Writing (beyond) War: Ukraine in the World

Since Russia’s invasion, Ukraine has been more visible in the world than ever before. The country’s image is, however, defined by war, and its cultural and historical richness is often obscured by military developments. How can writers communicate Ukraine’s multidimensionality and complexity to the world? What stories connect with readers in different parts of the world? And what is the role of literature and journalism in shaping the world’s perception of Ukraine and the war?

This event is co-organised by the UCL SSEES seminar series and the

This discussion includes three writers who have approached Ukraine in very different ways in their work:

Myroslav Laiuk is a novelist, poet and non-fiction writer. Before the full-scale invasion, he had written authored three books of poetry and three novels. Since 2022, he has travelled extensively around frontline areas of Ukraine and has published two books of war reportage: Bakhmut (2023, published in English by Ukrainer) and Lists (2025). He received the Shevelov Prize in 2024 and was shortlisted for the BBC Ukraine Book of the Year Award and the Peterson Literary Prize in the same year.

Yuliya Musakovska has published six poetry collections in Ukrainian, and her work has been translated into more than thirty languages. Her collection The God of Freedom, which was included in the Kyiv Independent’s list of Top 10 Ukrainian books, was published in English in 2024 with Arrowsmith Press. Her translation of Artur Dron’s We Were Here, published in the UK by Jantar, was the first volume of poetry by a Ukrainian solider poet in English. She has won multiple awards for her poetry, including the Antonych Award (Ukraine, 2009) and the Asian Prize for Poetry (Sri Lanka, 2025).

Luke Harding is a journalist, writer and award-winning correspondent with The Guardian. He is the author of nine books of non-fiction, several of which focus on Ukraine and Russia. He was Guardian bureau chief in Moscow in 2007-2011 before being deported from Russia for his critical reporting. He has also reported extensively from Ukraine, and his book Invasion:The Inside Story of Russia's Bloody War and Ukraine's Fight for Survival was published in 2022. His new book, Betrayal: Trump, Putin and the New Age of Conquest will be published with Faber in August 2026.

Moderator: Uilleam Blacker, Associate Professor in Ukrainian and East European Culture at UCL SSEES

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