This winter, come and experience the cool climate of the Southern Highlands, the perfect setting for the 2025 Southern Highlands Writers’ Festival (SHWF). Now in our fourteenth year, the annual SHWF is one of the most popular and much-loved events on the Highlands’ calendar.

The 2025 SHWF will take place on Friday 25th, Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th July at the iconic Empire Cinemas in Bowral, only 90 mins drive from Sydney and Canberra.

THE 2025 LINEUP

FRIDAY 26 JULY

Dr Jacqueline Kent in Conversation

10:30am – 11:30am
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Acclaimed biographer Dr Jacqueline Kent’s latest work, Inconvenient Women: Australian radical writers 1900-1970, traces the stories of trailblazing women writers who challenged the nation’s status quo, including Ruth Park, Christina Stead and Oodgeroo Noonuuccal (Kath Walker).

Helen Trinca in Conversation

12:30pm – 1:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

In Looking for Elizabeth, journalist Helen Trinca asks why Elizabeth Harrower – one of Australia’s most important authors – stopped writing at the height of her powers. Helen unravels this mystery, bringing to life a fascinating era in Australian culture.

Dr Lauren Samuelsson in Conversation

2:30pm – 3:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Dr Lauren Samuelsson’s award-winning work includes Australian cultural history, popular culture and gender history. In A Matter of Taste, Lauren examines the history of The Australian Women’s Weekly and its influence on our food and culture.

Nikki Gemmell in Conversation

4:30pm – 5:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Nikki Gemmell is the best-selling author of thirteen novels and four works of non-fiction including the international sensation The Bride Stripped Bare. Now, two decades later, comes Wing, another incendiary novel about what it means to be a woman today.

Every Little Thing - Film Screening & Discussion

7:30pm – 9:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Every Little Thing, by Australian filmmaker Sally Aitken, is a compelling and uplifting documentary about the beauty of hummingbirds. This visually stunning film shows how rich a life can be when guided by compassion and care.

SATURDAY 27 JULY

Adam Courtenay in Conversation

10:30am – 11:30am
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Journalist Adam Courtenay’s new memoir My Father Bryce examines the life of one of Australia’s highest-selling authors, Bryce Courtenay. From his first book, The Power of One, Bryce captivated readers. With his third, April Fool's Day, he captured their hearts.

Dr Anita Heiss AM in Conversation

12:30pm – 1:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Dr Anita Heiss AM is one of Australia’s most prolific and well-known authors publishing across a range of genres. Her latest work Dirrayawadha (Rise Up) explores the love, resilience and resistance of the Wiradyuri people during the Frontier Wars.

Dr Hayley Scrivenor in Conversation

2:30pm – 3:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Dr Hayley Scrivenor brings us Girl Falling, her compelling second novel after the #1 Australian bestseller Dirt Town. Hayley is a former Director of Wollongong Writers’ Festival and holds a PhD in Creative Writing from the University of Wollongong.

Kat T. Masen, Elle Thorpe & Mila Young in Conversation

4:30pm – 5:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Romance is one of the fastest-growing genres with sales surging. Three popular romance authors explain how platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube (BookTok, Bookstagram, BookTube) have boosted popularity allowing new, diverse voices to gain prominence in the genre.

SUNDAY 28 JULY

Toby Walsh in Conversation

10:30am – 11:30am
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Toby Walsh is one of the world’s leading researchers in artificial intelligence (AI). In his latest book, The Shortest History of AI, Toby presents six ideas to help understand artificial intelligence today.

Michael Visontay in Conversation

12:30pm – 1:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Journalist Michael Visontay explores the maverick who broke up the world’s greatest book, the Gutenberg Bible. Noble Fragments is part detective story and part memoir, as Michael tracks down pages from the broken up and rare Bible.

Blanche D’Alpuget in Conversation

2:30pm – 3:30pm
Empire Cinemas Bowral

Blanche D’Alpuget’s latest novel The Bunny Club is a racy detective story partly set in the Southern Highlands. Blanche has written biographies, novels and essays including the bestseller Robert J. Hawke: A Biography.

Booking Fees

Booking fees are charged by Humanitix and not by SHWF.

Hosting events using Humanitix directly contributes to funding a brighter future for disadvantaged kids around the world. With 100% of profits from booking fees going towards solving the world's most pressing issues. For this reason SHWF has chosen to use Humanitix as our chosen ticketing platform.

The Southern Highlands Writers' Festival acknowledges the Gundungurra and Dharawal peoples as the traditional custodians of this place we now call the Southern Highlands of NSW. We pay our respect to Elders, past, present and emerging.

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