Workshops: South Coast Readers & Writers Festival

The South Coast Readers & Writers Festival returns to Thirroul over the weekend of 5–6 July with a vibrant lineup of literary talent, from rising stars to international bestsellers. 

As part of the Festival, we're proud to present TWO exclusive workshops with festival authors Ryan Butta and Isobelle Carmody on Friday 4 July at Coledale Community Hall.

Buy tickets to the main South Coast Readers & Writers Festival weekend here.

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WRITING HISTORICAL NON-FICTION – from research to structure
Friday 4 July, 12–2pm

With experience across the full spectrum of non-fiction writing—from idea generation and research, to shaping a compelling narrative, editing, and successfully pitching to publishers—Ryan Butta, author of The Bravest Scout at Gallipoli, will bring practical insights and industry knowledge to this workshop. Whether you're starting out or refining a historical non-fiction manuscript, Ryan offers guidance grounded in experience, a journalist’s curiosity, and a storyteller’s eye.

Ryan Butta is an award-nominated author and journalist with a passion for uncovering hidden histories and bringing them vividly to life. His first work of historical non-fiction, The Ballad of Abdul Wade, was shortlisted for the 2024 South Australian Literary Awards and longlisted for the 2023 Indie Book Awards. His latest book, The Bravest Scout at Gallipoli, tells the extraordinary story of Harry Freame — a Japanese-Australian adventurer, Anzac, and spy. Ryan’s feature writing has appeared in Good Weekend Magazine and Galah Press, where he writes about the people and places of regional Australia. His work draws on deep archival research, a commitment to narrative craft, and a belief that dismantling national myths is essential to building a more honest future.

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COMPELLING FANTASY WORLDS
Friday 4 July, 3–5pm

Join renowned author Isobelle Carmody in a Fantasy workshop that will guide you through the process of building a world from the character out, creating settings that serve to advance their story, rather than merely decorating it.

Isobelle Carmody spends much of her time travelling. Although she has been writing fantasy set in other worlds and times and places, since she wrote her first book at 14, her writing always drawn on reality, and her travels are very much a part of her writing process. She uses both realism and the fantastic, to create compelling worlds and characters.

Participants in this workshop will undertake practical steps that draw on their own lives and experiences to build both compelling settings and characters shaped by an exploration of their own questions and concerns in the real world. This approach enables the creation of genuinely original and compelling fantasy, rather than being fantasy that is little more than a re arrangement of tired fantasy tropes.

Isobelle Carmody is a multi-award-winning Australian author who has written over 40 novels and many short stories. She has illustrated eight books and her work has been translated into many languages. She recently completed a PhD at the University of Queensland, followed by 18 months of Postgraduate research. Her most recent work is Comes the Night, which has been shortlisted for the Indi Book Awards. She is currently working on Darkbane, the third in her Legendsong series, and a graphic novel called Saltsong.