The European Authors Day 2025 celebrations under the motto Read. For Real kick off and will continue across Europe until 12 December

Press release

From 11 November, everyone – schools, libraries, nurseries, bookshops, publishers, cultural centres, local authorities, companies, NGOs, and individuals – is invited to join the shared celebration of European Authors Day #ReadForReal, running from 11 November to 12 December. Thousands of events are already planned in 25 European countries

The European Authors Day #ReadForReal is a way to celebrate those who make literature possible – writers, illustrators, translators and designers – the true superheroes of creativity, the essence of what makes us human.

At its third edition, the European Authors Day, a project co-funded by Creative Europe and organised by a Consortium of 7 international organisations, increases its ambitions and becomes an annual event involving all reading enthusiasts across Europe. The celebrations are open and inclusive. Across 25 countries, more than 200,000 registered participants will join live events from 11 November to 12 December, with nearly 3600 literary and reading initiatives already planned.
Everyone can take part by organising or joining events.

On www.readforreal.eu, participants will find an invitation to take part, free printable materials to help them create their own events, such as lesson plans, illustrations, logos, posters, bookmarks, tags and other useful resources. Thanks to the project, European authors will also attend literary events abroad, meeting audiences speaking different languages.

“Meeting authors and reading books doesn’t sound innovative – audiences reading about the initiative will be from circles who read, they are critical thinkers with high language and social skills – they will not find anything surprising or new in the idea. The challenge is to make us all understand that the reading and conversation experiences in our lives are precisely what has shaped our minds to become who we are and that an inclusive democracy can survive only if we all try to make reading & thought exchange available to all, not to some. We are inviting everyone to join – the whole book sector but also education, business, social care, local governments – whoever wishes to use the project in a way to develop their teams, local societies, students, employees, audiences, or even products”, says consortium leader Maria Deskur, CEO of the Universal Reading Foundation (Poland).

In Poland, for example, 2,000 post offices have joined the initiative, with the official launch held at the Warsaw Main Post Office, while more than 2,000 events have already been organised in Bulgaria.

“We have been working with schools and libraries for many years, and it is a truly amazing experience to see this wonderful energy react to our project. We already have over 2,000 European Authors Day #ReadForReal events registered in Bulgaria alone. Our population is 6,5 million people, so it is easy to understand what those 2000 events mean. Our consortium is trying to inspire everyone by making the project as open as possible, as easy to join as possible and by trying to show that almost anything is possible. This is also our role and strength as EURead – to invite and inspire organisations from all over Europe to join” – underlines consortium member Valentina Stoeva from the Reading Foundation in Bulgaria, Chair of EURead.

Read. For real!

“Read. For real!” means reading truly and deeply – through meeting authors, illustrators, translators, discovering stories that inspire and change the way we think. It means experiencing literature live, through genuine human connection. #ReadForReal reminds us that reading strengthens empathy, critical thinking and concentration.

“We should read books and exchange thoughts with their creators not only to know them, but to understand the world around us. Read. For Real! is an important slogan inviting us to do just that. Everyone needs to encounter that first book which makes them want to read more – the one that turns them into a lifelong reader That’s our goal – to show that such a book is waiting for each of us,” – says consortium member Tomasz Makowski, Director General of the National Library of Poland and President of the Conference of Directors of National Libraries.

How to join?

The project is open to all. Simply visit www.readforreal.eu to find out more and download free materials.

Everyone can organise an event within the project’s framework, but organisers are invited to register their event through the website.

“It is very important for us to understand and evaluate our effectiveness – registrations will show us which regions of Europe are joining and which ones we have failed to reach to. This will help us do our job better. We are working in the same way in France” – underlines consortium member Annaick Le Ru from Ciclic, a public cultural service dedicated to books and images in the Centre Val de Loire Region in France

Already, 25 national coordination centres (hubs) have agreed to assist participants in their own languages, provide printed welcome packs, and offer online materials.

Participants can:

• organise an event in their community,
• invite an author, illustrator, translator
• take part in a family reading session,
• join a team or group reading challenge,
• create their own local initiative promoting reading through live reading meetings

“The European Authors Day #ReadForReal campaign is a wonderful opportunity to support the tradition of celebrating literature – not only privately, but together. Readers meeting other readers and Authors enable us to create connections which count. We experience the same stories differently, sharing our diverse thoughts and perception makes us learn so much more” says consortium member Joerg Maas from Stiftung Lesen, Germany.

The organisers’ aim is not only to invite as many people as possible to join in promoting reading and engaging with literature, but also to rediscover the simple joy that books bring. The European Authors Day, under the slogan #ReadForReal is also an invitation to visit a bookstore and buy books for friends and family.

“As publishers, we are facilitating literary creation and making it available to the public. Having books home promotes readership. Offering a books a gift is not only a delicate gesture, it encourages literacy. Authors, publishers, booksellers, librarians, teachers, activists, institutions – we are all in this together – if we want our continent to remain at the forefront”, says consortium member Anne Bergman-Tahon from the Federation of European Publishers.

The celebrations will take place every year from 11 November to 12 December. The organisers’ aim is to establish a lasting tradition – a true European festival of literature and creativity, engaging millions of readers and thousands of authors.

Why does it all matter?

More than 75 million adults in Europe struggle with reading comprehension. This affects economies, societies and democracies alike. Reading is not just a pleasure – it is a tool for equal opportunity and a real condition for our common better future as Europeans.

Who is behind the project?

European Authors Day #ReadForReal is coordinated by a consortium of seven organisations from five countries, led by the Universal Reading Foundation (Poland).
Project partners include:

-* National Library of Poland

• Stiftung Lesen, Germany
• Ciclic Centre-Val de Loire, France
• Chetene, Bulgaria
• Federation of European Publishers
• EURead
• Universal Reading Foundation, Poland

The initiative is co-funded by Creative Europe.

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