The 2025 Sydney Writers’ Festival (SWF) officially unveils its program today, delivering an engaging week of literary discussion and courageous storytelling across Sydney, 19–27 May 2025. Vital conversations will take place at 200+ events; with 40+ international guests and 100+ Australian authors participating. Of these authors, 34 will be releasing brand new books in 2025.
Artistic Director Ann Mossop said, “Sydney Writers’ Festival is a place for brilliant writing and urgent conversations. Under the theme In This Together, the 2025 Festival highlights extraordinary novels, poetry and writing of all kinds—and thought-provoking discussions.”
“Writing remains one of the most powerful tools to make sense of the world, to spark change and foster understanding. The 2025 Festival presents great writers discussing a range of important topics: from the future of artificial intelligence to feminism’s next battleground; from monumental global power shifts to First Nations truth-telling. The SWF program brings readers and writers together and challenges us to think, feel, and imagine what lies ahead,” said Mossop.
FREE EVENTS
The SWF offers audiences over 50 FREE events across Sydney, with more than 30 featuring at Carriageworks. Here are a few:
Returning for 2025 is the beloved Curiosity Lecture Series (22–23 May), supported by UNSW Sydney:
Toby Walsh on the Six Ideas You Need to Understand AI
Joe Aston on What He Learned about Qantas
Adam Bayes on Mind-Altering Mental Health
Linda Jaivin on the Cultural Revolution in China
Kerrie Davies on Miles Franklin's Little-Known Years
Norman Swan on What’s Good for Your Kids
Marcel Dirsus on How Tyrants Rise (and Fall)
Luke McNamara on Hate Speech and the Law
Andrew Leigh and Richard Holden on Inequality
Jess Hill on Stopping Family Violence
George Megalogenis on the New Shape of Australian Politics
Family Day returns on Sunday, 26 May, with a full program of talks, activities and performances for young readers, including storytelling sessions, live author events, a visit from Taronga Zoo animals, and an illustrator showdown. Costa Georgiadis from Gardening Australia and Pete Helliar introduce their latest books. And the family-friendly ABC Kids podcast Story Salad is performed live, with everything from a cartooning workshop to the retelling of Greek myths and even an attempt to break a world record.
Dreaming Inside: First Nations Voices from Correctional Centres (22 May), amplifies First Nations voices from inside. Sista’s Green Sea Dreaming: Voices from Dillwynia Women’s Prison and Dreaming Inside: Voices from Junee Correctional Centre explore themes of family, justice, resilience, and identity.
Firetalk (28 May – 11 June) presented in partnership with Vivid Sydney, is a free one-of-a-kind open-air storytelling event set against the flickering glow of the Bon(d)fire Vivid Light installation; starring Wiradjuri poet and activist Jazz Money alongside other First Nations writers, poets, and songwriters.
Humour Me (25 May) sees Richard Glover announce the 2025 winner of the Russell Prize for Humour Writing. The only Australian award recognising humour writing across fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and short stories.
The full Sydney Writers’ Festival 2025 program can be found online at swf.org.au.
Sydney Writers’ Festival runs from 19–27 May 2025. Tickets are on sale from 10am Saturday 15 March. Please call 02 9256 4200 or visit swf.org.au for more information or to book.
Event Details:
Dates: 19-27 May 2025
Location: Carriageworks