A book left behind in an airport taxi learns worrisome secrets about its readers. A newly acclaimed painter tracks down every person she's ever loved and puts them on canvas, forcing herself to really see other people, even if this means risking finally seeing herself. A grieving woman follows a guidebook through Switzerland and gathers, at every stop, a connection to an artist or artwork that guides her way.
Join Angela O’Keeffe, Joseph Earp and Claire Thomas as they discuss their inventive, tender and compelling novels, stories that are as much about their enduring fascination with art and literature as they are about their protagonists. Considering voice, character and history, let these brilliant authors expand your own understanding of creativity, in conversation with editor and writer Grace Lucas-Penngington.
Angela O'Keeffe completed a Master of Arts in Writing at UTS, and her first novel, Night Blue, was shortlisted for the UTS Glenda Adams Award for New Writing and the Prime Minister's Literary Awards. Her latest novel is Phantom Days.
Claire Thomas is the author of The Performance, which was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award. Claire's third novel On Not Climbing Mountains was written with the support of a residency at the Fondation Jan Michalski in Montricher, Switzerland.
Grace Lucas-Pennington is a Bundjalung editor, mentor and writer.
Joseph Earp is a writer, painter, philosopher and journalist. His debut novel Painting Portraits of Everyone I've Ever Dated was released by Pantera Press. He is the recipient of the Sydney Morning Herald's Best Young Australian Novelists prize, and a two-time nominee for the Peter Carey Short Story Award.
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Tickets to main program events are included in weekend and day passes. Single tickets may be available from September 8, subject to availability.
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This venue is wheelchair accessible, and AUSLAN interpreters are available upon request. Please email hello@bluemountainswritersfestival.com.au if you have any accessibility requests or wish to book an AUSLAN interpreter. More info about accessibility can be found on our Accessibility page.