The Indo-American Arts Council is thrilled to announce our upcoming Literary Festival scheduled for November 2023. We will be celebrating and exploring the vibrant and diverse cultures of India through the written word, including works written by Indian and diaspora authors as well as those who have been inspired by the many facets of the country. We invite submissions of published books of poetry, fiction, non-fiction, drama and children's literature that illuminate this year's theme Courageously Creative. We are looking for works that examine and showcase the beauty, challenges, complexity, diversity and richness of Indian culture and its relationship to society, history, politics, spirit and the human experience. We accept original works in the languages of India with English translations.

Chosen entries will be featured in New York City at an in-person event, featuring renowned and emerging voices. These energetic, interactive discussions will be complemented by a series of recorded programs that will be exclusively launched on our online platform.  

In the past, the IAAC Literary Festival has had the honor of hosting prominent authors such as Salman Rushdie, Suketu Mehta, Dr. Amartya Sen, Indra Nooyi, Barkha Dutt, Deepti Naval, Deepak Chopra, Anupam Kher, Rakesh Kaul, Dr. Ravi Shankar, Newbery Honor recipient Veera Hiranandani, Booker Nominee Avni Doshi,  Dr. Sudha Murthy, Narayan Hegde, Megha Majumdar, International Booker Prize winner Daisy Rockwell, Nobel Peace Prize Winner Dr. Kailash Satyarthi, Kal Penn, Vishakha Desai, Anupam Kher, Ambassador Haksar and Member of Parliament Dr. Shashi Tharoor. We have organized book launches for eminent authors such as Ramchandra Guha, and Madhur Jaffrey, and in 2021 launched Acrobat by Nandana Sen, and the official biography of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. 

Interest in the IAAC Literary Festival has continued to garner international attention with its spotlight on topics such as Women’s Empowerment, Health & Wellness, Diversity, and Equity. IAAC strongly believes in sustaining community to help create a world where literature can thrive and has partnered with several prominent organizations such as Poets & Writers, Kundiman, and the Asian American Writers Workshop.

The only criteria besides a focus on India or work by an Indian or diaspora author is literary excellence, whether you are a children’s book author or a poet...

We wish you the very best and look forward to reading your submissions.

Here is information on some of our past festivals:

- https://iaac.us/iaac-literary-festival-2022/

- https://iaac.us/iaac-literary-festival-2021/

- https://iaac.us/iaac-literary-festival-2020/

- https://iaac.us/iaac-literary-festival/

IAAC recognizes the impact that COVID-19 has had on the literary community. It has therefore expanded its support for artists generally and authors specifically. IAAC will:

- Pay an author honorarium

- Pay a moderator honorarium

- Allocate a social media budget for each author on top of the IAAC marketing

- Include the Publisher logo with approval in all IAAC media marketing

- Include links to author and moderator social media handles

- Include a link to book purchase

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