BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Melbourne - City of Literature - ECPv6.18.0//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Melbourne - City of Literature REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:Australia/Melbourne BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+1100 TZOFFSETTO:+1000 TZNAME:AEST DTSTART:20250405T160000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+1000 TZOFFSETTO:+1100 TZNAME:AEDT DTSTART:20251004T160000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+1100 TZOFFSETTO:+1000 TZNAME:AEST DTSTART:20260404T160000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+1000 TZOFFSETTO:+1100 TZNAME:AEDT DTSTART:20261003T160000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:+1100 TZOFFSETTO:+1000 TZNAME:AEST DTSTART:20270403T160000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:+1000 TZOFFSETTO:+1100 TZNAME:AEDT DTSTART:20271002T160000 END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261022T093000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261119T220000 DTSTAMP:20260810T080153Z CREATED:20260810T075354Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260810T080153Z UID:10033561-1792661400-1795125600@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Klara and the Sun – cinema release DESCRIPTION:Klara and the Sun\, based on the book of the same name by Kazuo Ishiguro opens 22 October for a theatrical season. URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/klara-and-the-sun-cinema-release/ LOCATION:VIC END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261116T183000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261116T213000 DTSTAMP:20261001T022047Z CREATED:20261001T022047Z LAST-MODIFIED:20261001T022047Z UID:10033744-1794853800-1794864600@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:From the Maker: An Evening with Alice Zaslavsky DESCRIPTION:As part of Sofitel Melbourne On Collins’ From the Maker series\, join Alice Zaslavsky at No35 Restaurant for a special one-night-only three-course dinner and conversation celebrating her latest cookbook\, Weeknights with Alice.\nOver 100 episodes of ABC TV’s A Bite to Eat with Alice\, Alice Zaslavsky has posed the question familiar to every household: what are we eating tonight?  \nDrawing on seven years of cooking for her own family\, Zaslavsky’s latest cookbook\, Weeknights with Alice\, offers 80 midweek meals designed for maximum flavour with minimum fuss\, distilling her approach to produce\, flavour and everyday cooking into recipes made for the realities of a busy life.  \nOver three courses with matched wines from Port Phillip Estate\, 35 floors above Collins Street and surrounded by sweeping views of the city\, Zaslavsky joins host Dani Valent to talk about the pleasures and pressures of feeding a household – and yourself. \n\n\nTicket includes a three-course dinner and matched wines from Port Phillip Estate. Other beverages available for purchase on consumption.\nMost dietary requirements can be accommodated; please provide more details when booking your ticket.  \nTicket sales close 5pm\, Monday 9 November. \n\n  \nPresented in partnership with Sofitel Melbourne On Collins  URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/from-the-maker-an-evening-with-alice-zaslavsky/ LOCATION:The Wheeler Centre\, 176 Little Lonsdale Street\, Melbourne\, Victoria\, 3000\, Australia CATEGORIES:The Wheeler Centre ORGANIZER;CN="The Wheeler Centre":MAILTO:ticketing@wheelercentre.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261116T190000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261116T203000 DTSTAMP:20260930T033747Z CREATED:20260930T033747Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260930T033747Z UID:10033738-1794855600-1794861000@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Dennis Altman in conversation with Neal Drinnan DESCRIPTION:To celebrate the re-issue of Dennis’ novel The Comfort of Men\, he will be in conversation with Neal Drinnan.\n\n‘I prefer the company of women\, but I need the comfort of men.’ \n\nFirst published in 1993\, The Comfort of Men is about thirty years of love and sexual discovery\, politics and betrayal\, self-realisation and loneliness. Steven must come to terms with his homosexuality\, Hester will experiment with radical celibacy\, and Gerald is embroiled with the anti-Vietnam War movement. \n\n‘An Australian classic. Dennis Altman’s seismic novel gives a vivid insight into a hidden world erupting to change Australia forever … Altman takes us into the heart of Australia’s gay revolution with compassion\, wit\, and sheer authenticity.’ – Bob Brown URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/dennis-altman-in-conversation-with-neal-drinnan/ LOCATION:Victorian Pride Centre\, 79-81 Fitzroy St\,\, St Kilda\, Victoria\, 3182\, Australia CATEGORIES:Bookshops ORGANIZER;CN="Hares &%3B Hyenas":MAILTO:contactus@hares-hyenas.com.au END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261117 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261118 DTSTAMP:20260907T054021Z CREATED:20260907T045439Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260907T054021Z UID:10033636-1794873600-1794959999@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Online Feedback: Picture Books DESCRIPTION:This online feedback clinic is an opportunity to work on your current picture book project or embark on a new one in a supportive group environment with guidance from a professional editor and picture book author Elizabeth Cowell. \nOver the course of eight weeks\, you will submit your work four times (up to a maximum of 850 words each time) and receive individual feedback from Elizabeth and fellow group members. The sessions are designed to help you build on your strengths and encourage you as you edit\, refine\, and polish your manuscript. \nThe feedback will be tailored to each submission\, focusing on areas such as story\, character\, voice\, point of view\, structure\, pace\, language and expression. \nBetween submission rounds\, Elizabeth will recommend picture books and online articles to inform\, interest and inspire you. \nPlease note that this is a feedback-based course. There is no face-to-face component. \nSubmissions due on Tuesdays 29 September\, 13 October\, 27 October and 10 November by 11.59pm \nFeedback due on Fridays 9 October\, 23 October\, 6 November and 20 November by 10am \nOur Online Feedback clinics are asynchronous\, with no face-to-face meetings\, allowing you to engage with the content at the times of day and week that suit your schedule. They are hosted on our private WordPress server. For more information on our online feedback clinics\, please read our FAQs.  \nYou will learn:\n\nHow to test what’s working on the page and what’s not\nHow picture books are structured\nStrategies for getting a first rough draft down ​\nTips for working with literary devices like rhyme and repetition ​\nBasic information about how picture book publishers work with writers and illustrators\n\nAbout the tutor:\nElizabeth Cowell has more than 20 years’ experience working as an editor in the Australian publishing industry. She has also written several children’s picture books\, including the bestselling All About Mermaids\, under the name Izzy Quinn. Her books have been published in Australia\, the US and Canada\, and in translation in France\, Italy and Greece. URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/online-feedback-picture-books/2026-11-17/ LOCATION:Online CATEGORIES:Children's Literature,Education,Writers,Young Adult END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261118T070000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261118T080000 DTSTAMP:20260710T040245Z CREATED:20260226T222852Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260710T040245Z UID:10029851-1794985200-1794988800@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Writing Momentum writing workshops DESCRIPTION:Join creativity coach and writer Meg Dunley for a weekly online writing session designed to help you build and keep a consistent writing practice. It’s a little like a guided shut-up and write with accountability. \nEach Wednesday morning session runs for one hour and includes a poetry-based prompt to spark your thinking\, 40 minutes of silent focused writing time\, and a brief accountability check-in to start and close the session. Whether you’re working on a novel\, memoir\, poetry or any other form of writing\, you’re welcome here. \nWriting Momentum runs throughout the year. The session is recorded and sent to all members on Friday afternoon\, along with the prompt\, poem and questions. \nSessions are open to Momentum\, Focus\, Elevate and Creative Empowerment Coaching Program members. New members can join with a 7-day free trial. \nWhen: Every Wednesday\, 7:00–8:00am Melbourne time \nWhere: Online via Zoom \nMore information and to join URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/writing-momentum-wednesdays/2026-11-18/ LOCATION:Online via Zoom\, Melbourne\, Australia CATEGORIES:Education,Writers ORGANIZER;CN="Meg Dunley%2C Creativity Coach":MAILTO:meg@megdunley.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261118T183000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261118T194500 DTSTAMP:20261001T021735Z CREATED:20261001T021735Z LAST-MODIFIED:20261001T021735Z UID:10033743-1795026600-1795031100@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Nick McKenzie and Ben Schneiders: Building Bad DESCRIPTION:Walkley Award-winning journalists Nick McKenzie and Ben Schneiders go inside the investigation that rocked the CFMEU and sparked a Royal Commission into the construction sector.\nIn 2024\, journalists Nick McKenzie and Ben Schneiders launched an explosive investigation into allegations of corruption and organised crime within the CFMEU\, one of Australia’s most powerful construction unions. In their reporting\, whistleblowers and witnesses pointed to the union’s links with outlaw bikie gangs and underworld figures\, sending shockwaves through Victorian politics and the construction industry.  \nThe fallout was profound: Victorian CFMEU leader John Setka resigned\, the union’s construction arm was placed into administration\, and Victoria established a Royal Commission into the sector. In Building Bad\, McKenzie and Schneiders reveal the story behind the investigation – the whistleblowers\, the death threats and the questions that remain unanswered.  \nIn this edition of The Fifth Estate\, these decorated journalists join host Sally Warhaft to discuss their reporting and the enduring role of investigative journalism in holding powerful institutions to account.  \n  \nPresented in partnership with Melbourne Press Club URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/nick-mckenzie-and-ben-schneiders-building-bad/ LOCATION:The Wheeler Centre\, 176 Little Lonsdale Street\, Melbourne\, Victoria\, 3000\, Australia CATEGORIES:The Wheeler Centre ORGANIZER;CN="The Wheeler Centre":MAILTO:ticketing@wheelercentre.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261118T193000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261118T220000 DTSTAMP:20260428T044519Z CREATED:20260428T044519Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260428T044519Z UID:10030934-1795030200-1795039200@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Motley Openhaus DESCRIPTION:Welcome to the Motley Openhaus! \nA space to let your heart bleed and words run. An inclusive\, encouraging space for writers of all experiences to come up and read whatever they’ve been working on. Long form\, short stories\, haikus\, spoken word\, if you wanna say it\, we wanna hear it! Every Wednesday evening\, 7:30 start. Free entry URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/motley-openhaus/2026-11-18/ LOCATION:The Motley Bauhaus\, 118 Elgin Street\, Carlton\, VIC\, 3053\, Australia CATEGORIES:Spoken Word END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261118T193000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261118T223000 DTSTAMP:20260428T044203Z CREATED:20260428T044203Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260428T044203Z UID:10030903-1795030200-1795041000@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Chaotic Musings: Poetry Social Club DESCRIPTION:A welcoming and community-driven poetry open mic for everyone. \n\n\n\n\n\nVibe Union is an inclusive\, artistic collective welcoming diverse people of all experiences and backgrounds. We aim\, at every one of our events and in our online presence\, to create a safe space for all. \nWe welcome all who attend our events to provide feedback and direction on how we present these spaces in the name of making all feel welcome and heard. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nIn the few short years that Vibe Union has existed\, we’ve explored many diverse ideas and been many things. But the one constant has been our focus on providing a platform for local Melbourne artists. \nFrom poetry nights to open mic live streams\, video series\, and a podcast\, we can’t exactly sit still. It doesn’t matter what we’re doing\, just that we’re creating and helping others create. \nThese days\, Vibe Union is hosting events for incredible\, like minded artists around Melbourne. \nOpen mic stages are the birthplace of many a collective or group. Unknowingly at the time\, the seeds of our humble community started in Brunswick at Bar Oussou. Over the course of a few months\, friendships formed and plans were made for collaboration. \nOver one weekend\, producers\, vocalists\, and rappers united to create whatever came organically. And quickly we had multiple songs complete and the starts of many others. \nEverything was looking poised for take off\, before lockdowns hit. \nFunnily enough\, this is what really kicked us into gear. We now had a lot of time on our hands\, and some savvy tech heads to lead the way through digital collaboration. \nLive events when we could\, live streams when we couldn’t. A podcast was recorded over Discord and new songs were created remotely. \nWe threw ourselves into whatever we could and welcomed anyone who wanted to contribute. \nAbove all else\, we had a sense of community we all desperately needed during a scary and lonely time to be living. \nAnd since then\, our group has shifted in size\, projects have come and gone\, but we keep putting on events for Melbourne. \nHigher production value projects; new exciting venues; but always locally focused. We’ve known after a few years of Vibe Union that helping artists find their feet is our passion. And above all else\, this is a welcoming\, supportive\, and inclusive space for everyone. URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/chaotic-musings-poetry-social-club/2026-11-18/ LOCATION:Creatures of Habit\, 319 Brunswick Street\, Fitzroy\, 3065\, Australia CATEGORIES:Spoken Word END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261119T183000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261119T194500 DTSTAMP:20261001T022256Z CREATED:20261001T022256Z LAST-MODIFIED:20261001T022256Z UID:10033745-1795113000-1795117500@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:The Trust Gap: Democracy in the Lucky Country DESCRIPTION:Former independent politician and journalist Zoe Daniel and the University of Melbourne’s Associate Professor of Political Science Aaron Martin\, explore the slow erosion of trust in our institutions and what lies behind it.\nThe accepted story is that a wave of distrust has swept across established democracies. But is that really the case? \nIn his book\, The Trust Gap\, the University of Melbourne’s Associate Professor of Political Science Aaron Martin draws on decades of survey data to challenge the prevailing narrative that while trust has fallen sharply in the US and UK\, many democracies – Australia included – remain more resilient than the headlines suggest. Zoe Daniel\, democracy advocate and former independent representative for the seat of Goldstein\, brings nearly three decades of journalism\, including as the ABC’s Washington bureau chief\, and a term in federal parliament to a similar question of how public confidence is won and lost. \nFor this edition of Scholarship to Society\, they join host Sally Warhaft to take stock of our levels of trust in Australian institutions and the forces at play in shaping them.  \n  \nPresented in partnership with Melbourne Public Humanities Initiative\, Faculty of Arts\, the University of Melbourne and UMAC URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/the-trust-gap-democracy-in-the-lucky-country/ LOCATION:Union Theatre\, Arts & Cultural Building\, 159 Monash Road\, Parkville\, Victoria\, Australia CATEGORIES:The Wheeler Centre ORGANIZER;CN="The Wheeler Centre":MAILTO:ticketing@wheelercentre.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261120T183000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261120T203000 DTSTAMP:20260928T212342Z CREATED:20260928T092922Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260928T212342Z UID:10033728-1795199400-1795206600@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Bookneck Presents: Story Seeds with Rebecca Stewart DESCRIPTION:Where do stories begin?\nSometimes a character barges into your mind\, insisting you take down their story. Or a place gets under your skin. A headline or an overheard conversation sparks a “What if?” Or a found object seems to hum with an idea. \nStory Seeds is a new Bookneck event series about the beginnings of things: where and when do ideas start tugging at an author or artist’s sleeve? What makes one take root? Can we summon ideas\, or must we wait for them to appear? \nFor our first Story Seeds\, we’re joined by Rebecca Stewart\, comics author and artist\, for a conversation about ideas\, living a creative life\, and understanding how words and pictures work together to tell a story. \nWe’ll talk about where Rebecca’s stories begin\, the things she notices and squirrels away\, how an idea changes once she starts working with it\, and what happens between this might be something and an actual finished work. \nThere’ll be plenty of time for questions\, chai\, bookish nattering and browsing too\, with Rebecca’s work available on the night and Pippi\, Bookneck’s tiny travelling secondhand bookshop\, joining us at Caravan Chai HQ. URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/bookneck-presents-story-seeds-with-rebecca-stewart/ LOCATION:Caravan Chai HQ\, 2/27 Concord Crescent\, Carrum Downs\, VIC\, 3201\, Australia CATEGORIES:Bookshops,Comics and Graphic Novels ORGANIZER;CN="Bookneck":MAILTO:bookneckbooksellers@gmail.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261121T100000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261121T130000 DTSTAMP:20260907T050124Z CREATED:20260907T050124Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260907T050124Z UID:10033689-1795255200-1795266000@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Writing Complicated Relationships in Fiction DESCRIPTION:Unlock the emotional core of your story and bring your characters to life in this hands-on workshop with Maame Blue. URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/writing-complicated-relationships-in-fiction/ LOCATION:The Wheeler Centre\, 176 Little Lonsdale Street\, Melbourne\, Victoria\, 3000\, Australia CATEGORIES:The Wheeler Centre,Writers END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261121T143000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261121T160000 DTSTAMP:20261001T023034Z CREATED:20261001T023034Z LAST-MODIFIED:20261001T023034Z UID:10033748-1795271400-1795276800@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:Bookish Club with Beverley Wang DESCRIPTION:For the final Bookish Club of 2026\, Beverley Wang delves into Taiwan Travelogue\, Yáng Shuāng-zǐ’s International Booker Prize-winning novel of language\, history and power set in Japanese-occupied Taiwan.\nDisguised as the translation of a rediscovered memoir\, Yáng Shuāng-zǐ’s Taiwan Travelogue is set in 1938 and follows novelist Aoyama Chizuko\, who sails from Nagasaki to Taiwan on the invitation of the then-ruling Japanese government. \nWith an insatiable appetite\, Chizuko eschews the official banquets and sets out to eat her way around the island\, accompanied by her Taiwanese interpreter. Over bowls of braised pork rice and scenic trains rides\, she becomes infatuated with her companion\, determined to draw her closer. But despite Chizuko’s overtures\, a distance remains between them. \nJoin broadcaster Beverley Wang and host Jess Ho at the Moat for a conversation about this many-layered novel that is both a story about sharing meals and a meditation on language\, travel and how power dynamics shape and reshape even our most intimate relationships.   \n  \nStrictly for audiences 18 and older. Drinks and nibbles will be provided.\nTicket holders are strongly encouraged to read Taiwan Travelogue by Yáng Shuāng-zǐ before attending this event so that they can contribute to the conversation in true book club fashion.\nWe recommend purchasing a copy from your favourite local bookstore or borrowing a copy from a library. URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/bookish-club-with-beverley-wang/ LOCATION:The Moat\, 176 Little Lonsdale Street\, Melbourne\, Victoria\, 3000\, Australia CATEGORIES:The Wheeler Centre ORGANIZER;CN="The Wheeler Centre":MAILTO:ticketing@wheelercentre.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261122T140000 DTEND;TZID=Australia/Melbourne:20261122T170000 DTSTAMP:20260806T015636Z CREATED:20260806T015115Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260806T015636Z UID:10033553-1795356000-1795366800@cityofliterature.com.au SUMMARY:The Mind at Work: Writing the Literary Essay DESCRIPTION:This hands-on workshop invites participants to explore the contemporary essay and its boundless possibilities.\n\n\n\n\nThe contemporary literary essay serves as a designated space to try\, fail and try again. It is a venue for interior wandering\, questioning\, doubting and prioritising inquiry over definitive answers. \nWidely regarded as the most private of literary exercises\, essay writing requires vulnerability\, exhumes parts of the self for the reader\, and demands radical trust. A compelling essay mimics the experience of watching another mind at work. \nOver the course of this workshop\, participants will examine masterworks by Teju Cole\, Kristin Dombek\, Jenny Erpenbeck and Kate Evans to observe how these writers trial their thoughts before testing their own. Through exercises\, diagrams\, arguments and punchlines\, participants will have the opportunity to develop new work. \nCourse requierements: bring pen and paper or a fully charge devide to participate in the writing exercises. \nYou Will Learn:\n\nThe breadth and scope of the literary essay\nHow moving from concrete details to abstract reflections can build a sense of intimacy\nThe value of a community of readers whose aspirations align with your own\n​​To honour the elements of every life\, no matter how grand or small\, that make for compelling writing\n\nAbout the Tutor:\nRaeden Richardson is a writer of essays and novels. His debut novel\, The Degenerates was nominated for the Miles Franklin Award\, the ALS Gold Medal and the Voss Literary Award. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop\, his writing has appeared in New Australian Fiction\, Meanjin\, Griffith Review and The Sydney Morning Herald. URL:https://cityofliterature.com.au/event/the-mind-at-work-writing-the-literary-essay/ LOCATION:The Wheeler Centre\, 176 Little Lonsdale Street\, Melbourne\, Victoria\, 3000\, Australia CATEGORIES:Education,Writers END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR