September 18 to 20, 2025
2025 BOOK BRIDGE
The second edition of the Ponta Lopud Book Bridge will bring a nuanced creative buzz to Lopud exploring the relationship between Literature and social controversies such as gentrification.
We will have entertainment in the form of Poetry and Short Story readings, ancient style (Sean Nos) Irish singing and drama. We are honoured to welcome the return of renowned author Wendy Erskine from the Island of Ireland and new faces such as Marko Gregur and Jurica Pavičić, Zlatan Stipišić Giboni, Srđan Sandić.
Program details
Writers, scholars, publishers, and artists come to the festival to exchange ideas, broaden horizons, and connect through the written word.
The focus of Book Bridge is on the creative process: on what inspires an author to write, a reader to discover, and a community to grow. Over three inspiring days in the restored Rector’s Palace, participants will discuss current topics, present their works, and seek out new literary perspectives together. Spaces open up for new reflections, collaborations, and friendships.
The power of storytelling and cultural exchange will show how it is precisely our differences that connect us and encourage us to imagine worlds beyond the boundaries of the familiar.
We will celebrate literature on Lopud, the written word will come alive once more, and the island will become a place of encounters, inspiration, and collective creation.
THURSDAY, September 18
Rector’s Palace
10:00 – 11:15
Dorta Jagić and Staša Aras: “Creative Writing and Literature”
11:30
Opening of the 2nd Ponta Lopud Book Bridge Literary Gathering
– Welcome address by the founders
– Presentation of the festival program
– Announcement of the winner of the short story competition on the theme “Hotel Grand”
12:15 – 13:15
Discussion on “Literature in the Context of Conflict”: Prof. Billy Gray, James Candon, and Srđan Sandić, with a presentation of the Novel The Resurrection Man by Eoin McNamee
13:15 – 14:15
Readings: Martina Devlin, Dorta Jagić, Srđan Sandić, and Lucy
Caldwell; moderated by Staša Aras
Rector’s Palace
17:30
Monodrama The Dead House performed by Martin Beanz Ward
FRIDAY, September 19
Rector’s Palace
10:00 – 11:00
Heather Laird: lecture “Leave as Little Trace as Possible: Ethical
Non-Consumption in Contemporary Irish Women’s Writing”
11:15 – 12:15
Marko Gregur: presentation of the book Ekspozicija tame (Exposure
of Darkness); moderated by Danijela Crljen
12:15 – 13:15
Readings: Catriona Shine (Habitat), Colin Walsh (Kala) and Martina
Devlin (Charlotte)
17:30
Đorđić Mayneri Park
Readings: “Stories about Songs” from the book Drvo: Zlatan Stipišić
Gibonni, Staša Aras
SATURDAY, September 20
Rector’s Palace
10:00 – 11:00
Workshop by Cauvery Madhavan: “Mining Memories”
11:00 – 12:00
Readings: Wendy Erskine, Dorta Jagić
12:00 – 13:00
Panel discussion “The Responsibility and Position of Authors in Political Trends”: Shane Tivenan, Seid Serdarević, Danijela Crljen, Marko Gregur; moderated by Srđan Sandić
Rector’s Palace
17:30 – 18:30
Presentation of the new novel by Jurica Pavičić Usta puna mora; moderated by Staša Aras
19:00
Hotel Glavović
Singing by poet Gormflaith Ní Shíocháin Ní Bheoláin
All lovers of the written word are welcome!
Ponta Lopud Book Bridge Writing Competition
The idea for this year’s competition theme came to us while observing the fate and state of the Grand Hotel on the island of Lopud.
Does a house consist only of walls (as we are often told when struggling to decide whether to sell our own home or apartment), or is it made up of the souls of the people who have lived in it? Do we want our newly purchased home to be free of other people’s spirits, prompting us to call in alternative cleaners to remove the energy of previous residents— the energetic imprints left in the walls, floors, and ceilings? Do walls suffer when those within them hate each other, and does the entire house then fall ill?
The concept of one’s own home has been a cherished literary motif throughout time, from Greek tragedies to the present day. Hotels, in turn, offer a temporary refuge—a place of warmth without judgment. But what do their walls feel, and what stories do they long to tell? Do their owners, managers, and staff sense the soul of a hotel?
The Grand Hotel on Lopud can serve as the subject of a story, a cycle of poems, or an essay. Its history is woven with both curses and blessings; its aesthetic has been award-winning, while its changing ownership reveals different chapters of its life—often in decline. Just as a human life has both bright and dark moments, the Grand was once a paradise for foreigners and locals alike, a place of joyous summer adventures, but also a hell for the unfortunate souls marked by the Star of David on their armbands (during the Independent State of Croatia/NDH in WWII era, it was a transit camp for Jews). For nearly 30 years now, the Grand has been out of use. Perhaps it seeks a well-deserved rest before beginning a new life?
Thus, for the writing competition within the Ponta Lopud Book Bridge festival, the chosen theme of all works submitted should have the Hotel as a key element.
Eligibility:
- Open to all entrants.
Entry Fee and participation limits:
- Participation is free of charge.
- Only one piece of work per entrant.
Genre, Format and Word Count:
- Poetry, Short Stories and Essays (sample parts in the latter cases).
- Submitted texts must be written in .docx format, using font size 12, line spacing 1.5, and Times New Roman font.
- All submissions must be less than 12500 characters including spaces (approximately 2500 words) of original and unpublished work.
Languages:
- Texts can be written in Croatian, Bosnian, Montenegrin, and Serbian, as well as in Irish and English.
Submission Deadline:
- All entries must be received by midnight, August 15th, 2025.
Email Submission:
- The submitted text must not contain anything that could reveal the author’s name. Therefore, submissions must include three separate documents with the following content:
- A titled text (Poetry, short story, essay) without the author’s name and with an 8-character code (numbers and/or letters).
- A brief biography of the author.
- The code and the author’s name. The same document should also include information about the home address, email address, and phone number.
- Submissions must be sent by email to submissions@pontalopud.hr
Publication:
- By submitting, entrants agree that their story may be published and translated as part of a collection by Ponta Lopud Book Bridge.
Prizes:
- The first prize will be awarded to two authored texts: one in a Slavic language and one in English or Irish.
- For the text in a Slavic language, the author will be awarded a stay in a private cottage in Glengariff, Co. Cork, in Ireland, and a monetary amount of €300 for travel expenses.
- For the text in English or Irish, the author will be awarded a stay in a private accommodation on the island of Lopud, Croatia, and a monetary amount of €300 for travel expenses.
- Winners will be invited to the Ponta Lopud Book Bridge Festival (September 18th – 20th, 2025), where their winning entries will be read or performed.
Judging and award ceremony:
- The competition will be judged by the following panel appointed by the Ponta Lopud Book Bridge organisers: Staša Aras, Danijela Crljen, Ivana Lovrić Jović, Cauvery Madhaven, Gormfhlaith Ni Shiochain Ni Bheolain, James Candon.
- The organisers reserve the right to not award any prize at their discretion.
- The award ceremony will take place on Lopud during the Ponta Lopud Book Bridge Festival.
