A star-studded line-up bursting with well-known literary powerhouses, global thinkers and fresh new voices will take to the stage for the 27th Auckland Writers Festival Waituhi o Tāmaki from 12 – 17 May.
Announced today, the programme features more than 220 artists from across the country and the world in over 170 events, creating a party-like atmosphere that will take over the Aotea Centre and other central city venues.
The annual event is one of the biggest festivals of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere, with 2025 seeing more than 85,000 attendances and a staggering 12,000
books sold – testament to New Zealanders passion for books, reading and big ideas.
The programming prowess of Artistic Director Lyndsey Fineran and a team of staff and guest curators have delivered a Festival that will entertain, enlighten and inform every type of reader.
“As a new artistic director stepping into a long‑running Festival, you ask yourself two things: what do our loyal audiences love and want? And who isn’t coming through our doors yet, but could be?” says Lyndsey.
“Nothing has thrilled me more than seeing attendances soar over the last two years and watching a broader range of readers (and the reading‑curious…) fill our theatres. My hope is that my third AWF programme not only excites our beloved Festival regulars but also cracks the doors open a little wider to welcome new ones.
I’m so grateful to the creative team, my co-leader Catriona Ferguson and the wider AWF whānau who bring this exceptional Festival to the city.”
Plot Twist, a whole new arm of the Festival aimed at rangatahi and celebrating lit outside the lines launches this year. A Q Theatre takeover, the programme will bend genres, break rules, and rewrite the Festival script on Sunday 17 May. Every inch of Q will be packed with spoken word, tarot, dark academia, romance and surprises around every corner. There will also be free zine making with Auckland Zinefest, DJs, BookTok meet ups and more.
Also new for 2026 is the Intrepid Lounge, a welcoming dwell space for Festival goers to escape the bustle for some downtime. Audiences will need the chance to relax and reflect after hearing from some of literature’s most recognisable household names, including Irish novelist and recent Booker Prize Chair of Judges Roddy Doyle; Life of Pi author Yann Martel; 2025 Booker Prize winner David Szalay; Women’s Prize for Fiction winner Tayari Jones; celebrated Native American wordsmith Louise Erdrich; one of Aotearoa’s most distinguished novelists Witi Ihimaera, and revered Australian writer Helen Garner, who will reflect on both her stellar career and our collective obsession with Australia’s mushroom poisoning case.
Fiction fans will be queuing for Mick Herron, the bestselling author whose books became the award-winning TV series Slow Horses; honoured Indian writer Amitav Ghosh; local superstar Catherine Chidgey and the highly acclaimed author of Yellowface and Katabasis RF Kuang.
Some of the world’s sharpest non-fiction writers will join New Zealand hosts and commentators across the Festival’s venues, including the decorated long-time New Yorker staff writer Patrick Radden Keefe; award-winning journalist Karen Hao who covers the impact of AI on society and was last year named one of the 100 most influential people in AI by TIME magazine; the BBC’s Chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet, climate policy specialist Luke Kemp; foreign correspondent specialising in covering repressive regimes Barbara Demick; and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales who will keep the Festival buzz rolling at a special stand-alone event on 25 May.
AI, climate change, the economy, mental health, modern masculinity, indigenous rights in an election year and what it means to be a writer in today’s fractured America are just a few of the topics to be unpacked during a series of lively panel discussions.
Kids (and their grownups) won’t want to miss Dav Pilkey, the superstar creator of beloved Dog Man and Captain Underpants series, with young fans encouraged to dress as their favourite Dav Pilkey character and join a Pilkey Parade. There is plenty more excitement for the Festival’s youngest attendees at PUKAPUKA ADVENTURES, a free programme of family fun which runs over the weekend of 16 and 17 May.
Two special virtual events will serve to make the world feel a smaller place. Audiences can connect with renowned British novelist Ian McEwan who will discuss his latest novel, which envisions a society living with the consequences of climate inaction, from his home in the UK. While Hamnet author Maggie O’Farrell, whose session will open Festival week, will talk about the enormous success of the Oscar-nominated adaptation, plus offer a sneak-peak at her major new novel, Land.
A special delegation of Canadian writers will bring a unique cultural perspective to the Festival – including leading political commentator and writer David Moscrop; Booker Prize-longlisted Ukrainian-Canadian author Maria Reva; award-winning children’s writer David A. Robertson, and the previously mentioned Booker winner Yann Martel.
The strong international contingent is joined by a rollcall of top New Zealand thinkers: mental performance coach Gilbert Enoka; activist Tāme Iti; journalist Barry Soper; acclaimed historian Vincent O’Malley; doctors Timoti Te Moke and Lucy O’Hagan; Gone by Lunchtime on ‘Six Months to the Polls’, and grief expert Dr Lucy Hone, who will join Natalie Flynn for a special tribute panel to Nigel Latta.
There is a bounty for fiction lovers, including S.A. Cosby, one of crime fiction’s hottest talents; and Florence Knapp, Charlotte McConaghy, Lily King and Tony Tulathimutte, whose books have had everyone talking.
Festival audiences will be amongst the first in Aotearoa to hear Rt Hon Dame Jacinda Ardern discuss her Ockham New Zealand Book Awards nominated book, A Different Kind of Power. And the 2026 Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction winner will be revealed at the Ockham New Zealand Book Awards ceremony with the recipient taking to the Festival stage for their first post-win appearance.
True crime aficionados will have plenty to sink their teeth into. Two of the most seasoned forensic investigators in Aotearoa, Thomas Coyle and Ruben Miller, will offer rare insight into their work, while Steve Braunias will take the audience on a revealing journey into the Polkinghorne trial.
Writers from all corners of the globe will appear; including International Booker Prize-winning translator Deepa Bhasthi of India; Mieko Kawakami from Japan; Korean author Bora Chung; Palestinian writer Tareq Baconi and medieval manuscript expert Christopher de Hamel from the UK.
Closer to home, 2026 Honoured Writer Bill Manhire, leads a roll call of the most esteemed authors in Aotearoa including Tusiata Avia, Charlotte Grimshaw, and Elizabeth Knox. Beloved children’s authors will appear, with Rachael King, Stacy Gregg and Giselle Clarkson among those to join Illustrator in Residence Ruth Paul.
There is plenty to entertain as well – comedian Pax Assadi will open up on his new memoir Mortified; Laughton Kora will invite the audience to be part of conceiving A Waiata in an Hour; in Down the Rabbit Hole writers will share how an unexpected topic, however niche, quirky or odd, ended up being significant to their work; Fran Lebowitz will deliver her razor-sharp commentary, biting realism and unapologetic observations, and the late-night Spice Salon is back by popular demand.
The action kicks off early with STREETSIDE running from 6 – 9pm on Friday 8 May. With an expanded programme for 2026, this pre-Festival teaser has become an institution and sees writers, musicians and artists bring bite-sized events to the streets of Britomart. While during the Festival itself, KŌRERO CORNER will again deliver a fresh strand of dynamic, free, drop in events and a series of Masterclasses offer an opportunity for attendees to hone their writing skills.
This is just a small snapshot of the full programme available at writersfestival.co.nz. Public tickets are on sale from 9am, Friday 13 March via Ticketmaster or by calling 0800 111 999. The event is designed to be accessible and welcoming, with more than 25% of the festival events free of charge.
For updates follow Auckland Writers Festival on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok or sign up to the newsletter at writersfestival.co.nz.
The 2026 Festival Programme ebook is available here
About Auckland Writers Festival Waituhi o Tāmaki
Auckland Writers Festival Waituhi o Tāmaki is an annual celebration of books and ideas and the leading showcase for national and international writers, thinkers and creatives to discuss their work to an Aotearoa New Zealand audience. As one of the Southern Hemisphere’s best-attended book festivals, the event attracts 85,000 attendances of all ages who flock to the Aotea Centre in central Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland over six days in May. The 2026 Festival takes place between 12 – 17 May, with the ever-popular STREETSIDE: BRITOMART serving as a pre-Festival teaser on Friday 8 May. The Festival team also runs a number of high profile out-of-season events throughout the year.
Joining Lyndsey Fineran on the programming team are Grace Sinclair, Programme Manager, Gabrielle Vincent, Family and Schools Programmer, Guest Curators Shilo Kino (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Te Ata) and Zech Soakai (Poutasi, Upolu, Samoa / Pangai, Ha’apai, Tonga), STREETSIDE: BRITOMART curators The D*List, Emma Gleason and Matariki Bennett (Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Hinerangi) and Programmers at Large, Matariki and Michael Benntt (Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Whakaue).
Auckland Writers Festival Waituhi o Tāmaki would like to acknowledge the support of our Festival Patrons and the following key sponsors and funders: Principal Partner ARA Group; Platinum Partner: Freemasons Foundation; Gold Partners; Creative New Zealand, Ockham Residential, Auckland Council Events and Auckland Live.
