The proliferation of literary festivals and rising attendance in recent years have demonstrated the public appetite for live events at which authors talk about themselves and their work, often as part of a wider campaign and/or tour surrounding the launch of a particular new title. The prominent international festivals have similarly grown, in particular those at Adelaide, Sydney, Auckland, Cape Town and Jaipur. The festival at Ubud in Bali has carefully re-emerged after the pandemic.

Attendance at distant overseas festivals is costly, but some of the larger events issue invitations to prominent and up-and-coming writers that include travel costs.