Blak and Bright Writers Festival Highlights
The Blak and Bright Writers’ Festival has officially launched its 2026 program, featuring a celebration of First Nations writers and storytellers. Now in its fifth year, the festival is Australia’s largest and only gathering of its kind, running from September 3 to 6.
This year’s theme, ‘Every:When’, will challenge linear notions of the past, present, and future, instead centring First Nations’ understandings of time as being both continuous and relational.
Festival Highlights
The event will kick off on Thursday, September 3 with ‘Gathering’ at the Capitol Theatre, featuring storytelling, reflections, and a special performance by poet and dancer, Luke Currie-Richardson.
Critically acclaimed writer Tony Birch will host a workshop at The Institute of Postcolonial Studies in North Melbourne, guiding participants through writing exercises to help develop their own creative work.
First Nations writers at all career stages are invited to pitch their manuscripts, projects, and ideas at Pitch Blak. Regionally, writers Brooke Blurton, Zac James, Julie Janson, and Claire G Coleman will come together in a panel at the Ballarat Library.
Panel Discussions and Workshops
On Saturday, Tony Birch, Anita Heiss, Debra Dank, Ali Cobby Eckermann, and Jasmin McGaughey will discuss why only certain stories have survived in a free panel at The Wheeler Centre.
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Later that day, attendees can celebrate Blak women’s voices across literature at ‘Her Story Now’, featuring Jasmin McGaughey, Julie Janson, Samantha Faulkner, Chelsea Watego, and Kirli Saunders.
The festival will conclude with a final event at Camp Sovereignty, featuring an evening of poetry, music, and live storytelling.
Tickets are now on sale for the Blak and Bright Writers Festival, with a full program available online.
The Blak and Bright Writers’ Festival is a unique opportunity to support First Nations writers and storytellers, providing a platform for their voices to be heard and their stories to be shared. It features a stacked lineup of talented writers and creatives, including Evelyn Araluen, Tony Birch, Brooke Blurton, and Tony Armstrong.
This year’s festival promises to be an exciting and thought-provoking event, with a range of engaging events and activities that showcase the diversity and richness of First Nations literature and storytelling.
