We have two events next week we would like to invite those in the London area to. The first is a Focus Group we are holding this coming Thursday, 9th November. The focus group is part of our work with Literary Agents and Publishers where we want to speak to aspiring writers who are not usually consulted in the publishing process and feedback to the publishing industry where the barriers and gaps are for authors to get their work published. We’ll be really keen for those who feel left out of the process or are not sure what they need to do to get published. We will be in The Gallery Room at Islington Central Library on the 1st floor at 6pm. For details, please look at our Eventbite link. And then on Saturday 11th November we would love to invite you to a very special event we are doing at Newington Green Meeting House. The Local Voices Project: An Anthology by Hackney, Haringey & Our Neighbours is released on the 11th of November by Indie Novella.
It features 34 local writers from across the boroughs and guests from further afield. The anthology is part of a project we have been working on across 2023, promoting incredible writing at a grassroots level bringing together experienced published writers and up-and-coming writers. The result has been an incredibly pleasant, remarkable surprise. When I explained what the project was to one bookshop owner, their response, though supportive, was "you're not going to be able to use half of the entries, they'll be all over the place..." We actually found a place for ALL the entries, each on their own merit, and because as a collection they created an incredible story about Home, Identity, and Belonging. I was genuinely moved when reading them. There were stories about forming diaspora communities, growing up in a multi-cultural society, coming together during COVID, caring for relatives, rent hikes, gentrification, being Black and British, and finding a place where you feel accepted. And though the authors had not met each other or shared any form of brief, each story shared this common theme of finding a place we can call home and feel that we truly belong. It is a true snapshot of Hackney, Haringey and what North London, with all its incredible communities, means to us. We are running the launch event at 1pm on Saturday 11th November at the Newington Green Meeting House, with tea, coffee, nibbles and wine, and you are also very much invited to attend. Here’s the link to our Eventbrite page. If you'd like a copy of the book, Pages of Hackney and The Broadway Bookshop are the first two shops to order it in stock (we only sent out order links on Thursday). You can also check in out on the Indie Novella website: The Local Voice Project www.indienovella.co.uk/product-page/the-local-voices-project Share