This September & October edition of Writing on Our Calendar is jam-packed with pearler literary & cultural happenings! NSW Writers’ Centre staff share the things they’ve got highlighted in their diaries. Find out what’s happening and keep your finger on NSW’s social literary pulse. We will present a listing of new and established events so you can get involved in the literary community and be inspired.
4 September-4 October – Ride & Fourplay
Darlinghurst Theatre Company presents Jane Bodie’s Ride & Fourplay, Two acutely observed and richly human one-act plays that delve into the heart of modern relationships. Tickets are $30-$45. For more information visit their website.
6 September – The Moth @ the Festival of Dangerous Ideas,
The Moth is a non-profit group based in New York dedicated to the art and craft of storytelling. Founded in 1997 by poet and novelist George Dawes Green, the organisation presents storytelling events across the US and abroad, often featuring prominent literary and cultural personalities. The Moth is coming to Sydney for the Festival of Dangerous Ideas and we couldn’t be more excited! Saturday 6:30pm. To book tickets click here.
8 September – Avant Gaga #20 @ Sappho Books
The poetry night at Sappho will play host to AVANT GAGA #20, with guest poets Joanne Burns, Philip Salom, Amelia Dale, plus open mic. We are very excited to see Joanne Burns read, her poetry career has spanned four decades and her razor sharp wit shows no sign of blunting. Tuesday 7pm, Sappho Books Café & Wine Bar, Glebe. Free entry.
10 September – Poetics, Writing, Thought, Session 14: Amy Ireland & Baylee Brits
Poetics, Writing, Thought is a colloquium series at the University of Technology, Sydney based on recent and in-progress research, creative, and critical work. Amy Ireland is an experimental poet and theorist based in Sydney. Baylee Brits currently teaches at UNSW. Her doctoral thesis was entitled ‘Mathematics and Modernism: Jorge Luis Borges, Samuel Beckett and JM Coetzee’. Thursday 6:30pm, UTS City Campus; Bon Marche Studio, Level 1, Bon Marche Building. Free entry.
11-12 September – National Writers’ Congress
Australian Society of Authors is running their National Writer’s Congress with the theme of ‘Reclaim, Reboot, Renew; creative practice in the digital age’. At the ASA’s 2015 national gathering their accomplished group of authors, illustrators, journalists, publishers, booksellers and industry professionals will discuss the latest ideas on authors’ rights, role and place in a time of constant change. Full congress tickets and day passes are available for purchase on their website.
11-13 September – Tasmanian Writers’ and Readers’ Festival.
Tasmanian Writers’ and Readers’ Festival is presenting a packed program with Master Classes from the likes of Cate Kennedy and Stephanie Bishop. Also our pick is Radio National’s Now Hear This which showcases eight Tasmanians telling stories inspired by the theme ‘The First Time’. There are also many great free events. Held in the city of Hobart, Tasmania. To book tickets see their website.
11-13 September – Volume 2015 Another Art Book Fair
This first iteration of this biennial fair will have a specific focus on independently produced, artist-led publications and related materials that are responsive, discursive, irreverent, and that function as creative and politically engaged modes of communication. Friday til Sunday, Artspace, The Gunnery Building, 43–51 Cowper Wharf Road, Woolloomooloo. Free and open to the public. More information here.
15 September – Sydney University Reading Australian Literature Series
The University of Sydney is running the Reading Australian Literature Series were well known contemporary authors are given the opportunity to speak in depth about Australian novels they value. On 15 September Malcolm Knox will talk about David Ireland’s The Glass Canoe. Tuesday 6:30pm at the Law School Common Room, Level 4, Sydney Law School Eastern Avenue, the University of Sydney. The lectures are free, just register via the website.
1-4 October – National Young Writers Fest
NYWF is the country’s largest gathering of young and innovative writers working in both new and traditional forms including zines, comics, blogging, screenwriting, poetry, spoken word, hip hop music, journalism, autobiography, comedy, songwriting and prose. The festival presents ‘writing’ in its broadest sense through panels, discussions, workshops, launches, performances, readings, installations, and more. City of Newcastle, 1-4 October, Labour Day long weekend. For the full program click here.
10 October-13 November – A Rabbit for Kim Jong-Il
Kit Brookman’s A Rabbit for Kim Jong-Il will be performed at Griffin Theatre Co. Preposterously based on a true story, A Rabbit for Kim Jong-il is a cunning comic thriller spanning two continents. Crammed with secret agents, espionage, double-crossings and a giant rabbit named Felix, the play is also a pointed parable about betrayal and forgiveness, greed and regret. A co-commission of Griffin and Playwriting Australia. Book tickets here.
13 October – Sydney University Reading Australian Literature Series
As apart of the Reading Australian Literature Series Mirielle Juchau will talk about Patrick White’s work Rider’s in the Chariot. Tuesday, 6:30pm. The University of Sydney, register to attend on their website.