Byron Writers Festival 2026: Workshops, Panels and a Place for Indie Authors Too

July 11, 2026

Byron Writers Festival returns to the heart of Byron Bay this 14 to 16 August – that’s 30 years of Australia’s largest regional writers festival! This year’s theme is ‘Sanctuary’, and after last year’s devastating mid-festival washout at Bangalow, there will be great new stages and indoor venues throughout Byron itself. Yes, I’m keen!

Byron Writers Festival also runs year-round development programs for local writers, from mentorships to masterclasses, and it’s been great meeting many of these writers at workshops in previous years and seeing their projects come to fruition!

Where you’ll find me at the festival

In addition to sitting in the crowd over the weekend soaking up words and ideas from more than 100 fabulous Australian and international writers, (including everyone from Richard Flanagan and Richard Fidler to Booker Prize winner Geetanjali Shree, Trent Dalton, Evelyn Araluen, Luke Bateman, Osher Günsberg, Antoun Issa, Siang Lu, Melissa Lucashenko, Steve MinOn, Tasma Walton, Michael Winkler and others), you’ll find me at:

Writing Workshop: Believing You Can

When: Friday 14 August, 8:45am to 9:45am
Where: Wategos Room, Byron Community Centre
This session is for any author or hope-to-be-authors! You’ll leave with a clearer head, a fuller heart, and the permission to create. A great way to start your festival experience.

The Future of Self Publishing

When: Friday 14 August, 10:15am to 11:15am
Where: Wategos Room, Byron Community Centre
Chairing this one, I’ll be joined by IngramSpark’s global team of Paige Allen, Ben Hughes and Chris Munnery, and we’ll be digging into where self-publishing is heading and what it means for authors (trad, indie and hybrid) right now.

Fractured Motherhood

When: Friday 14 August, 1:15pm to 2:15pm
Where: Wategos Room, Byron Community Centre
Come and hear Maggie Walters discuss her second memoir, Fractured Motherhood, about living with Dissociative Identity Disorder (previously called Multiple Personality Disorder), and facing her past while trying to build a different future for her children. Maggie’s first memoir SPLIT was a hit at the festival two years ago.

Keen to go deeper on the practical side? The IngramSpark team is also running a Self Publishing Nuts & Bolts session (11:45am to 12:45pm) covering book file uploads, international price setting and how to use their print on demand platform. This is a good session to attend not just for indie authors, but if you’re from a community group or organisation too as they will also discuss how Kinchela Boys Home Aboriginal Corporation used the platform to create a small educational resource.

Why self-publishing belongs on the program

Byron Writers Festival includes self-publishing on the program because they see it firsthand through their members: developing as a writer and doing all the right things doesn’t automatically lead to a traditional book deal. And a traditional deal isn’t always what a writer wants or needs anyway. Many impactful books don’t necessarily come from traditional publishers, a topic explored in this recent post, which is why it matters that festival-goers can hear about every publishing pathway open to them.

Thinking about attending a writers festival this year?

Writers festivals cost time and money. I’ve found they repay both. The sessions are the drawcard, but the connections, the ideas and the renewed commitment to your own project are what you take home.

Written a couple of festivals ago, I still feel this:

Can’t get to Byron? There’s likely a festival closer to home. Browse this state-by-state list of Australian writers festivals so you can plan for the rest of 2026, or plan ahead for 2027!

Tickets and the full Byron program are at byronwritersfestival.com. Hope to see you there. Come say hello!