Canberra Writers Festival

What Canberra Writers Festival does

Canberra Writers Festival is a not-for-profit literary organization headquartered in Canberra, ACT, Australia, founded in 2016. It produces an annual October festival featuring more than 65 events — author talks, panel discussions, and workshops — alongside a year-round programming series called Ginsights that extends audience engagement outside the festival window. The organization serves readers, writers, and the broader Canberra cultural community, partnering with flagship national institutions including Old Parliament House, the National Library of Australia, and the National Museum of Australia to host programming in prestigious cultural venues.

The organization operates with a small core team of approximately 5 employees under CEO Travis Green and Artistic Director Andra Putnis, with governance provided by a Board of Directors chaired by Jane O'Dwyer. It relies on volunteer support to deliver festival operations. There is no proprietary technology platform; the organization's outputs are live, in-person literary events rather than software or digital products.

Revenue is generated through three primary streams: ticketed event sales, individual donations, and corporate sponsorships and partnerships. Specific financial figures are not publicly disclosed, consistent with the organization's status as a privately funded small not-for-profit. The organization is approaching its 10th anniversary in 2026, marking a decade of sustained literary programming in the Australian Capital Territory.

Name

Canberra Writers Festival

Legal name

Canberra Writers Festival

Website

https://canberrawritersfestival.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Canberra Writers Festival is a not-for-profit literary organization founded in 2016 that runs an annual October festival of 65+ author events plus year-round Ginsights programming, partnering with national cultural institutions in Canberra to serve readers, writers, and the local cultural community.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Literary Festival Events

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events with Facilities (711310)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts & Culture Community Festivals (Multidisciplinary Arts Weeks) (MPAGAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cultural & Community Festivals (Ticketed) (THAJAFAI), Cultural Festivals & Events Organizations (BPAGAHAG), Community Theatre & Storytelling Festivals (MPAGAEAI)

Keywords

• Literary festival events
• Author talks programming
• Cultural community events
• Book launch events
• Writers festival programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Canberra

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Revenue from festival event tickets sold through Humanitix and Ferve Tickets platforms
2. Donations: Tax-deductible donations through the Australian Cultural Fund to support the festival's operations and accessibility
3. Sponsorship and Partnerships: Support from government partners, major partners, venue partners, media partners, cultural partners, impact partners and digital partners

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Canberra Writers Festival is a not-for-profit literary organization that runs a flagship annual October festival featuring 65+ ticketed events (author talks, panel discussions, book launches, masterclasses, dinners, performances) for adults, young people, and families, hosted at iconic Canberra venues. It also operates a year-round Ginsights out-of-season event series co-presented with Big River Distilling Co and MARION, featuring informal reader/writer conversations, author Q&As, cocktail events, and book signings. Tickets are sold through the festival's own Ferve Tickets platform and Humanitix.

Product overview

The Canberra Writers Festival is a not-for-profit literary organization founded in 2016 that operates primarily as an annual October event (the Canberra Writers Festival, celebrating its 10th anniversary in 2026 with the theme 'For the Love of Books') featuring 65+ events across adult, youth, and family programming including author talks, panel discussions, book launches, masterclasses, dinners, and performances. Beyond the flagship October festival, the organization runs the Ginsights year-round event series as an ongoing sub-product offering informal reader/writer conversations and cocktail events with authors at various Canberra venues. The Festival also operates a structured CWF Volunteer Program to support event delivery, and a dedicated Kids and Family Day program within the October festival. The organization does not offer a technology product, platform, or SaaS offering — it is a live events and community engagement organization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ginsights: An informal reader/writer conversation series co-presented with Big River Distilling Co and MARION, featuring author events with cocktails and book signings.

Products and services

• Canberra Writers Festival (Annual October Festival) The flagship annual literary festival held each October featuring 65+ ticketed events for adults, young people and families, including author talks, panel discussions, book launches, masterclasses, dinners and performances across Canberra's iconic national cultural institutions (Old Parliament House, National Library of Australia, National Museum of Australia, The Street Theatre).
• Ginsights A year-round out-of-season event series co-presented with Big River Distilling Co and MARION, featuring informal reader/writer conversations, author Q&As, cocktail events and book signings at venues including Olims Bar & Bistro, the National Press Club, The Street Theatre and Lerida Estate Winery.
• Kids and Family Day A dedicated program within the October festival designed for children and families, providing opportunities for kids and young people to engage with reading, writing and storytelling, including programming led by Guest Creative Director Rhiân Williams.

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Government PartnerOthersGovernment partner supporting the festival operations and accessibility initiatives
• Major PartnerGTM or Marketing PartnerPrimary commercial sponsor of the Canberra Writers Festival with major partnership status
• Old Parliament HouseOthersIconic Canberra venue partner hosting festival events in historic setting
• National Library of AustraliaOthersCultural institution venue partner for festival events
• National Museum of AustraliaOthersCultural institution venue partner hosting festival programming
• The Street TheatreOthersCanberra's dedicated street theatre venue hosting festival performances and author events
• Media PartnersGTM or Marketing PartnerMedia partner organizations providing promotional support and coverage for the festival
• Cultural PartnersStrategic or Co-development PartnerCultural organizations supporting the festival's artistic and cultural mission
• Impact PartnersStrategic or Co-development PartnerImpact-focused organizations providing strategic support and resources to the festival
• Digital PartnerTechnology or IntegrationDigital technology partner supporting the festival's online presence and operations
• Big River Distilling CocoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-presenter of Ginsights event series with signature cocktails featuring Big River Spirits at events
• MARIONcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-presenter of Ginsights event series alongside Big River Distilling Co and Canberra Writers Festival
• Paperchain BookstorecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOfficial bookselling partner providing book sales and author signing opportunities at festival events

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Melbourne Writers Festival: Long-running Victorian literary festival presenting hundreds of author events each year; directly comparable in product, audience, and revenue model (tickets, sponsorship, government support).
• Adelaide Writers Festival: South Australian literary festival attached to the broader Adelaide Festival; offers a comparable ticketed author-event experience drawing local and international writers.
• Brisbane Writers Festival: Queensland-based literary festival with a comparable program of author talks, panels, and masterclasses; competes for the same Australian author roster.
• Byron Writers Festival: Regional NSW literary festival with a strong author-event programming model and similar ticketed, panel-and-talk format; directly comparable operationally though in a different geography.
• Sydney Writers' Festival: Australia's flagship annual literary festival held in Sydney; directly comparable as a ticketed author-event festival targeting adult readers with a multi-day program and similar sponsorship/government funding model.

Broad incumbents

• Edinburgh International Book Festival: Established international book festival running parallel to Edinburgh's festival season; comparable operating model at a much larger scale, with year-round programming and ticketed author events.
• National Book Festival (Library of Congress): Large-scale annual literary festival held on the National Mall in Washington, DC; comparable mission of connecting readers with authors through free/ticketed programming, supported by institutional partners.
• Hay Festival: Global literary festival network with events in multiple countries; comparable author-event and sponsorship model, and a relevant benchmark for an established literary festival seeking to scale.

Emerging players

• Singapore Writers Festival: Asia-Pacific literary festival with multilingual programming and an expanding ticketed event format; a regional peer with comparable festival infrastructure and partnership model.

Others

• Perth Festival: Major WA multi-arts festival with a literary programming stream; broadly comparable as an Australian state-level arts festival but with a wider scope than the literary-only CWF.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cbrwritersfest
• Facebookfacebook.com/canberrawritersfestival
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/canberra-writers-festival
• Instagraminstagram.com/cbrwritersfest

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Canberra Writers Festival