What are the books that shaped you? Come and celebrate the texts that have influenced our lives literally and literarily, alongside the reveal of the jam-packed 2021 Emerging Writers’ Festival program.

Drawing from personal history alongside archival research and set against the context of immigration and the anti-apartheid struggle, the exhibition forefronts Black sonics within liberation and migration movements of the African diaspora in Australia. Curated by Samira Farah in collaboration with Patrick Jonathan.

Hear two poets read their reworkings of ‘My Country’ by Dorothea Mackellar to launch the new chapbook, Transforming My Country, from Australian Poetry.

You’ve heard about harnessing social media platforms to tell a story, now give it a go yourself! But first – check out these specially commissioned short narrative videos to get inspired.

We’re celebrating some of our favourite comic artists by showcasing an eclectic selection of their creations. Browse our online gallery or head down to Sticky Institute during the festival to see their visual works.

Throughout EWF21, go on an amazing race to discover poetry across the city of Port Phillip. Head out on a treasure hunt to collect all five poems.

Take a virtual sound walk through regional and rural Victoria on our interactive sonic map.

You’re invited to submit one line responding to our question for a chance to have your answers arranged into a patchwork piece of writing.

What does your love sound like? Six writers dedicate silly little love songs to the people and objects of their affections. In these accompanying vignettes, they share stories of when music has made them lovesick, lovey-dovey or lovestruck.

Commemorate the opening of the 18th iteration of Emerging Writers’ Festival with an evening of storytelling and celebration. Four incredible First Nations women come together with words and music to set the stage for 11 days of celebration, learning, connection and creativity.

In this limited capacity workshop, award-winning poet Evelyn Araluen will impart her wisdom and insights about the craft of writing poetry.

This workshop, led by award-winning short story writer Alice Bishop, will delve into what makes short stories compelling and what separates them from other forms of writing.

Join five disabled writers from across so-called Australia in this storytelling event as they share their dreams of a future grounded in disability justice.

Hear from some of the best up- and-coming literary stars as they dazzle us After Dark.

Log in for an evening of funny, meaningful and joyful readings to help get us through the apocalypse. Host Anthea Yang proposes that joy and poetry can be counter-cultural acts of resistance – an interruption of constant consumption, production and crises.

Get ready to storm the city with Write-ability! Listen to writers from the newly appointed Storming the City cohort as they discuss craft, community, and the city and encourage the next generation of metropolitan-based writers with a disability.

Hear all about the process of going from first draft to a fully published book and what happens in between, in this one-on-one discussion between Hachette publisher Vanessa Radnidge and debut author Ruth McIver.

Artists working between so-called Australia and Essex, England, share artefacts from the archives of their personal histories, and weave stories and intimacies once untold.

To kick off the Conference, our four festival Ambassadors will share their four favourite rules for writing.

You finished your draft! The work should be done, right? Or is this where the work really begins?

Tony Birch is one of the finest writers for many reasons – only one of which is for creating characters who stay with you long after you’ve closed the book.

Join Sisonke Msimang for an insightful keynote and Q&A session to learn how to wield your own personal histories into moving, deep, political stories that extend beyond the self.

Hear from five stellar debut authors as they discuss the writing processes behind their first books, their paths to publication and what really happens once your book is out in the world.

What is the power of poetry? Or rather, what is power, who has it and what does it mean? What is the power of poetry?

This session will provide the guidance of a publishing industry leader to help whip your pitch into perfect shape

Sign up to this event to have the chance to deliver a practice five-minute, online, one-on-one pitch with a literary industry professional.

This panel of grant recipients and arts workers will share their insider tips and tricks on writing a stellar grant application, creating a realistic budget, and what sort of opportunities are out there to help pay for your time to write.

These social commentators and authors discuss the capabilities – and limitations – of literature to affect social and political change.

Meet some of the booksellers, editors and other literary changemakers who are working to build a better literary future.

jie – Sisterhood: Between Responsibility and Love is a zine centered on the experiences and feelings of sisterhood.

How do we tell inclusive stories and who gets to write them? A panel of three writers discuss Own Voices narratives, their importance and how (and if) to include characters and experiences outside of your own in your writing.

Save your appetite for a special six-course storytelling experience, enjoyed from your very own dining table.

Escape the day with some of the best up-and-coming writers as they send you into a fantastical dreamscape with reimaginings of classic tales.

How much can you expect to make from your words and how do you go about advocating for yourself as a freelancer? Our panelists discuss their experiences and what they have learned along the way.

How do social media platforms make storytelling and story sharing more accessible to both creators and audiences?

Some of the boldest writing has come out of Young Adult fiction. As a YA author, how do you channel your voice and create authentic teen characters? Join award-winning author Cath Moore to learn how to write for some of the most discerning and passionate readers out there.

Join us at The Moat to hear readings from some of Australia’s best emerging literary voices, including 2020 Next Chapter recipient Sam Elkin, author of Emotional Female Yumiko Kadota, Voiceworks contributor Mickhaella Ermita, and multidisciplinary artist, performer and speaker Esther Tuddenham.

Join these amazing sex worker writers from across so-called Australia as they share their stories of losing and creating sex worker spaces and navigating between hyper-visibility and invisibility.

Take a journey to the perhaps not-so-distant future with a lineup of brilliant First Nations talent. As technology continues to disrupt systems, these artists contemplate the collision of human and machine lives and what it all means for culture and society.

Start the day with Ella Baxter and some creativity-boosting writing prompts.

Love comes in many forms, from friendships to the familial and everything in between.

Calling all amazing babes! We are gathering some of our most adored artists to honour the babes that helped shape their lives in this intimate night of joyful storytelling.

Come and nourish your creative appetite with some simple poetry-writing exercises. Grab a pen, a cup of coffee and create a poem with Harry Reid.

Three artists toy with the concept of junk mail and present playful creations that surprise and delight.

Writers for children are responsible for arming their readers with the tools for making the future a better place.

How many brilliant stories started as scribbled sentences in a journal or a memory fragment in a note-taking app?

Join Next Chapter recipient Mia Nie, her mentor Sarah Howell, Signal Boost participant Cherie Minniecon, and her mentor Timmah Ball, as they discuss the varied forms support for emerging writers and podcasters can take, and the unique qualities of mentorships.

Join us to celebrate the launch of Đất Nước Library with four different Naarm-based Vietnamese artists who will read and respond to texts from the collection.

In an evening of decidedly and deliciously queer erotica readings, these artists tease and taunt, tearing apart the concepts of writing about sex, romance and human connections.

Get your brain ticking and flex your writing muscles with Jessica Yu. Cultivate your morning creative motivation with some guided writing exercises that are bound to get you inspired.

Interested in writing letters to people who are in prison? Come along to this online session to explore things to consider when writing to people in prison, and write one off letters of solidarity to friends inside.

Writing to conventions and reader expectations is valuable but at times genres can be restrictive or difficult to pin down. What happens when the line between genre and literary fiction is blurred?

The Safe Spaces series aims to create a safe environment for Bla(c)k and Brown people to come together and share, learn, connect and collaborate with each other.

In this workshop, learn what it means to write about food and the body and how they each intertwine with memory and story.

Following Safe Spaces, Littlefoot & Co. are set to to shake up the stage with spoken word and performances that are straight fire.

This evening of powerful storytelling will feature artists – who all have lived experiences of incarceration – sharing their dreams of abolitionist futures and visions of how we might actually get there.

Get inside the nitty-gritty of writing in this one-on-one conversation between two highly acclaimed authors. Sofie Laguna speaks with Nicolas Brasch about her process and experience as a professional writer, giving attendees insight into her craft.

Experimenting with form, a multi-talented, multi-disciplinary group of emerging artists gather to imagine the not-so-far-flung future of the planet in this special digital event.

In this workshop find out how writing for games is different from traditional writing, including the role of characterisation and world-building in game storytelling.

EWF invites you to commemorate our 18th birthday with a stunning line-up of artists and friends, old and new.

In collaboration with Melbourne Theatre Company, five emerging writers will develop five new performance works over a series of intensive workshops with director Isabella Vadiveloo, and dramaturg Morgan Rose.

EWF is unveiling the 2022 hybrid festival program to help prepare you for a winter of words.

The National Writers’ Conference is the place for emerging writers to develop their skills, hear from leaders in the field, and forge connections within the industry.

The National Writers’ Conference is the place for emerging writers to develop their skills, hear from leaders in the field, and forge connections within the industry.