The inaugeral Newstead Young Writers Festival was held on Sunday 20th October from 10am-4pm at Newstead Arts Hub.

The first of its kind, the festival involved a full day of writing, illustration, book-making and storytelling sessions aimed squarely at children living in regional Victoria. These kids often miss out on author visits and other literary events, so we wanted to bring something truly special right to their front door to give them a genuine opportunity to hone their skills with the best in the business.

The day was huge success, with perfect weather, huge enthusiastic crowds of eager kids and happy adults, and a throng of top-notch professional storytellers on the program, including former resident John Marsden and many other talented writers from the region. We had so much fantastic feedback! Authors told us they were blown away by the size and professionalism of the event, the interminable energy and support of our volunteers and most of all, the dedication of all the budding writers who came along. It was evident the kids weren’t dragged there - these kids were seriously motivated! And the unique vibe of this festival was palpable, the air filled with a mix of youthful excitement and creative zen - I’ve never felt anything quite like it. One gorgeous 5 year old girl even told me that after attending the festival all day she would like to run a festival herself when she grows up, which is possibly the best compliment possible!

Parents came to us almost in tears saying how thankful they were to finally have a weekend event to share with their children that allowed them to be themselves, indulge in their imaginations, and connect with creative people just like them. Something other than sport! We celebrated experiments and courageous mistakes, nourished growing brains and stoked hundreds of little creative fires to float off burning into the world and just keep making! We are absolutely thrilled at the way the community pitched in and made this festival possible through time, donations, money and sheer will power. And we’re also very heartened by our sponsors who believed in us: Regional Arts Victoria, Mount Alexander Shire Council and Newstead 2050 and all the other supporters who chipped in. We feel we’ve really proved our concept in spades, and can’t wait to do it all again.

If you want to share us feedback, comments or ideas, please do! We are in the process of capturing the highs and lows, to make sure we keep all the best stuff for next time.

And if you want to hear more from us in the aftermath of the festival, including some fantastic professional photos and stories from the day (such as the unveiling of who slept in the faraway tree surrounded by pom poms, and the identity of the leftover apple thief) please sign up to our mailing list and socials. That way we can keep you up to date with all our sparkly plans for next time!

Thanks to all who came along. A festival is nothing without a gathering of lovely people, and it was certainly that!

How about some numbers?

423 - that’s the number of workshop tickets we pre-sold to young writers in the month prior to the festival. Most sold out in just a few hours on the same day they were released!

24 - thats how many formal workshops and panels we squeezed into our mighty ‘pilot’ program, spread over just 6 hours!

28 - thats how many professional story tellers were on the program - huge!

50 plus - thats how many volunteers helped us either set up, run, or pack down the festival.

Infinity - thats how many good vibes our hearts are crammed with in the afterglow of this fantastic event.