World of Words Festival aims to revive Malaysia’s reading culture

Malaysia’s first World of Words Kuala Lumpur (WoW-KL) Festival hopes to spark a long-term revival of the nation’s fading reading culture.

Taking place at Sasana Kijang, Bank Negara Malaysia, from Sept 17-19, festival director Sajeet Soudagar (main image), said WoW-KL is designed to be more than just a three-day event.

Organisers also plan to introduce long-term programmes, such as school reading clubs, national writing competitions, and a gamified “reading coin” reward system, which allows students to earn points for book reviews to redeem at bookstores.

Sajeet said the festival will draw over 2,000 participants, including schoolchildren, university students, educators, publishers, authors, book clubs and the general public.

“We want to rebuild Malaysia as a nation of readers, writers and thinkers. Stories ignite imagination, build empathy and connect us as a people. Books are not a luxury – they are essential to our future,” said Sajeet, an award-winning author and publisher.

He added that WoW-KL will feature leading Malaysian and international voices, including psychologist Datuk Dr Andrew Mohanraj, education pioneer Datuk Parmjit Singh, storyteller Tutu Dutta, book influencer Diana Yeong, and student writer Nurul Qurratu’Aini (Nino).

Sajeet said recent studies show that fewer than 60 per cent of Malaysian students achieve reading proficiency by the age of 10, while the average young Malaysian spends hours on social media but only minutes with books.

“Globally, attention spans are shrinking, and educators warn that the decline in reading threatens not only cultural life but also innovation and critical thinking,” he added.

“WoW-KL is not just for authors, students, or publishers. It is for everyone who believes Malaysia can be more than what it is today.”

Organisers hope the annual festival will cement Kuala Lumpur’s reputation as a regional hub for literary culture and, in time, help Malaysia gain recognition as a true “reading nation.”

The festival will focus on different audiences over its three days:

WoW-KL is backed by the National Library of Malaysia, the Writers’ Association of Malaysia, the Financial Services Library of Bank Negara Malaysia, the British Council, the National Association of Private Educational Institutions (NAPEI), and Google Malaysia.