If you love reading, talking about books and grappling with the big ideas shaping our world, take part in the 2023 Canberra Writers Festival.
The festival will be on campus from Wednesday 16 August to Sunday 20 August.
From emerging writers to literary giants, Australian and international authors will converge in the capital to talk about their diverse experiences as chroniclers, commentators and storytellers – and how their work connects to the festival’s evergreen focus on power, politics and passion.
ANU is proud to be a longstanding Canberra Writers Festival foundation partner and contributor, which includes hosting a range of events on campus. Highlights this year include:
Time for a Reckoning
Stan Grant talks with Louise Milligan on whether Australia will redress the past or sleepwalk into a new era of monarchy
Author - Lauren Groff
Fates, Furies and Power Nuns. Novelist Lauren Groff talks with Kate Evans about her gleefully alchemical fiction.
Off Campus
Aarti Betigeria talks with Zeynab Gamieldien and Vidya Madabushi about stretching the possibilities of the campus novel.
The Joyful Genius of Blue
Bluey creator Joe Brumm talks with Beejay Silcox about telling tales that appeal to all ages.
Invincible Spirit
Alistair Ott talks with contributors to a ground-breaking collection of First Nations Australia LGBTQIA+ writing.
A Woman of the World
Brigitta Olubas talks with Frank Bongiorno about her new biography of the novelist Shirley Hazzard.
Canberra's book club
Beejay Silcox and Kate Evans talk with novelist Edwina Preston about Bad Art Mother.
Body Politics
Kaya Wilson talks with Eloise Grills and Kris Kneen about the cultural weight of the fat body.
The Hummingbird Effect
Novelist Kate Mildenhall talks with Astid Edwards about one of the most anticipated Aussie novels of the year.
Celebrating the Classics
Debra Dank talks with contributors to First Nations Classics and changing the way we tell the story of Australian lit.
Maggie MacKellar
Memoirist Maggie MacKellar talks with Anna Vidot about her year on a Tasmanian sheep farm.
The Lure of the Past
Kate Mildenhall talks with historical novelists Paul Dalgarno and Mirandi Riwoe about the alure of the 1940s.
Masterclass: Interviews
Learn how to conduct, write and edit compelling interviews for print and online with journalist Paul Dalgarno.
Masterclass: Graphic Life
Graphic memoirist Eloise Grills helps you create writing and art that draws from your life in unexpected ways.
Masterclass: Write a Song
Fred Smith lays out a basic songwriting toolkit and offers a crash course in how to write a song.
Masterclass: Sports
Join sports journalist Kieran Pender, fresh from covering the FIFA Women's World Cup, for this interactive
Kicking the Door Down
Novelist Kate Grenville talks with Nicole Abadee about her novel imagining the life of her grandmother.
A Jewel of a Book
Writer Debra Dank talks with Evelyn Araluen about her tribute to family and the Gudanji Country.
Vengeance is Mine
Alice Grundy talks with Zoe Coyle and Sarah Smith about two dark and delicious new novels of women provoked.
Bhutan to Blacktown
Om Dhungel talks with Fran Kelly about his journey from a village in Bhutan to being a refugee advocate in Australia.
Uprooted and Uproarious
Genevieve Jacobs talks with Deirdre Macken and Rachael Mogan McIntosh about swapping city life for the farm.
Dark Power
Ebony Bennett talks with novelists Tara Calaby and Marija Peričić about institutional control and the limits of desire.
Into the Wild
Novelist Robbie Arnott talks with Astrid Edwards about his love for the natural world and bringing it to life in fiction
Keeping the Faith
Monica Dux talks with Steph Lentz and Brendan Watkins about two true stories involving faith, love and family
Homecoming
Genevieve Jacobs talks with novelists Kirtsy Jagger and Zoya Patel about family, memory and fraught returns.
Ice Dreaming
Kaya Wilson talks with writer Dennis Glover and researcher Jono Lineen about a new novel set amid the Antarctic frost.
Bloodthirsty Brilliance
Emma Macdonald leads a conversation with three Canberra crime writers about their noirish novels.
Closing Night
Join a stellar line-up of speakers as they divulge their personal epiphanies – from the profound to the profoundly funny
Masterclass: Leadership
Dr Kirstin Ferguson conducts her acclaimed leadership masterclass, helping you be an effective leader.
Masterclass
Novelist Mirandi Riwoe reveals how research can enhance your writing practice and historical fiction.
Masterclass: Imagination
Join Zoe Coyle for a captivating workshop that delves into the heart of creativity.
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