Explore the 2024 Program
Explore
Student Sessions Livestream
Our Student Sessions Livestream event broadcasts the magic of the Sydney Writers’ Festival to schools in New South Wales.
With sessions led by world-renowned writers, Student Sessions is designed to bring the NSW Stage 6 English curriculum to life. Students can build on their classroom learning, extend their capacity for critical thinking, and engage in thoughtful discussion and meaningful debate – all without leaving the classroom.
Recommended for Years 10 to 12. Each session runs for 45 minutes.
You can discover more about the program below or via our digital brochure.
For a single booking of $45 per school, tune in to the following sessions as they take place in real time on Wednesday 22 May. Livestreams for individual sessions are not available for purchase.
10–10.45am: The Craft of Creative Non-Fiction with Kate Rossmanith
Kate Rossmanith is an author, essayist, and an Associate Professor at Macquarie University, where she teaches creative writing. Kate's non-fiction work includes the book, Small Wrongs, and pieces written for The Monthly, The Australian and Sydney Review of Books. Come explore the different and exciting new ways to approach creative non-fiction.
11.30am–12.15pm: The Craft of Short Fiction with Melissa Lucashenko
Melissa Lucashenko is an award-winning short story writer whose work has appeared in The Moth: Fifty True Stories, Meanjin, Griffith Review and The Monthly. Her story, 'Dreamers', is included as a prescribed text for Standard English Module C: The Craft of Writing. Also an award-winning novelist, Melissa is perfectly placed to examine the skills and approaches specific to crafting short stories.
1–1.45pm: The Craft of Poetry with Maxine Beneba Clarke and Solli Raphael
Maxine Beneba Clarke is an Australian author and slam poet of Afro-Caribbean descent. The recipient of the Ada Cambridge Poetry Prize, her poetry collection, Carrying the World, also won the 2017 Victorian Premier’s Prize for Poetry. Named an icon of 21st-century poetry, Solli Raphael has broken barriers in making poetry more accessible and relatable for everyone. He was crowned the youngest ever Australian Poetry Slam champion at only 12-years-old and his books have received accolades for their capacity to engage children and teenagers in poetry and social concerns. Together they will discuss the power of verse and share insights into their writing processes.
Presented in partnership with the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA)
