Kathmandu, 4 july
Himalayan Literature Festival & Writers Workshop (HLF-WWK) Returns: Kathmandu to Host 2026 Edition White Lotus Book Shop, Kathmandu, has announced it will host the 2026 edition of the Himalayan Literature Festival and Writers Workshop (HLF-WWK) from May 29 to June 5.
“The 2026 edition will feature scores of world-renowned authors from North America, Latin America, and Europe, with a special focus on South Asian writers and the emerging generation of Nepalese literary voices,” said Shreejana Bhandari, curator of HLF-WWK. The Himalayan Literature Festival (HLF), Nepal’s first international literary festival, marked a historic milestone when it was held from May 27–28, 2024, in Kathmandu.
Conceived as the culminating event of the New York Writers Workshop in Kathmandu (NYWW-K), which ran from May 22 to June 2, the festival brought together a remarkable confluence of global and local literary voices. Organized by a prestigious alliance of published authors and professional writers, the event featured over 40 international writers from five continents and more than 150 Nepalese authors, engaging in a dynamic exchange of ideas, craft, and cross-cultural inspiration.
The festival was dedicated to Gopal Prasad Rimal, a towering figure in modern Nepalese poetry. His legacy was honored through the release of an English translation of his selected poems—a symbolic gesture reinforcing the festival’s mission to bridge Eastern and Western literary traditions.
Notable international participants included: Tony Barnstone, Tom Lutz, Yuyutsu Sharma, Rob Fenn, Ruth Danon, Felicity Volk, K Satchidanandan, Pankaj Bista. Jami Proctor Xu, Ravi Shankar, Tim Tomlinson, Xiao Xiao, Sirunyan, Yann Vagneux, Julie Krishnan-Williams, Son Van, Dariusz Lebioda, Piia Mustamäki, Gorka Lasa, Peter Allenspach, Da Mao, Maria Claire Heath, Deedle Tomlinson, Rukmini Bhaya Nair, Jahrose Jafta, Vasilis Manousakis, Anand Thakore, Supip Sen, Neville Sarony, Vanita Ramani, Kiran Bhat, Laksmisree Banerjee, Divya Joshi, Inderjeet Mani, Brian Hou, Jane Houng, Lizzie Packer, Butler, Ann Gordon, Nancy Parish, Babette Albin, and Marianne Sciberras. They were joined by over two dozen prominent Nepalese and Nepal Bhasha authors, including: Durgalal Shrestha, Narayan Wagle, Karna Sakya, Shiven Thapa, B.N. Joshi, Shakuntala Joshi, Bishwa Sigdel, Raj Kumar Baniya, Narayan Dhakal, Bimila Tumkhewa, Sabina Maharjan, Avaya Shrestha, Kripa Khanal, Shyam Rimal, Hisilina Shakya, Rami Priya, Pratisara Saymi, Rajni Mila, Dwarika Shrestha, Shailendra Sakar, Yubaraj Ghimire, Manoj Dahal, Laxmi Thapoa, Akhand Bhandari, Deepak Sapkota, Shreejana Bhandari, Mohraj Sharma, Ken Subedi, Suresh Kiran, Biren Shrestha, Amar Aakash, Bhuwan Thapaliya, Vijay Gurung, Sarad Pradhan, and many others.
The workshops and festival featured a wide range of imaginative and interdisciplinary panels, including: “Meditation and Imagination”: exploring mindfulness practices as tools for writers, “Psychoanalysis, Shamanism, and the Problem of Character”: where the three-act structure meets the Zen koan, “Translating the Ghazal as American Blues”: a cross-cultural poetic exploration, “Stories on the Couch, Characters on the Prayer Mat”: what drives our characters and poems?, “Dream, Story, Prayer, Chant”: mapping modes of expression across borders, “Mapping Your Journey with Words and Images”: interweaving photography and narrative Workshops during NYWW-K 2024 were held in iconic locations such as Kathmandu, Pokhara (along the tranquil shores of Lake Fewa, at the foothills of the Annapurna range), and Changu Narayan, the oldest Hindu temple in Nepal.
Special sessions were also conducted at the Pashupati Shrine along the Bagmati River and at Chitwan Jungle Lodge, creating a powerful synthesis of sacred space, natural beauty, and creative energy.
Together, the NYWW-K workshops and HLF 2024 created a rare space where writers from vastly different cultures and traditions could meet, converse, collaborate, and inspire one another. This distinctive blend of literary excellence, cross-cultural dialogue, and Himalayan spirituality laid a strong foundation for future festivals.
New books of poetry and fiction by Tim Tomlinson, Tony Barnstone, and Gorka Lasa were launched during the festival.
The current issue of Pratik magazine, edited by Himalayan poet Yuyutsu Sharma, features selected writings produced during the event. A stage performance directed by Che Shankar of the Garden Theatre Community, featuring poetry by Rimal, Yuyutsu Sharma, Tony Barnstone, and Ravi Shankar, was staged in the gardens of Kathmandu Guest House, where the festival took place. As we look ahead to June 2026, the upcoming New York Writers Workshop in Kathmandu and the second edition of the Himalayan Literature Festival and Writers Workshop (HLF-WWK) promise to build on this extraordinary momentum. With renewed energy, broader participation, and deeper engagement with South Asian voices, diasporic narratives, and global storytelling traditions, the 2026 edition (May 29–June 5) aims to further solidify Nepal’s place on the world’s literary map. Writers, readers, and creators are warmly invited to join us in Kathmandu in June 2026 for another landmark celebration of literature, imagination, and cultural exchange.
