Celebrating it's 10th anniversary, the University of Newcastle is a founding sponsor of the Newcastle Writers Festival. It is regarded as the city’s premier cultural event and one of the largest regional literary festivals in Australia.

In 2022, the Newcastle Writers Festival returned to delivering a live program after a couple of years ‘pivoting and postponing’ due to COVID 19 with an audience of 6000 across 70 events and 110 authors.

The College of Human and Social Futures contributes essential funding to the annual festival, and our academics and students contribute program ideas, participate in panel discussions and facilitate sessions.

As Festival Director Rosemarie Milsom states: “The Festival and the University are both committed to creativity and critical thinking. When I first began planning the inaugural event in 2012, I felt strongly that the University - of which I am a graduate - was an essential partner. It has been a meaningful journey; one that has enlivened the Festival program and engaged our audiences."

The festival also creates exciting real-world learning opportunities for our creative writing students.  Students have participated as panelists and volunteers; they have also had opportunities to attend masterclasses hosted by guest writers. This has allowed them to make connections with nationally recognised writers and to have a platform for sharing their own work with large audiences.

The University’s ongoing support of the festival has contributed to enhanced programming and given our staff, students and alumni access to specialist knowledge and a wide range of free programs. As the festival continues to grow in scale, it makes positive contributions to our local community and increases pride.

Academic staff, Higher Degree Research students and alumni from across the University featured in the 2022 program, including Stockton Monuments and Memoryscapes: A walking tour which involves academic staff in Sociology and Anthropology collaborating with colleagues and HDR students in Creative Writing, Time is Like a River which involves staff in the discipline of History, Mother Tongue including staff from the Wollotuka Institute and Stories to Change the World, a panel which includes a solicitor at the University of Newcastle Legal Centre and Creative Writing HDR student.

Many of our University alumni are also involved in the Festival, including two recent PhD graduates in Creative Writing who were involved as guest curators this year and a PhD student in Communication who is employed as the Festival’s Digital Manager.

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