Set to take place on 30-31 May 2025 in Townsville, this inspiring not-for-profit initiative will open with a Welcome to Wulgurukaba Country. Artists, storytellers and creatives from across the Greater Pacific and beyond will be brought together. Through books and storytelling, the festival showcases the incredible talent and contributions of First Nations people – in their own voices.
Anna Borzi, First Nations Writers Festival Founder said, “When you raise one author, you raise a community.”
The two-day festival will feature an exciting lineup of activities, including:
- The launch of eight new books and appearances from nine award-winning authors
- The announcement of prestigious FNWF Awards, such as the ‘Story Ambassador’ and ‘Living Treasure’ awards
- The Supper Club on the first evening – a unique networking experience
- Special guests, including internationally recognised Disney choreographer and award-winning performer Peter Rockford Espiritu, who hails from Hawaii and will serve as the master of ceremonies
This year’s event will once again welcome published authors, including John W Kuri (2023 Book Award), Marlene dee Gray Potoura (2024 Book Award), Richard Napam (2024 Book Award) and many more. Highly anticipated is another VIP speaker, Aunty Bea Ballangarry, a Gumbaynggirr woman famous for her healing circles, poetry and stories.
The FNWF has become a pivotal platform for Indigenous narratives, sparking cross-cultural conversations and helping preserve the rich tradition of First Nations storytelling for generations to come.
The following books have already been launched in the past year thanks to First Nations Writers Festival. There will be new award winners revealed in this year’s event.
‘Crybaby’ by Mabel Gibson
CryBaby is a debut collection of micro-memoirs which chronicles the artistic growth of Mabel. Moving across the distinct landscapes of Albany, Geraldton and Perth, these short autobiographical stories chart Mabel’s life, from the age of two to twenty-four. They tell her story as a Yamatji woman who, in the consuming storms of personal challenges and grief, finds her voice and strength as a writer. In a style that is riveting, honest and relatable, Mabel’s stories address issues that affect all young people – mental health, love, loss and accepting the unfixed nature of identity. The collection’s dreamy and fragmented structure, with unvarnished layers of truth and insight, will leave you breathless and in awe of this exciting new talent in Australian writing.
This is the first flash memoir by a First Nations writer published in Australia – a deeply emotional coming-of-age story.
According to journalist/writer Gillian O’Shaughnessy, “Crybaby’s intricately woven memories brim with courage and truth. Embedded in these stories is the insistent heartbeat of unrelenting love. An astounding debut from an extraordinary new talent. Raw and wild and profoundly moving.”
‘Remembering, Father and Me’ by Marlene Dee Gray Potoura
In her book, Marlene shares the story of her father and others, 34 years after her father’s passing. They are enveloped by the spiritual life of the peoples and the great majesty of their forest lands – from a rich culture born from millennia of living in paradise and ancient knowledge.
Marlene lost her father to an assassination during the Bougainville Crisis that saw friends, families, clans and countries riven by greed and power.
Based in PNG, Marlene started writing to heal, and became a prolific author, recording her culture and the surrounding spiritual world.
Stunned by Light’ by Richard Napam
This book delves into a family living deep in the Papua New Guinea [PNG] highlands – their journey as they live a traditional life, with conflicts and challenges, love and loss, new children, communities and celebrations throughout a lifetime. The arrival of colonisation is captured, with its new teachings, new ways of living, contrasting values, and the new imagining of a future.
Richard was born and raised in Mt Hagen, Western Highlands Province of PNG. He later graduated from the University of Papua New Guinea with a Bachelor of Economics degree. He works as an economist with the Bank of Papua New Guinea and lives in Port Moresby. He is from the Yano tribe in the Tambul Nebilyer district. Stunned by Light is Napam’s first, and award-winning, novel.
