Brisbane Writers Festival

18/06/2026

📣 BWF26 SPECIAL EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT

🍂 Alice Oseman is making her first ever visit to Brisbane as to discuss all things Heartstopper – her tender and hopeful portrait of friendship and first love.

📚 In 2016, a young writer called Alice Oseman began publishing a webcomic about two teenage boys who meet and fall in love.

Ten years on, Oseman is the third bestselling graphic novelist of all time, and that webcomic, Heartstopper, is a global publishing phenomenon (not to mention a wildly popular Netflix show) and a Gen Z icon lauded for its representation of q***r joy.

🌈 Alice Oseman: Heartstopper
📆 1pm, Sunday 11 October 2026
📍 Brisbane City Hall

🎟️ Tickets: https://bwf.org.au/2026/brisbane-writers-festival/alice-oseman-heartstopper

Hachette Australia Books

16/06/2026

Brisbane Writers Festival is unique. As Australia’s oldest continuous writers’ festival, BWF has a long and storied history of connecting readers and writers, showcasing creativity and finding just the right words.

We believe that literary festivals have never been more important: they encourage and celebrate books and reading, champion Australian and emerging voices, create community, foster empathy and promote curiosity, critical thinking, and respectful debate. They’re vital for a healthy democracy.

At the Brisbane Writers Festival, our goal is to present an internationally recognised writers festival, bringing together a community of readers, writers and thinkers to celebrate our love of books and the power of storytelling, while spotlighting Queensland writers and contributing to Brisbane as a flourishing cultural hub.

Although we are best known for our main Festival in October, we now also host a year-round program of literary events, bringing world-renowned authors to Brisbane.

Your support is more important than ever.

Donations to the Brisbane Writers Festival will directly support our ability to:
- Bring more international authors to Brisbane.
- Engage new audiences in the Festival.
- Present a diverse, inspiring and entertaining program.

Spanning every genre and bringing together some of the finest thinkers writing today, BWF 2026 will have something for everyone. We’d love you to be a part of our story.

As a not-for-profit organisation and registered charity, all donations of $2 or more are tax deductible. Every donation counts, so please give whatever you can before June 30.

Donate: https://bwf.org.au/support/donate

10/06/2026

Global bestseller Meg Mason, author of the literary sensation Sorrow and Bliss, is back!

Sophie Pattison has a secret. Not the dark kind – Sophie's a lovely person, and she has a job as a sound producer for literary festivals, which can be a little bit thankless, but she loves it because she loves books and authors. No, Sophie's secret is that she's incredibly, achingly lonely.

When she discovers the work of a famous author, Sophie feels as though she's found the company she craves – even though she knows she'll never actually meet her literary heroine.

Sophie's favourite writer in all the world would never be a guest at the same festival Sophie works for. Would she?

Meg Mason has done it again.

Don't miss your chance to see this incredible writer discussing her tender, witty and breathtaking new novel in conversation with fellow novelist Kimberley Allsopp.

2pm, Sunday 16 August
Brisbane Powerhouse

Tickets: https://bwf.org.au/2026/out-of-season-events-2026/meg-mason-sophie-standing-there

HarperCollins Books Australia
Riverbend Books

18/05/2026

Last call for tomorrow night's double-header!

Join us tomorrow 19th May at Brisbane City Hall to hear from two acclaimed international authors as they make a rare trip to Australia: Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, followed by thriller writer Mick Herron of Slow Horses fame.

Why is trust today’s most essential superpower? Jimmy Wales will be discussing the fundamental principles that transformed Wikipedia into a universally trusted source for facts, and will share his clear, actionable rules for building trust in business, leadership and life.

What will Jackson Lamb and his team of Slough House misfits get up to next? Don’t miss Mick Herron as he talks about his latest page-turner, Clown Town, the TV adaptation of Slow Horses and the evolution of the series.

It promises to be a wonderful evening of back-to-back literary conversations – visit our website to book: www.bwf.org.au

05/05/2026

What do you get when you cross a Booker Prize winner, the writer behind Slow Horses, the Wikipedia founder, the current bestselling author in Australia, a thought leader and a fantasy queen? BWF’s biggest ever month of out-of-season events!

The line-up of literary blockbusters kicks off next week with Sarah Wilson (I Eat the Stars) and R.F. Kuang (Katabasis) on Tuesday 12th May, followed by Yann Martel (Life of Pi, Son of Nobody) on the 13th, Lisa Wilkinson (The Titanic Story of Evelyn) on the 14th, then Jimmy Wales (The Seven Rules of Trust) and Mick Herron (Clown Town) on the 19th.

And with Mother’s Day coming up this weekend, what better way to cement your favourite-child status than with tickets to see one of these amazing authors?

Some of these events are close to selling out, so get in quick to grab your tickets: https://bwf.org.au/what's%20on

28/04/2026

Entries in the 2026 Queensland Literary Awards close this Thursday 30 April at 5pm AEST!

Celebrating literary excellence, the QLAs feature a prize pool of over $200,000 across 12 categories that recognise published books, unpublished manuscripts, emerging young and regional writers and publishers, and much more. Winners will be announced at a dedicated ceremony on Thursday 8 October as part of the Brisbane Writers Festival.

Get in quick as late entries cannot be accepted!

Check out our website and FAQs for more information on how to enter:

The Queensland Literary Awards showcase outstanding authors from across Australia, celebrating emerging and established authors across a range of genres. Brisbane Writers Festival is proud to manage the Awards in collaboration with sponsors, the literary community, and industry partners. The Queensl...

23/04/2026

Can't get enough of the smash hit TV show Slow Horses? Don't miss the chance to hear from Mick Herron, author of the Slough House books on which the series is based, in Brisbane on 19 May.

Join Herron in conversation with Matthew Condon as they discuss the latest exploits of Jackson Lamb and his wisecracking crew of secret-service losers and outcasts in Herron's new book Clown Town.

Mick Herron: Clown Town
7.30pm, Tuesday 19 May
Brisbane City Hall

Tickets: https://bwf.org.au/2026/out-of-season-events-2026/mick-herron-clown-town

Hachette Australia Books

15/04/2026

Join us on Thursday 14 May for an evening in conversation with Lisa Wilkinson about her new book, The Titanic Story of Evelyn, in partnership with our friends at the Calile Hotel.

It’s the never-before-told account of Evelyn Marsden, a young Australian nurse from South Australia who became the only Australian-born survivor of the Titanic’s sinking. A woman who lived an extraordinary life, and yet, most Australians have never heard her name.

Lisa Wilkinson in conversation with Davina Smith
Thursday 14 May
6-8pm
Grand Room, Calile Hotel
Level 1, 48 James St

🎟️ Tickets: https://thecalilehotel.com/calile-culture-lisa-wilkinson-in-conversation/

Hachette Australia Books
Lisa Wilkinson
The Calile Hotel

14/04/2026

How can we mend division in society through the building of trust? In his new book, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales reveals seven fundamental principles for building trust in business, leadership and life.

We're looking forward to welcoming Jimmy Wales to Brisbane in May as he shares the story of Wikipedia and reminds us that it's more important than ever to return to the problem at the heart of it all: that without trust, we have no knowledge. And without knowledge, we can't fight back.

Jimmy Wales in conversation
5.30pm, Tuesday 19 May
Brisbane City Hall

Tickets: https://lnkd.in/gJkakJP9

'Where trust has been lost, Jimmy Wales offers routes to its rediscovery' ALASTAIR CAMPBELL

'Thank you to Jimmy Wales for founding Wikipedia and now, for the first time, telling us how he did it!' SIMON SINEK

'A powerful, essential book that cuts to the heart of how technology can benefit humanity' REID HOFFMAN

09/04/2026

Queensland Literary Awards entries are now open!

If you’re an author who has published a book between May 2025 and April 2026, you could be in the running for QLA glory, prize money, and the spotlight of an awards ceremony in October as part of the Brisbane Writers Festival!

Are you an emerging Queensland writer under 30 or from a regional area? You could be eligible for a Queensland Premier’s Publisher and Writer Award.

Entries close 5pm AEST Thursday 30 April 2026.

For eligibility criteria, T&Cs and more information on how to enter, visit

The Queensland Literary Awards showcase outstanding authors from across Australia, celebrating emerging and established authors across a range of genres. Brisbane Writers Festival is proud to manage the Awards in collaboration with sponsors, the literary community, and industry partners. The Queensl...