What’s on in May: Resident Organisation Round Up

As the centre of Books, Writing and Ideas, we are host to some fantastic arts and culture organisations within our walls.

Within the Wheeler Centre building on Lonsdale Street lives Australian Poetry, Blak & Bright, Melbourne City of Literature Office, Emerging Writers’ Festival, Express Media, Melbourne Writers Festival, PEN Melbourne, the Small Press Network and Writers Victoria. Beneath the Wheeler Centre you can enjoy a European culinary escape at Italian inspired restaurant The Moat.

Discover what’s coming up in May 2023 for all of these organisations below.

The Melbourne City of Literature Office

Tramlines, a podcast created in partnership with Broadwave, is now live! Made for tram-riders by tram-riders, it celebrates the city’s iconic tram network. This podcast series will be launched weekly from Monday 8 May, at different times inspired by commuting routes. You can find it on Spotify, Apple, Google, or wherever you get your podcasts. 

Emerging Writers’ Festival 

Experience the twentieth anniversary program launch of the Emerging Writers’ Festival. Held at 6:30PM on 16 May at The Wheeler Centre, and streamed nationally online, this is your chance to mingle with festival artists, grab a drink and experience the program with a digital, interactive reading.

Express Media

Voiceworks Issue #129 ‘Static’ will be hitting the stands in late May. Subscribe now on the Express Media website to get the next four issues sent to your door. 

The Moat

Tucked beneath the Wheeler Centre, The Moat is the perfect place to continue a great conversation. Visit this Italian inspired restaurant on a Wednesday evening for their special Gnocchi night. Indulge yourself with a special deal featuring one of three of the Moat’s beautiful hand-made gnocchi dishes, a garden salad and a glass of house vino for $40 per person. 

PEN Melbourne

The Translation and Linguistic Rights Committee (TLRC) of PEN International is proud to launch the third edition of ‘Video Poem Marathon’, a project aiming to give visibility to the work of writers expressing themselves in Indigenous or minoritised languages. Watch and listen to 70 poets read in their mother tongue by visiting  

Watch and listen to 70 poets read in their mother tongue including Jazz Money, Wiradjuri poet and artist reading in Yirawulin. 

The Wheeler Centre

Following the news that Caro Llewellyn will be stepping down from the role later this year, the Wheeler Centre is seeking applications for a new Chief Executive Officer.

Learn more about this exciting opportunity and the recruitment process on our Careers page. Applicants are encouraged to speak with recruiter Jane Crawley – please email twc23.ceo@gmail.com to arrange a confidential discussion.

Writers Victoria

Learn to become your own creative writing tutor through the act of reading critically and closely in this Writers Victoria workshop, ‘Reading As a Writer with Emily Bitto.’  

Running on Saturday 27 May from 10am to 4pm, this workshop will explore techniques of close reading with a focus on technical elements of narrative, such as dialogue, character development, pace and tone. Find out more and book your spot on the Writers Victoria website.