TAF2023 | SYDNEY WRITERS’ FESTIVAL LIVE&LOCAL

FOR SOUTHERN TASMANIA

HUONVILLE LIBRARY, HUONVILLE
THURSDAY 25, FRIDAY 26 AND SATURDAY 27 MAY 2023

Hosted by Terror Australis Readers and Writers Festival. Thanks to the generosity of our partners at Huonville Library, in 2023 our SWF L&L sessions are free.

Please click here for tickets.

Sydney Writers’ Festival is returning to southern Tasmania in 2023!

Following a wonderful three-day program in 2022, the Terror Australis Readers and Writers Festival (TARWF) is once again hosting Sydney Writers’ Festival Live&Local program for southern Tasmania, bringing the best of the Festival direct to you.

One of Australia’s most loved forums for literature, ideas and storytelling, Sydney Writers’ Festival will live-stream its headline events from Sydney to Huonville Library on Thursday 25, Friday 26 and Saturday 27 May.

Prepare to be invigorated and engaged by conversations, debates and discussions featuring some of the world’s finest writers and thinkers.

Audiences can also participate in live Q&A sessions at each event, sending questions straight to the Sydney stage.

Join us for Live & Local 2023, streamed live by Sydney Writers’ Festival and delivered locally to southern Tasmania by TARWF, in partnership with Huonville Library.

Thanks to the generosity of our partners at Huonville Library, in 2023 we're once again able to offer seats at Sydney Writers’ Festival Live&Local sessions in southern Tasmania for free.

Please click here for tickets.

The Panel Sessions

There’ll be an opportunity to send questions live to the panels across all 12 sessions.

Sessions will run for an hour, with Tasmanian literary trivia between some sessions and a chance to stretch your legs.

DAY 1, THURSDAY 25 MAY 2023

JANE HARPER: EXILES, 10:00–11:00AM

Internationally acclaimed crime writer Jane Harper discusses Exiles, the thrilling and likely final instalment of novels following investigator Aaron Falk, with Michaela Kalowski.

RICHARD FIDLER: THE BOOK OF ROADS & KINGDOMS, 12:00–1:00PM

Much-loved radio host and author Richard Fidler delves into The Book of Roads & Kingdoms, his account of medieval wanderers during Islam’s Golden Age. He is joined by Caroline Baum.

GERALDINE BROOKS: HORSE, 2:00–3:00PM

Pulitzer Prize–winning author and journalist Geraldine Brooks sheds light on her best-selling novel, Horse, a sweeping historical saga of spirit, obsession and racial injustice, in conversation with Nicole Abadee.

GEORGE MONBIOT: REGENESIS, 4:00–5:00PM

Bestselling British author and activist George Monbiot shares insight into Regenesis: Feeding the World Without Devouring the Planet, his hopeful account of how we might rethink our faltering food system, live via video in conversation with Rebecca Huntley.

DAY 2, FRIDAY 26 MAY 2023

BRINGING THE PAST TO LIFE, 10:00–11:00AM

Celebrated historical novelists Geraldine Brooks and Pip Williams and newcomer Sally Colin-James share their insights into drawing from the past to understand the present and the future, in a panel event hosted by ABC RN’s Kate Evans.

ELEANOR CATTON: BIRNAM WOOD, 12:00–1:00PM

The Booker Prize–winning author of The Luminaries, Eleanor Catton, discusses her keenly anticipated thriller Birnam Wood with Beejay Silcox.

MICHAEL KIRBY & BO SEO, 2:00–3:00PM

Two-time world debating champion and Good Arguments author Bo Seo and former High Court justice Michael Kirby examine how to better listen and disagree with each other in an era of divisive public debate.

COLSON WHITEHEAD: HARLEM SHUFFLE, 4:00–5:00PM

Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist Colson Whitehead discusses his acclaimed novel Harlem Shuffle and its forthcoming follow- up, Crook Manifesto, with interviewer Michael Williams.

DAY 3, SATURDAY 27 MAY 2023

A LIFE IN FOOD: STEPHANIE ALEXANDER AND MAGGIE BEER, 10:00–11:00AM

Culinary icons Stephanie Alexander and Maggie Beer reflect on their decades-long friendship and decorated careers, which have transformed how Australians think about food, with interviewer Adam Liaw.

CRIME AND JUSTICE, 12:00–1:00PM

Helen Garner and Hedley Thomas discuss their approaches to writing about crime and how they grapple with questions of justice, in conversation with Sarah Krasnostein.

GREAT ADAPTATIONS, 2:00–3:00PM

Bestselling authors Eleanor Catton, Holly Ringland and Tom Rob Smith share the ins and outs of bringing work from the page to the screen, in conversation with Benjamin Law.

PIP WILLIAMS: THE BOOKBINDER OF JERICHO, 4:00–5:00PM

Author of bestselling The Dictionary of Lost Words, Pip Williams introduces her sweeping new novel, The Bookbinder of Jericho, in conversation with Cassie McCullagh.

Tickets

Thanks to the generosity of our partners at Huonville Library, in 2023 our SWF L&L sessions are free.

Please only choose sessions you will genuinely attend.

Please note attendees will be asked to adhere to library and festival COVID-19 safety protocols, including no food or drink (other than water) in the viewing room.

Please click here for tickets.

The Venue

Huonville Library, at 1 Skinner Drive Huonville, is a 30 minute drive from the Hobart CBD. There are multiple free car parks around the library; please observe all parking signs as required.

There is also a bus stop directly outside the library. This stop, Huonville, is a single bus ride from Hobart City Interchange.

There’s a private garden to the side of the library where you can enjoy a cuppa or perhaps lunch. While we can’t offer any catering, please feel free to bring a thermos, pack a picnic basket, or wander one street over to the cafes on Main St between sessions.

We ask that you do not open any containers of food while in the room, please, to allow for attendees with severe food allergies.

COVID-19 Safety

Due to TARWF’s ongoing COVID-19 safety measures for all participants, there are a maximum of 30 seats available per session.

Please do not attend if you have any signs or symptoms of a cold or flu, or COVID-19. If you are obviously ill you may be asked to leave.

Terror Australis Readers and Writers Festival would like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land on which our festival is held, the Melukerdee People of the South East Nation, and pay our respects to Elders past and present.