Open Book Festival

12/06/2026

The Open Book Festival is on its 16th year and we want to hear from you!
Get your creative juices flowing for this one, it's competition time.

Using an original piece of writing (>500 words) or visuals of your own creation, show us how you see the Open Book Festival through your personal lens or the community’s.

First prize wins a full festival pass to the 2026 September Open Book Festival as well as a R300 Book Lounge voucher!
This competition runs until the end of June and entries are limited to one per person.

Send your submission in to [email protected] with the subject line “JUNE SUBMISSION”.

We are excited to see what you create and how Open Book Festival looks in your eyes.

11/06/2026

Workshop Week was another great success this year, with so many unique events packed with writers and creatives!

The week was a celebration of creativity and storytelling, skill building and growth.
We are so grateful to everyone who joined us, and to the facilitators who shared their expertise with this growing community.

A huge thank you to Bertha House for generously opening their up spaces to us and helping everything run seamlessly.

Up next: September Open Book Festival. Mark your calendars from the 4th to 6th, we can’t wait for what is to come!

04/06/2026

Open Book Festival is all about conversations that matter and last night's event was the perfect embodiment of that.

Natalie Sifuma and Stella Hertantyo created an environment that brought people of all ages together to hear each other's stories, drawing us back to the root of how history has always been shared.

We thank Bertha House for hosting us this week and helping spread the love of conversation and storytelling.

02/06/2026

Workshop Week is off to a strong start, but don’t worry if you missed out on the first two days; we still have a couple of workshops with a few tickets left!

If you haven’t been following along; head to the link in our bio to browse the programme, and make sure to take this opportunity to learn from our industry’s best.

Coming up on Thursday and Friday, we have Rehane Abrahams and Giles Griffin, each facilitating two-part workshops.
Also on Friday will be Mohale Mashigo’s ABCs of Writing worksop, which only has one ticket left!

To browse the programme and book your tickets follow the link in our bio.

30/05/2026

Mohale Mashigo, acclaimed writer and long-time friend of Open Book, will be hosting a workshop for all the writers out there.

The ABCs of Writing will cover everything you need to get those ideas you have stuck in your brain out and onto the page.
Mohale has published multiple books and joined us on numerous festival panels, her knowledge and expertise will guide the way through the many questions and hurdles that emerging and experienced writers face.

To book your tickets head over to the link in our bio where you can also browse the rest of the programme.

26/05/2026

We are so thrilled to have Siphokazi Jonas back with us!
Don’t miss out on learning from the best.

A workshop for writers navigating uncertainty, tenderness, creativity, and becoming.

Join me at the Open Book Festival for “Love or Fear?” a reflective writing workshop exploring how we continue to write, imagine, and show up for the world in restless times.

Together, we’ll create space to look inward, ask difficult questions, and reflect on the kinds of writers we have been, and who we hope to become. Open to writers at all stages of their journey.

📍 Bertha House
📅 Saturday, 6 June 2026
⏰ 10:00 – 14:00
🎟 R100 via Webtickets

I look forward to sharing this space with you.

26/05/2026

We are excited to have journalist, activist and DJ, Atiyyah Khan with us this Workshop Week for a truly unique experience combining music, history and storytelling.

Atiyyah will guide you and provide insight into her process of working with sound and how that can connect to writing.

Finding inspiration in her rare record collection, and using sound pieces that ignite thought and memory, she will create a journey and listening experience that highlights the history of Cape Town, in which participants will then meditate on and respond to through writing.

This session is one part writing and one part listening, aiming to demonstrate how significant sound is as a writing mechanism.

Find this link to book your spot:
https://openbookfestival.co.za/programme/listening-to-cape-towns-history-an-invitation-to-sonic-writing/

19/05/2026

Join Reinhard Venzke as he explores the power of zinemaking and comic journaling in this hands-on workshop.

Delve into a unique way of story telling, linking tactile and visual elements to your words.

"What really matters in life? What are the moments that transcend everything else, that make you look back and say: this might all just be worth it?"

All levels are welcome and all you need to bring along is your creativity (and maybe your favourite pens).

Go to the link in our bio to browse the programme and book your tickets!

11/05/2026

Haven't browsed through the programme yet? We suggest you get right on that before tickets sell out!

Here are a few Workshop Week events exploring new ways of approaching storytelling that you may have never thought of:
- Join Reinhard Venzke to explore the use of comics
- Learn about the use of sound in the writing process with Atiyyah Khan
- Flow through a yoga session with The Writing Room that centres your creative mind
- Delve into our oldest tradition of oral storytelling guided by Natalie Sifuma and Stella Hertantyo

To find the perfect event for you have a look at our programme online and book your tickets.
Browse here:
https://openbookfestival.co.za/festival-programme/

04/05/2026

The Workshop Week programme is live!

We are so excited to share this line-up of exceptional facilitators and unique events curated to bring us together in the joy of learning and sharing knowledge.
Pull your writing out of the ideation phase and bring your stories to life.

There is something for everyone, all levels of experience welcome.
Browse the programme on our website to grab your tickets and keep an eye out for more details about what you can expect from each event.

https://openbookfestival.co.za/festival-programme/

We can't wait to see you there!