Panel discussion at Kampala Writes Lit Fest [Goethe-Zentrum Kampala]
The third edition of the Kampala Writes Lit Fest opens on August 28, today, and runs until August 30 at the Uganda National Cultural Centre (National Theatre) in Kampala. It features writers, poets, artists and thinkers under the theme ‘Where Stories Begin: The Imaginary and the Art of Possibility‘.
The festival, curated by writer and curator Goretti Kyomuhendo and organised by the Goethe-Institut and the Uganda German Cultural Society, explores storytelling as a collective language that crosses creative disciplines.
The programme examines how stories are shaped, shared and reimagined, while placing literary and artistic traditions in conversation with emerging genres and new forms of expression.
The theme invites audiences to think about the origins of storytelling, how new ideas are born and how imagination can be used to rethink history and envision alternative futures.
Kyomuhendo stated on the festival’s website that the festival builds on the success of its two previous editions and has become a key event on Uganda’s literary calendar.
“Storytelling has always been at the heart of who we are as Ugandans. Many of us grew up surrounded by folktales, praise poetry, drama, song and dance as a form of entertainment and instruction,” Kyomuhendo said.
The festival celebrates these traditions while also exploring new genres and modes of expression. It will bring together established and emerging artists from Uganda, the continent and the diaspora.
Nigerian novelist and professor of creative writing Chika Unigwe will be the keynote guest. Other participants include writers, poets, filmmakers, curators, publishers, journalists and artists working across different disciplines.
The three-day programme features panel discussions and debates, book talks, workshops and masterclasses, performances, film screenings and dedicated sessions for children.
Among the discussions are Imagination in Poetry; Speculative Futures: Science Fiction as Fantasy and Political Imagination; Where Stories Begin: A Cross-Genre Dialogue Between Writers and Artists; Decoloniality and the Stories That Make Us; and Can Machines Imagine? Creativity in the Era of Artificial Intelligence and Who Defines African Stories?
The festival also features an audio publishing masterclass facilitated by Ama Dadson, focusing on audiobooks and podcasts and their growing role in how African stories reach audiences.
Book launches will include Instances of Exceptional Moments of Hunger and The Girl Child Has Seen Days.
Other speakers are Beatrice Lamwaka, Anna Adima, Jane Okot p’Bitek Langoya, Irene Esther Mutuzo, Phillip Matogo, Dilman Dila, Zabu Wamara, Mirrianne Mahn, Edna Ninsiima, Roland Byagaba, Michelle Ivy Alwedo, Joshua Lubwama and Fiona Kemigisha.