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Brisbane Writers Festival explores ‘what the world needs now’

Tens of thousands of people will descend on Queensland in September to embrace “what the world needs now” as part of the 2018 Brisbane Writers Festival.

In officially launching the Festival’s program last night, Minister for the Arts Leeanne Enoch said Brisbane Writers Festival would bring writers and literary enthusiasts from across the country and around the world.

“This wonderful festival, which reached 63,000 people last year, will allow us to get up close and personal to share our Queensland stories and hospitality with writers from across the globe,” Minister Enoch said.

“With this year’s theme ‘what the world needs now’, writers will, through their work, help audiences make sense of the world around us.

“Last year’s festival generated more than 15,400 visitors to its home at the State Library of Queensland and delivered 203 events, including an Online Literature Festival that was streamed into 69 regional schools.

“This year, big names will be coming to Queensland, including international writers Lauren Weisberger (The Devil Wears Prada), Veronica Roth (Divergent, Insurgent, and Allegiant), A J Finn (The Woman in the Window), human rights barrister Geoffrey Robertson AO QC, and South African writer Sisonke Msimang whose work focusses on race, gender and democracy.

“Well-known Australian authors will also be part of the Festival, including Dr Karl Kruszelnicki, Morris Gleitzman, Jared Thomas, Clare Atkins, Alison Goodman, Fleur Ferris, Sarah Epstein, Anita Heiss, Billy Griffiths and Brendan Lawley.

“We will also hear from Queensland talent including Melissa Lucashenko, Ashley Hay, Nick Earls, Richard Fidler, Janet Lee and Trent Dalton, whose first novel (Boy Swallows Universe) is taking the publishing world by storm.

“I’m also pleased that Queensland’s young readers will again find inspiration in the popular schools program Word Play taking students from Prep to Year 12 on a creative journey and helping to instil a life-long love of reading and writing.”

Minister Enoch said the Palaszczuk Government valued the importance of Queensland’s literary sector with support to UPLIT for the Brisbane Writers Festival through Arts Queensland’s Organisations Fund 2017–2020.

For more information, visit: https://bwf.org.au/