14th Ubud Writers and Readers Festival to Focus on ‘Origins’

For this year’s 14th Ubud Writers and Readers Festival, which will be held from October 25 to 29, the world’s most prominent authors, performers, artists and thinkers will get under one roof to share stories and ideas under the banner of this year’s theme: Origins.

Drawn from the Hindu philosophy ‘Sangkan Paraning Dumadi,’ the theme ‘Origins’ comes most appropriately as it reveals where we have come from and to where we will ultimately return.

The literature festival founder and director Janet DeNeefe explains, “At a time of global unrest and political turmoil, ‘Origins’ invites us to consider the biggest picture – to contemplate not just our connections from person to person, but as a collective humanity extending across people, the planet and periods of time.” The festival’s five- day program will build on powerful movements that have largely influenced and continue to shape today’s world. It also aims to support their cyclical manifestations throughout our existence – from the political to the spiritual to the technological and environmental. As always, the 14th Ubud Writers and Readers Festival will be a celebration of the role literature and the arts have in getting a good grasp of our place in the world. It will serve to provide platforms for selfreflection, collective action and personal connections as literary festivals play a unique role in contemporary discourse.

Over the years, the festival has evolved into a global community of ideas, empowerment and experiences both for the individual participants and the diverse groups that come to participate. It brings together hundreds of speakers from more than 20 countries across the globe. UWRF remains one of the world’s most renowned avenues that help showcase both the country’s aspiring and established writers and artists.