

For me, inspiration surfaces when my mind slows down enough to hear my ancestors in the breeze. Sometimes, I am speeding along SH16 and their wisdom draws my attention to the sun’s tenderness, the ocean’s beckoning or the way the trees call to the sky. When I stop trying to go anywhere, they show me that I am already home. Then, I usually pull over to write and the words flow freely, as if they were always there… Waiting for me to tune in. In this way, making and learning feel rooted in ongoing conversations with myself, te ao (the world) and my tīpuna (ancestors).