Writing WA

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Writing WA Writing WA is the peak body for writing and associated activities in Western Australia
http://www.writingwa.org

We believe that writing should be an industry of opportunity and the promotion of sustainable professional practice for writers is embedded in all that we do.

Are you a member of a WA writers’ centre? You can now join Writing WA for just $10.We’re offering discounted individual ...
21/10/2026

Are you a member of a WA writers’ centre? You can now join Writing WA for just $10.

We’re offering discounted individual Writing WA membership to members of participating writers’ centres across Western Australia, making it easier to connect with the wider writing community and access the benefits of both organisations.

A Writing WA membership gives you the opportunity to:
• Promote Your Profile: Increase your visibility by promoting your books, services, and events through Writing WA’s noticeboard, newsletter, social media channels, and member networks.
• Discover Opportunities: Discover professional development, events, workshops, grants, competitions, residencies, and calls for submissions through Writing WA’s member communications. Be the first to access Writing WA programs like Love to Read Local.
• Connect with Others: Build connections across WA’s writing community by joining a network of writers, publishers, editors, booksellers, libraries, and writers’ centres.
• Stay Informed: Keep up to date with industry news, advocacy, policy changes, and sector developments from Australia’s writing community.
• Shape the Future: Become a part of the collective voice advocating for WA’s literary community. Participate in member consultations and vote at the Annual General Meeting.

For those not yet a member of a writers' centre, joining your local centre is a great way to meet other writers, take part in workshops and events and develop your writing craft.

Eligible writers’ centres include:
• Fellowship of Australian Writers WA
• KSP Writers’ Centre
• Peter Cowan Writers Centre
• Rockingham Writers Centre
• Society of Women Writers WA
• Writers of the Coral Coast

Follow your local writers’ centre to discover more about the support and opportunities available to WA writers.

Please note: The $10 membership offer is available to eligible writers’ centre members who are new to Writing WA. It is not available to existing Writing WA members.

Join now at writingwa.org/join

Winners of the 2026 ARA Historical Novel Prize were announced in Sydney last night, with Western Australian authors Bern...
16/10/2026

Winners of the 2026 ARA Historical Novel Prize were announced in Sydney last night, with Western Australian authors Bernice Barry and Meg Caddy winning their respective categories.

Margaret River-based author Bernice Barry won the $100,000 prize for The Names of a Hare, which follows an unnamed woman in 17th-century Cornwall as she is pursued by a witch-hunter.

Meg Caddy won the $30,000 prize for a book for younger readers with their young adult novel A Flash in the Dust, about two young people escaping from Fremantle Asylum.

Awarded by the Historical Novel Society Australasia, the ARA Historical Novel Prize recognises novels set more than 50 years in the past and is one of Australia’s richest literary prizes.

Congratulations to Bernice and Meg on this wonderful achievement!

Love Your Bookshop Day was on Saturday 10 October, and it was wonderful to see so many Western Australian readers, write...
15/10/2026

Love Your Bookshop Day was on Saturday 10 October, and it was wonderful to see so many Western Australian readers, writers and publishers celebrating their local bookshops. WA is lucky to have so many wonderful independent bookshops, and we’re glad to see our literary community celebrating them.

Looking for your next read? Check out our list of some of the independent bookshops across WA and pay your local bookshop a visit.

Writing WA is excited to share our next Love to Read Local event for 2026, Writing Comedy with Stephen B Platt, hosted b...
14/10/2026

Writing WA is excited to share our next Love to Read Local event for 2026, Writing Comedy with Stephen B Platt, hosted by .

Join Premier’s Book Awards shortlisted author Stephen B. Platt as he delves into the world of comedy writing in fiction. Whether you’re writing a comedy or trying to inject humour into another genre, this workshop is for you.

Event Details:
Date: Saturday, 7 November 2026
Time: 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Tickets: Free for KSP Members, $10 for non-members
This project is supported by the Copyright Agency's Cultural Fund.

Thank you to everyone who submitted an Expression of Interest for the 2026–27 Love to Read Local program. We are pleased...
07/10/2026

Thank you to everyone who submitted an Expression of Interest for the 2026–27 Love to Read Local program.

We are pleased to announce that 18 events will be supported across Western Australia, with events delivered through five writers centres, six libraries and Community Resource Centres, and four other venues, including bookshops and community venues. Eight of the funded events are in regional locations, helping bring literary access to communities across the state. The program also reflects the diversity of WA’s writing community, with funded projects spanning children’s literature, crime, comedy, graphic novels, poetry and more. The funded events include five half-day workshops, seven panels, one in-conversation, and five author presentations, providing a total of 34 fees for writers and panel curators and conveners. We’re looking forward to sharing more about the funded events as they come together, with activities taking place through to June 2027.

This project is supported by the Copyright Agency’s Cultural Fund.

Totally Lit is bringing some amazing Western Australian crime writing talent inside the walls of Fremantle Prison for a ...
03/10/2026

Totally Lit is bringing some amazing Western Australian crime writing talent inside the walls of Fremantle Prison for a series of panel events and discussions that will pull the curtain back on everything from international crime to techno-crime. On Friday 9 and Saturday 10 October you can attend sessions featuring an amazing cohort of writers including WA Premier's Book Award-winner David Whish-Wilson, popular favourites Alan Carter, Sara Foster and Ruth McIver as well as new voices in WA crime writing such as Emma Pignatiello and Meg Caddy. Local authors will be joined by lawyers, barristers, journalists, a retired Supreme Court judge, WA's Attorney-General and some impressive interstate and overseas writers.

For more information and booking links check out Prime Crime (Fri evening, 9 Oct) https://totallylit.au/program/prime-crime/ and Crime Time https://totallylit.au/program/stream/crime-time/, a full day of events on Sat 10 Oct.

Writing WA is pleased to welcome Mikaela Castledine to its Board of Management.Mikaela Castledine is a professional arti...
23/09/2026

Writing WA is pleased to welcome Mikaela Castledine to its Board of Management.

Mikaela Castledine is a professional artist and writer born in the WA Wheatbelt and living in the Perth Hills. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Science, a Certificate in Interior Design and a Master of Arts in Literature and Writing. Since 1994, she and her husband have run an award-winning design and fine art partnership.

WA has a lot to be proud of when it comes to youth-led literary publishing, with a growing mix of new and established jo...
17/09/2026

WA has a lot to be proud of when it comes to youth-led literary publishing, with a growing mix of new and established journals creating space for young writers and artists to put their work into the world.

These publications speak to the energy and ambition of WA’s emerging literary culture, showing a generation actively making, publishing and sharing creative work and using their platforms to explore social and cultural questions.

Congratulations to the winners of the 2026 Western Australian Premier’s Book Awards, announced at the State Library on F...
14/09/2026

Congratulations to the winners of the 2026 Western Australian Premier’s Book Awards, announced at the State Library on Friday night.

Book of the Year & Emerging Writer of the Year: CryBaby by Mabel Gibson
Children’s Book of the Year: Creature Clinic by Gavin Aung Than
Young Adult Book of the Year: A Murder is Going Down by Kate Emery
Fiction Book of the Year: O’Keefe by David Whish-Wilson
Non-Fiction Book of the Year: Tjukurrpa Kurranyu, Tjukurrpa in the Front by Jan Turner and Dr Lizzie Marrkilyi Giles Ellis
Dr Charmaine Papertalk Green Smith Poetry Prize: Past & Parallel Lives by Kaya Ortiz
Daisy Utemorrah Award: Barefoot Running by Amanda Lott

The Premier’s Book Awards showcase the diversity of Western Australian writing and celebrate the writers that contribute to our literary culture.

Congratulations to all the winners and shortlisted writers, and thank you to the State Library for hosting the awards.

Looking for time and space to focus on your writing? Applications are open for a range of upcoming residencies and fello...
11/09/2026

Looking for time and space to focus on your writing?

Applications are open for a range of upcoming residencies and fellowships for Australian writers, including opportunities in WA, interstate and overseas.

Swipe through for four opportunities with applications closing in September and October 2026.

Address

Ground Floor, Alexander Library Building, Perth Cultural Centre, 25 Francis Street
Perth, WA
6000

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

08 9228 9908

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