Cairns Tropical Writers Festival

    The Cairns Institute celebrates the literature of North Queensland at every opportunity, and the 2023 Cairns Tropical Writers Festival on 25-26 February was the ultimate literary rave-up.

    Massive crowds flocked to a vibrant, multifaceted program designed to both inspire local readers and writers, and to showcase regional storytelling across a range of genres.

    TCI Postgraduate Research Fellow, Elizabeth Smyth, volunteered to support two inspiring workshops – one lead by JCU Adjunct Professor and Life Governor of the Foundation for Australian Literary Studies, Stephen Torre, and another by University of South Australia Professor Craig Batty.

    Participants found themselves writing flash fiction, practicing scriptwriting for a TV series, and considering how great literary works have been reimagined. For example, Barbara Kingsolver’s
    Demon Copperhead (2022) is an acknowledged contemporary take on Charles Dicken’s mid-nineteenth century novel, David Copperfield.

    These much-loved Festival workshops were followed by the launch of the 9th Tropical Writers anthology, On Butterfly Wings. Tropical Writers is an energetic community group committed to supporting local authors and aims to publish an anthology every two years.

    As a third-time contributor, Elizabeth was thrilled to be involved.
    ‘The anthology offers important literary representations of life in the North. Regional literature is often marginalised, despite its centrality to life in the regions. This situation makes Tropical Writers a vital community group, and the anthology acts as an antidote to excessive metropolitan self-interest. 

    ‘Added to this, there remains an insatiable need for many people to understand what it means to be Australian. This understanding depends on having a vision or imaginary of life in the regions. Such conceptualisations are crucial to resolving contemporary issues, both environmental and social. For this reason as well, giving readers access to the many voices across regional Australia is invaluable.’

    Elizabeth’s role was part of a strong community volunteer program, which TCI Program Coordinator, Jennifer McHugh volunteered to help coordinate. This was an incredible contribution, given the record numbers of people drawn to this wonderfully stimulating and at times rumbustious event.

    Elizabeth plans to give a Pre-Completion Seminar in May and submit her thesis titled ‘Re-Imagining the Australian Farm Novel: Writing Magic Realism into the Georgic’ in July.

    For more information, contact Elizabeth.Smyth@my.jcu.edu.au

    Back to List


    More News


    Western Cape Futures Symposium Update

    Western Cape Futures Symposium Update

    The future of the Western Cape York region was the focus of the recent symposium in Weipa which attracted around 200 people attended across 2.5 days. To date, much of the focus on Northern Australia h...

    Read More

    International Outreach

    International Outreach

    The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander International Engagement Organisation (ATSIIEO) has successfully begun its foray into the international sphere in advocacy of Indigenous responses to cli...

    Read More

    Falling From The Sky Symposium & Exhibition

    Falling From The Sky Symposium & Exhibition

    The SymposiumAssociate Professor Robyn Glade-Wright convened the Falling from the Sky Symposium earlier this month on Nguma Bada campus at Smithfield. Participants were diversely represented; from aca...

    Read More

    Making Your Research Open Access

    Making Your Research Open Access

    JCU Scholarly Communications Manager Jayshree Mamtora recently presented to The Cairns Institute researchers on why there is a strong global push from government, research agencies and funde...

    Read More

    Hello from Samoa!

    Hello from Samoa!

    PhD Candidate Tanya Volentras arrived into Samoa for fieldwork and sent us her reflections. Her supervisors are Professor Rosita Henry and Associate Professor Simon Foale. Arriving in the early mornin...

    Read More

    Memories of the Kiaps Project

    Memories of the Kiaps Project

    A group of researchers at James Cook University (JCU), the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) and PNG’s National Research Institute (NRI) are seeking interested former kiaps (both Austra...

    Read More

    TNQ Hub Update

    TNQ Hub Update

    The Tropical North Queensland Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hub (TNQ Hub), led by JCU, is paving the way to deliver drought resilience activities in tropical north Queensland. The TN...

    Read More

    Social Sciences for the Reef Symposium

    Social Sciences for the Reef Symposium

    In collaboration with the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA), University of Queensland (UQ), Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial ...

    Read More

    Top

    © 2023 The Cairns Institute | Site Map | Site by OracleStudio | Design by LeoSchoepflin