Riverina Readers Festival
Held on the banks of the beautiful Murrumbidgee River, the Riverina Readers Festival is an inaugural one day reading festival that aims to bring the Riverina community together through the celebration of reading in all its forms.
2026 Festival Theme
Soaring into Stories
Headlining Authors
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Tigest Girma is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Immortal Dark and Eternal Ruin. She is an Ethiopian writer based in Melbourne, Australia and splits her time between writing and teaching. Passionate about exploring East African characters and myths, her work weaves Black stories with the dark and fantastical. In her free time, she can be found rewatching her comfort shows where the villain gets the girl. The third and final instalment of the Immortal Dark series is set to release later in the year.
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Dr Anita Heiss is an internationally published, award-winning author of over 20 books; non-fiction, historical fiction, commercial women’s fiction and children’s novels. She is a proud member of the Wiradyuri Nation of central New South Wales, an Ambassador for the Indigenous Literacy Foundation and the GO Foundation, and Professor of Communications at the University of Queensland.
Her novel, Bila Yarrudhanggalangdhuray, about the Great Flood of Gundagai, won the 2022 NSW Premier’s Indigenous Writers' Prize and was shortlisted for the 2021 ARA Historical Novel Prize and the 2022 ABIA Awards. Anita’s first children’s picture book is Bidhi Galing (Big Rain), also about the Great Flood of Gundagai. Anita released Dirrayawadha (Rise Up) in about the frontier war in Bathurst in 2024. Her most recent novel is The Paradise Pact was released in March 2026.
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Jeremy Lachlan was born and raised on Wiradjuri country, in Griffith, New South Wales, Australia. A former bookseller, he completed his honours degree in creative writing at the University of Canberra, and now calls Sydney home. His debut novel, Jane Doe and the Cradle of All Worlds, was the Australian Book Industry Award winner for Book of the Year for Older Children, and its sequel, Jane Doe and the Key of All Souls, was shortlisted for the same award. The Jane Doe Chronicles have been published locally and internationally. But all this pales in comparison to the $100 he once took home in a karaoke competition. He came up with the idea for the Jane Doe Chronicles while lost in the Cairo Museum.
Tigest Girma Workshop
Write with Tigest at an exclusive 4-hour workshop on Sunday 12 July at the Wagga Wagga City Library, where she will:
focus on how to build a fantasy world through the lens of your main character
explore the symbiotic relationship between internal character arcs and external world elements
provide generous tips and techniques on where to begin and where to weave your protagonist’s journey
From culture to magic, Tigest will create a safe and inclusive space for all types of writers to enjoy this creative environment together.
This workshop is suitable for people aged 18+ years.
This workshop is proudly funded by Eastern Riverina Arts and presented by Riverina Readers Festival Inc.
What people said about last year’s festival…
"I am SO supportive of the Riverina Readers Festivals' endeavours to bring readers together, and readers and authors, that I attend each sessions with an open and appreciative mindset, welcoming recommendations each year." - 2024 & 2025 Riverina Readers
"Riverina Readers is one of the most competently run, welcoming and interesting regional festivals I've attended. It is a wonderful complement to the Festival of W. I hope it runs every year and continues to grow." - 2025 Festival Author
"This festival has been fantastic and very well worth travelling for. I have loved the variety of genres and authors covered and I think it has shown such wonderful diversity." - 2024 Riverina Reader
"I don't even need to see the line-up to know that I'm coming again in 2026! I trust the Riverina Readers Festival Reading Team - they just know what our region of readers wants to see!" - 2024 & 2025 Riverina Reader
"This festival has been fantastic and very well worth travelling for. I have loved the variety of genres and authors covered and I think it has shown such wonderful diversity."
"I love what I’ve seen this year! Such engaging authors."
"I cannot wait to see what authors the Riverina Readers Festival will bring to our region in 2025!"
