Melbourne Writers Festival 2015

Overview

Put on your reading glasses, the Melbourne Writers Festival is back for another year, celebrating the very best wordsmiths from around Australia and the world. This year's program boasts more than 530 events across 60 different venues, featuring authors, journalists, scriptwriters, bloggers, activists and critical thinkers. Think of it as a marathon for your brain.

Major highlights on this year's program, which kicks off on Thursday, August 20, include an opening night address by Captain Corelli's Mandolin author Louis de Bernieres, a panel with Veronica Mars and Party Down creator Rob Thomas (moderated by Clementine Ford), and a talk on astrophysics featuring Nobel Prize winner Brian Schmidt and science writer Katie Mack.

In addition to the massive number of talks and panels, the week-and-a-half-long festival will feature film screenings, exhibitions, performances and workshops, as well as plenty of free events for those of us trying to save money. And if you're looking for a little bit of homework, be sure to check out our MWF reading list, featuring works by some of this year's most interesting guests.