Wednesday 3 July: Girls on Key Poetry Reading. Feature poets Jenny Blackford and Hani Abdile will be performing. Open mic spots available, arrive early to secure a spot. All genders welcome for open mic and in the audience. Mama Rosy’s, Newtown at 6:30pm-8:30pm. Free event.
Friday 5 July – Sunday 7 July: Winter Book Fair. Rummage through over 30,000 second hand books and get ready to find a bargain! For more information head to the website. Bega Showground, Bega from 9am Friday.
Saturday 6 July: Dreamtime Stories with Uncle Ron. To celebrate and honour NAIDOC week you are invited to join Jabiru Gallery in Yamba, as Yaegl Elder Uncle Ron shares significant Dreamtime stories of the Clarence Valley, and insights into the treasures of our local bush foods and traditional medicinal practices using native plants. 12:30pm-3pm. Tickets from $10. Book tickets and find out more information here.
Tuesday 9 July – Saturday 20 July: Bondi Feast. Bondi Feast is a fringe-style winter festival, celebrating the best in home-grown theatre, comedy, cabaret and circus. Housed at the iconic Bondi Pavilion for two weeks in July, over the past five years Bondi Feast has showcased the work of over 700 artists and drawn crowds of 10,000+ to see art by the beach in winter. To view the full program and book tickets head here.
Tuesday 9 July: Writing Rendezvous. The aim of this event is to get into a regular practice of writing, as well as an opportunity to meet like-minded people. Port Macquarie Library from 9:30am-11:30am. Free, find out more information here.
Wednesday 10 July: Keynote Speaker at The Society of Women Writers NSW monthly Literary Luncheon is Noëlle Janaczewska on ‘Where do ideas come from?’. Noëlle is a multi-award winning playwright, poet and essayist and the author of The Book of Thistles. The Dixson Room, State Library of NSW at 12pm-2pm. Tickets from $45. For more information and to book, head here.
Saturday July 13 – Sunday July 14: SMASH! Sydney Manga and Anime Show. Whether you’re mad for cosplay, a gaming wizard or in love with the artistry of anime and manga, the return of SMASH! is sure to excite Japanese pop-culture fans. The weekend program includes panel discussions, film screenings, music and dance performances, art demonstrations and creative workshops. International Convention Centre, Sydney. Book tickets and find out more info here.
Wednesday 17 July: Wrap & Snack for Books 4 Outback. Come along to Secret Book Stuff to help owners Amy and Laura wrap books in recycled brown paper to gift as random acts of kindness to kids in remote and disadvantaged communities. They will take the books on their upcoming volunteer trip for Books4Outback. There will be a grazing table of goodies and sweet tunes playing and you’re welcome to drop in and help out for any amount of time between 5pm-8pm. To find out more about Secret Book Stuff and the event, head here. Secret Book Stuff, Newcastle from 5pm.
Thursday 18 July: Feminist Book Club. A book club for female-identifying and non binary people to come together and discuss feminism in all its theoretical and fictional forms. Each month they discuss a book that deals with feminist themes, including fiction, non-fiction, essays, poetry and memoir. Platform Gallery, Katoomba from 5:30pm. Free.
Friday 19 July: The Temple of Words. Poetry and spoken word evening with rotating co hosts. Come and share your innermost truths with a safe and encouraging crowd. All levels of experience and participation welcome. The Corner Palm, Byron Bay. From 6:30pm-9pm. Find out more information here.
Saturday 20 July: Southern Highlands Writers’ Festival. Held over one day, this year’s festival is themed Books, Food & Wine. Come hear Kristina Olsson speak on her latest novel Shell, share coffee and cake with Nadine Ingram, and be entertained by Mikey Robins’ bizarre food-related stories! For the full program and to book tickets, head here.
Tuesday 23 July – Saturday 27 July: Forgotten, a play by Cate Whittaker. This captivating new play by Writing NSW member, Cate Whittaker, gives voice to a turning point in Australian history – the female convict uprising of 1827. Experience the resilience, courage and legacy of these starving women, who were incarcerated, denied rations and worked to exhaustion and yet, against all odds and even under threat of military attack, fought bravely for their rights. Lennox Theatre, Riverside Parramatta. Tickets from $15, to book and for more information go here.
Thursday 25 July: Rare Books: Librarians’ Favourites from the Rare Book Collection. Discover the breadth and depth of the State Library’s Rare Book collection and hear the fascinating stories of how some of these rare items were acquired by the Library. Librarians who love this collection will show you some of their favourite items, ranging from incunabula, early bibles, artist books, fore-edge painted books and more. State Library of NSW at 10:30am-12:30pm. Tickets $30, book here.
Sunday 28 July: Applications close for Writing NSW Grants. Writing NSW has three different categories open* for grants, including Early Career Writer; Emerging Writing Organisation and the Writer and Scientist grant. Opportunity open to residents of New South Wales to receive funding of up to $5000. Read the full guidelines for each grant on our website. *Please note at time of this post’s publication, grants have not yet opened. They will open July 1 2019.
Monday 29 July: Applications close for the Bundanon Trust Artist-In-Residence program. Open to arts professionals from Australia and overseas, working in all disciplines. Residencies can be for research and development or for the creation of new work. Individuals, groups and companies may apply. To find out the full criteria and more information head to their website.
