Ubud Readers Writers Festival

The Ubud Writers and Readers Festival

I haven’t come to Bali for the Writers Festival, but it was on before my retreat, so it made sense to spend at least one day there. The tickets were quite pricey ($400 for a four day pass, $120 for a one day pass), so I was expecting a lot. Maybe it was the sessions that I went to, but I found it hit and miss. There were two that I thought were excellent (one about short story writing and another about balancing your day job with your writing schedule), and one that was ok (it was about finding ways to earn money from your writing), but overall, what was promised in the program description wasn’t really presented at the session.

What I DID enjoy, though, was meeting and mingling with other writers. I met Ali Land who has just been offered a book deal on her first novel; a lady called Skid who was a Canadian journalist and artist living in Bali; and Patrick Skene, who writes sports for The Guardian. Even if the interaction was only fleeting, I felt like a real writer. And Graeme Simsion (author of The Rosie Project was generous and personally gave me advice at the end of his session about converting my screenplay to a novel, which is what he did).

Would I come to the festival again? Probably not, because the expense didn’t justify the outcome.

Please share!

2 Comments

  • Melsy November 9, 2015 at 10:50 AM

    Cripes, that’s pricey! They always talk about this festival on Books and Arts on RN so glad to hear your perspective.

    Reply
    • Diane November 9, 2015 at 10:54 AM

      It was super pricey, Melsy. And it was lovely to go, but I’m glad I didn’t go for all four days.

      Reply

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