Literary Festivals of the Caribbean (Updated)

The original Literary Arts Festivals of the Caribbean post dates back to 2014. This is a revamp with some additions and will list only festivals active at the time of this posting to the best of our knowledge.

Antigua and Barbuda’s literary festival activities have been fractured – from the Antigua and Barbuda International Literary Festival which was one of the first in the region when it started in 2006 as the Caribbean International Literary Festival (it didn’t last) to a community effort that resulted in the Wadadli Stories one day activity in 2017 (that proved to be a one-off). There is a Literacy Day on the Ministry of Education calendar (status unknown at 2021 update) and literary limes like Expressions Open Mic (currently on break), Soothe, the Just Write Writers Retreat (also on break), Spilling Ink Poetry in the Park (status unknown). There have also been literary arts showcases (of sorts, on and off) in recent Independence programmes, but a funded lit arts festival on par with ABILF, no. And for the future, who knows?

Caribbean-based Events

Anguilla –

Anguilla Lit Fest

Barbados –

BIM Lit Fest

British Virgin Islands –

BVI Literary Festival

Cayman Islands –

Gimistory

Cuba –

Havana International Book Fair

Dominica –

Nature Island Literary Festival

Guadeloupe –

Congress of Caribbean Writers

Montserrat –

Alliouagana Literary Festival

Jamaica –

Calabash International Literary Festival

Kingston Book Festival

Two Seasons Talking Trees Literary Fiesta

St. Lucia –

Nobel Laureate Week

St. Martin –

St. Martin Book Fair

Trinidad and Tobago –

Bocas Lit Fest

United States Virgin Islands –

United States Virgin Islands Literary Festival and Book Fair

Events based outside of the Caribbean

USA –

Brooklyn Caribbean Literary Festival

Califest – Caribbean Literary Festival

Miami Book Fair’s Read Caribbean program

If there’s a Caribbean literary arts festival that you feel has been overlooked, please send me the information at wadadlipen at gmail dot com

Images in this post are top to bottom from the Antigua and Barbuda International Literary Festival 2007 (featuring Donna Hill, Verna Wilkins, Dawne Allette, and Victoria Christopher Murray), the USVI Lit Fest and Book Fair 2015 (Sharon Millar, Tiphanie Yanique, Gillian Royes, and Joanne C. Hillhouse), and Bocas in Trinidad 2014 (A-dZiko Simba Gegele, Joanne C. Hillhouse, and Colleen Smith-Dennis).

As with all content on Wadadli Pen, except otherwise noted, this is written by Joanne C. Hillhouse (author of The Boy from Willow Bend, Dancing Nude in the Moonlight, Oh Gad!, Musical Youth, With Grace, and Lost! A Caribbean Sea Adventure). All Rights Reserved. Subscribe to the site to keep up with future updates. Thanks.