Sydney Writers Festival will program year-round, partnering with State Library of NSW. Is this ‘Sydney’s Wheeler Centre’?

Sydney is gaining on Melbourne’s long lead as a literary city, with a new partnership between Sydney Writers’ Festival and the State Library of New South Wales. This year-round program of literary events, programmed by the festival (with many hosted by the library) presents a serious injection into Sydney’s literary scene. The budget is A$1.5 million, creating over 300 paid opportunities for writers over 12 months.

The events program, which starts in September, will kick off with events featuring Hannah Kent, Bob Brown, romance writers Melanie Saward and Saman Shad, and Michelle de Kretser. There are plans for international guests in the rotation too.

The Sydney/Melbourne rivalry may be highly competitive for hospitality or international events – but Melbourne has long been the frontrunner for literature, especially after it became the second city in the world to be designated a UNESCO City of Literature in 2008. Its Wheeler Centre, a literary hub dedicated to books, writing and ideas, was established a year later, in 2009 – hosted by the State Library of Victoria, with significant support from the state government.

The Guardian suggests Sydney’s new initiative will be “a rival to the Wheeler Centre”. The recently refurbished 344-seat auditorium underneath the historic Mitchell Library reading room will reportedly be the headquarters for many of the program’s events.

This news is welcome for Australian readers, writers and publishers. It will provide a valuable added source of author income – and a series of opportunities to engage with books and writing, at a time when Australians are reading less. It’s also a good thing for Sydney nightlife.

Helping writers get paid

The New South Wales government calls it the first part of “a sector-wide strategy” to position writing and literature at the heart of the state’s “cultural, educational, and economic life”.

Such investment is critical at a time when writers are facing the multiple crises of cuts to the university sector (where many work casually), low incomes from freelance work and pressures on book sales. On average, Australian writers earn around $18,500 per year from their writing practice.

The budget for this initiative is huge in terms of literature funding. In 2023-4, the total budget for literature from Creative Australia was $7.8 million: so this is equivalent to nearly one fifth of the federal budget for literature. That said, it is a fraction of the funding the NSW government gave music last week: $9.3 million to support touring, recording and promotion.

Australia Society of Authors rates are set at $336 for an “in conversation” (where the author is interviewed). For an author to reach this level from sales alone at a bookshop event, the bookseller would need to shift around 100 copies (assuming a 10% royalty on a $30 book).

Authors’ receipt of money from sales is significantly delayed: royalties are most often paid twice a year. Paid appearances mark a significant boon to an author’s income – and they get the money much quicker, too. For these events, it’s likely the State Library Bookshop would also have books for sale.

Enlivening Sydney’s nightlife

While Sydney hosts regular literary events, events have traditionally been tricky in the city. Barriers include the high cost for venues and difficulties connecting audiences from different parts of the city. Sydneysiders have long been jealous of Wheeler Centre as a central venue hosting regular events.

Literary events take place at booksellers such as Gleebooks in the inner-west, with their newly renovated space, megabookstore Kinokuniya in the CBD and Gertrude & Alice, at Bondi Beach. Also in the inner west, Balmain’s Roaring Stories hosts events, including at a rum distillery. But authors are usually not paid for bookseller events, so the author’s income is only from book sales.

There are fewer booksellers in Western Sydney, but the area does host its own literary festivals, including Parramatta’s Lit and Write Out West, which present opportunities for authors and readers.

Sydney’s nighttime economy was struggling before COVID, including as a result of the change in licensing laws after two violent assaults a decade ago. The pandemic depressed the local nightlife further – and the city hasn’t quite recovered.

This new initiative will help enliven one of the city’s most beautiful buildings – which has already been focused on bringing in people after hours, with a rooftop bar and literary trivia nights.

Future opportunities?

There are other synergies between Melbourne’s established hub and Sydney’s new one. The Wheeler Centre administers the Victorian Premiers’ Literary Awards. Similarly, the State Library of NSW is responsible for the NSW Premiers’ Literary Awards.

The money these awards deliver to writers are significant, but are predominantly for well-established authors. The Wheeler Centre is also in its 13th year of administering its Hot Desk Fellowships for emerging writers, which provide a stipend, a dedicated workspace in the building and access to the writing community. It would be marvellous to see an equivalent program for emerging authors make its way to Sydney.

The partnership between State Library of New South Wales and the Sydney Writers Festival is the latest in a string of government announcements addressing the arts in the state. The upcoming tax reform roundtable, scheduled for late September, presents another opportunity for structural reform to a sector under pressure.