Writing and Society Research Centre

The second China Australia Literary Forum took place in Beijing from 2-3 April 2013, following the success of the inaugural CALF event held in Sydney, Australia in 2011. The program was co hosted by the Chinese Writers Association; the Writing and Society research Centre at Western Sydney University; The JM Coetzee Centre for Creative Practice, Adelaide University; and the Australian Embassy in Beijing.

This high profile literary exchange featured two Nobel prize winning authors; J.M. Coetzee and Mo Yan. They formed part of a delegation of 8 Australian and 8 Chinese contemporary authors, and joined attending academics, editors, publishers and members of the literary community. The event involved in-depth discussions about the role of writing in the contemporary world, the critical issues for writing in each society, and the prospects for literary and publishing interaction between China and Australia in future. This event was run in both English and Mandarin, with simultaneous translation.

J.M. Coetzee talks about idealism and the Nobel Prize.

The program in China also included a one-day roundtable event on April 4 2013, bringing together academics from Western Sydney University, University of Adelaide, as well as international colleagues from The University of East Anglia and the British Centre for Literary Translation, and Chinese participants from universities in China, as well as publishing houses and journals. This event was hosted at the Australian Embassy in Beijing.

Mo Yan on the challenges of being associated with the Nobel prize.

CALF II Australian participants:

Alexis Wright (Western Sydney University), Brian Castro (UA), Nicholas Jose (UA), Ivor Indyk (Western Sydney University), Gail Jones (Western Sydney University), JM Coetzee (UA), David Walker (Peking University), Anthony Uhlmann (Western Sydney University), Jing Han (UWS), Ben Etherington (UWS).Read more about the Australian Participants.

See media coverage of this event