The Ubud Writers & Readers Festival is proud to announce its return to the grounds of Taman Baca from 21 to 25 October 2026, bringing together writers and readers in an inspiring programme under the banner of this year’s festival theme: Samarasā: Awareness. Empathy. Action.

This year’s Festival takes a fresh look at the world with award-winning authors and journalists, artists, changemakers, and innovators through an array of conversations and events—from author talks and panel discussions to workshops, literary lunches, live performances, late-night comedy, and spoken word galas—as well as book launches that celebrate literature and creative expression across disciplines.

The four-day programme will be guided by the theme Samarasā: Awareness. Empathy. Action, which originates in Sanskrit philosophy and emphasises the harmony between Citta (mind), Rasa (heart), and Karsa (action). It invites reflection on how thought, feeling, and action can exist in harmony, with awareness bringing clarity, empathy building connection, and action turning insight into purpose.

“Through the lens of Samarasā, we explore the forces that shape us to find a perfect balance of awareness, empathy, and action,” said Festival Founder and Director Janet DeNeefe. “From the technological to the spiritual, the personal, and the environmental, we trace the cycles of our existence - not just to understand where we have been, but to guide humanity toward where we must go: a future defined by compassionate response.”

Marking 200 days to the 2026 Festival, this year’s artwork by Balinese artist Wayan Aris Sarmanta is also being unveiled, offering a masterful study in mythic symbiosis illustrating the theme through a surrealist lens. The drawing presents a vivid, dreamlike world where humans, nature and mythical beings connect with one another.

Reflecting on the collaboration, Wayan Aris Sarmanta said, “I am so excited to have had the opportunity to illustrate this year’s artwork. I wanted to create one single, unified image, with mythical creatures and landscapes shimmering with energy. I hope the viewer can become tangled up in all its forms and be left with only a memory of collected minutiae.”

Alongside the artwork unveiling, the Festival is launching its Writers’ Retreat, a three-day intensive programme led by award-winning author and journalist Peter Godwin, renowned for his work that intertwines personal narrative with political history. The retreat is tailored for writers working on memoir, autobiographical fiction, or narrative non-fiction who are ready to explore memory with discipline and courage.

This year again, the Festival invites both emerging and established writers in English or Indonesian to launch new work through the Festival’s celebrated Book Launch Programme, which is open across all genres, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, prose, novels, satire, and more. Submissions can now be submitted until Friday, 22 May 2026, after which they will be assessed by a curatorial committee.

The Festival has also launched its Early Bird Ticketing, offering a discount on 4-Day Festival Passes, and is proud to announce that, for the first time, it is opening its doors to Indonesian students nationwide, offering free access to those in SD, SMP, and SMA. This initiative invites a new generation of readers to experience the Festival in full, with unlimited entry to the main programme with over 100 sessions spanning literature and global perspectives.

“To instill a genuine love of reading amongst young people, in line with the wider goals of the Yayasan Mudra Swari Saraswati, to which the Festival belongs, we are incredibly excited to offer free entry for students from Indonesian public schools. We hope to see many young people this October and spark in them a lifelong love of storytelling, reading, and creativity through our Festival,” said Janet DeNeefe.

Notes to Editors

The first line-up announcement will be revealed on Tuesday, 16 June. The full programme will be released as general ticket sales begin on Tuesday, 18 August. The Festival poster and photos of the artist Wayan Aris Sarmanta are available for download here.