The South Coast Readers & Writers Festival returns to Thirroul over the weekend of 5–6 July with a vibrant lineup of literary talent. General admission and single session tickets for the festival program are on sale now, featuring local voices, return guests, and internationally bestselling authors.
Join us at the festival for gripping and challenging conversations, tales ancient and new, poetry readings, current affairs, and insights into the business of publishing. Discover new authors and find your next favourite read.
We sat down with one of the festival’s award-winning authors, Wollongong-born Nikki Gemmell (Wing), to talk all things writing and reading.
What is your latest writing project?
A dystopian novel plus the screenplay of my first novel, Shiver. The director, Rob Connolly, hopes to shoot it in the near future. But it's set in Antarctica – which is a challenge! A glorious one.
What are you reading right now?
We Do Not Part, by Nobel Laureate Han Kang.
What is the book that made you want to be a writer?
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, and later on, Coming Through Slaughter by Michael Ondaatje.
What does your writing space look like?
Cluttered! But I know exactly where everything is. It is a sliver of an enclosed verandah, with a dog and cat often in it too.
What is your writing routine?
Pour the kids off to school, swim at my local beach to clear the head, then jump into it. Go like the clappers until the kids get home then ease into family life. I work weekends and nights too if I'm on deadline. The only day that usually feels blissfully free of work is Saturday.
