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Blak & Bright First Nations Literary Festival acknowledges the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people of the Kulin Nation as the traditional custodians of the sacred lands on which we work. We pay our respects to the people of the Kulin Nations and all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders, past present and future.

We recognise all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as the first storytellers; and that knowledge transfer through storytelling is imbedded in the very DNA of this Country.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this website may contain images, voices or names of deceased persons in photographs, film, audio recordings or printed material.

January 2023

First Nations Writing Groups 2023

A Blak & Bright callout:

Let’s make 2023 the year to get stronger!

We’re set to host a year of Blak writing groups. If you’re an emerging or established writer looking to polish your work to get published, send us your expression of interest; and we’ll forward you a survey to gauge the days and times that suit you.

At this stage the groups will start in February and happen every fortnight: online or in person. We also plan on inviting the best of the best guest facilitators to meet your inspirational needs.

Principles of the Writing Group

§  We intend this space, whether online or in person, should be a culturally safe space for First Nations writers to explore their craft, build skills and increase confidence

§  Bullying or lateral violence will not be tolerated

§  All genres of writing will be supported

§  Guest facilitators will be appointed based on the needs of the group

§  First Nations guest facilitators will be preferred, unless there is an area of interest where a First Nation person cannot be sourced

How it will work

§  Groups will be set online, to take place via Google Meet or Zoom TBC

§  A facilitator will be available during the session to ensure everyone can log on and to timekeep the segments of the session

§  Guest facilitators will be scheduled for every second session

§  The first 30 minutes of the two-hour session will consist of warm up writing exercises

§  Each session a member of the writing group will provide a couple of writing prompts to start the session. Be prepared with your prompts

§  Writers will write to the prompts for 5 – 10 minutes then share what they have written

§  Positive, constructive feedback is encouraged between members

§  The middle hour of the session will consist of writers working on their own projects 

§  In the last 30 minutes of the session writers are invited to read 10 minutes of content and get feedback from other members. Not all writers will have the opportunity to share each session so these opportunities should be shared fairly.