WORD Christchurch Festival 2026 is coming soon. Have you chosen your must-attend sessions? It's fun to browse the WORD Festival event booklet and website, pick your favourites and discover new ideas. My choices for this year combine sessions exploring fiction and nonfiction covering diverse and fascinating topics.
The Black Monk: Charlotte Grimshaw
Friday 4 September 2-3pm at The Piano
Award-winning New Zealand author Charlotte Grimshaw is known for her distinctive literary style. Her exploration of the relationship between fact and fiction in her writing has sparked discussions and debates overtime.
At this year's WORD event, Grimshaw will talk about her new novel, The Black Monk. The book has a long waitlist so this is a great opportunity for readers to meet the author in person and hear the stories behind the novel.
What inspired Grimshaw to write the novel following her acclaimed memoir, The Mirror Book? Are any of the characters drawn from her own life? What thoughts does she hope to convey through the story? And what are her plans for future works?
The Good Settler: Richard Shaw
Sunday 6 September 10-11am at The Piano
As New Zealanders, how do you understand identity and belonging? In his third book in a trilogy The Good Settler, Richard Shaw invites readers to question the stories we tell about ourselves and the nation's past.
If you are interested in the topic of decolonisation, race relations, and New Zealand history, this promises you to be a thought-provoking session.
What is the relationship between this book and the previous two in the trilogy? Why did Shaw write this book as a series of essays? How dose Shaw think about readers' reaction to this book? I am sure these questions, and if many more, will be answered during the session.
The Forgotten Coast The Unsettled The Good Settler
Ghosts in the Machines: Technology & AI in Fiction: pip adam and Tim Corballis
Sunday 6 September 2.30-3.30pm at Tautoru / TSB Space, Tūranga
When talking about the relationship between humans and machines, you might immediately think of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
But what about stories written by New Zealand authors? pip adam's Kluge and Tim Corballis' Nova explore the relationship between intelligent machine and human existence in the contemporary era. In particular, both funny novels offer thought-provoking and humorous reflections on technology and what it means to be human.
Calling all science-fiction fans and AI enthusiasts! This event is not to be missed. Where do these writers get their ideas? What do they hope to convey through their stories? And what is it like to write from the perspective of a machine?
WORD Christchurch Festival 2026
- Get a copy of the WORD programme at libraries or check it out online.
- Visit our WORD Christchurch 2026 page
- WORD Christchurch's website
Add a comment to: Hong’s Picks for WORD Christchurch Festival 2026