The most engaging conversations; the most captivating books; the most beautiful location: this is the ultimate day festival for readers and writers showcasing the very best female talent within and related to the world of books.
We’ve put together another stellar line-up which includes a number of previous Women’s Prize authors and judges, alongside inspiring new voices and stimulating discussions about the legacy of women’s writing. We also have a full line-up of writing workshops and industry 1-2-1s to offer insights for anyone exploring their own writing journey.
This year, we’ve refined our schedule to make your experience even smoother. We’ve added more time between events, giving you ample opportunity to move between tents, explore all the activities in the gardens and meet your favourite authors at the signing stations.
Bookshelfie LIVE
12.30–1.30pm | Hosted by Vick Hope with Kathryn Stockett
Opening Women’s Prize LIVE is a special live edition of the Women’s Prize Bookshelfie podcast, hosted by multi-award winning broadcaster, author and journalist Vick Hope. American author Kathryn Stockett joins Vick onstage to discuss the five books by women that have influenced and shaped her life as both a reader and a writer, the runaway success of her global bestseller The Help, and returning after seventeen years with her new book, The Calamity Club.
About the Speakers:
Kathryn Stockett was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi. After graduating from the University of Alabama, she moved to New York City, where she worked in magazine publishing and marketing for nine years. Her first novel, The Help, was nominated for the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2010, and has sold over 1 million copies in the UK and 15 million copies worldwide.
Vick Hope is a broadcaster spanning TV, radio, and podcasts. Described as ‘the voice of a generation’ by The Sunday Timesand ‘a broadcasting powerhouse and future shaper’ by Marie Claire, Vick currently presents Radio 1’s daily drivetime show, Going Home with Vick, Katie and Jamie, and BBC’s Countryfile. Having judged the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2021, Vick now hosts the weekly, highly-acclaimed Women’s Prize podcast, Bookshelfie. She has also presented her own Sunday morning show on ITV ‘Vick Hope’s Breakfast Show’, and co-hosted Pointless on BBC One, Glastonbury across the BBC and The Paralympics coverage on Channel 4. She is the author of two children’s books: Listen Upand Shout Out, works as an ambassador for Amnesty International and is a trustee of the V&A Museum.
Rivals, Riders and Rutshire: The Enduring Appeal of Jilly Cooper
1.45–2.45pm | Felicity Blunt, Laura Wade and Katherine Parkinson, chaired by Zubs Malik
Join us for a lively celebration of the life and work of one of Britain’s most beloved authors, Jilly Cooper. The undisputed Queen of the bonkbuster, Cooper transformed commercial fiction with her wry humour, razor-sharp observations of upper-class life and unapologetically frank portrayal of relationships, ambition and desire. Her novels including her Romance series and the iconic Rutshire Chronicles captured a world of glamour, gossip and scandal while offering a surprisingly astute commentary on class, power and women’s lives. Her agent and friend Felicity Blunt, alongside screenwriter Laura Wade and actor Katherine Parkinson, will explore Cooper’s enduring literary legacy, her influence on generations of writers and readers, and why her stories continue to resonate on page and screen today.
About the Speakers:
Felicity Blunt is one of the UK’s leading literary agents at Curtis Brown, representing bestselling and award-winning authors across fiction and non-fiction, and most recently is an Executive Producer of the Disney+ adaptation of Jilly Cooper’s Rivals. Originally trained as a barrister, she joined Curtis Brown in 2005 after interning at both The Wylie Agency and Curtis Brown, and has since built a distinguished client list spanning literary and commercial writing, including authors such as Claire Keegan, Bonnie Garmus, Elizabeth Day, Meg Mason, Nina Stibbe and Gillian McAllister. Known for her sharp editorial eye and passion for storytelling, she is a highly respected figure in British publishing.
Laura Wade is an award winning playwright and screenwriter. She is an Executive Producer and lead writer for Rivals on Disney+, adapted from the novel by Jilly Cooper. Her adaptation of W.Somerset Maugham’s The Constant Wife is currently on tour, and her version of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard opens this summer at the RSC. Other plays include Home, I’m Darling (Olivier Award for Best New Comedy), Jane Austen’s The Watsons (Chichester Festival Theatre and Menier Chocolate Factory) and Posh (Royal Court Theatre and West End, adapted into the feature film The Riot Club for which Wade wrote the screenplay).
Katherine Parkinson is an actor and writer, who has worked in theatre, film and television. On TV, she is known for Rivals (for which she was nominated for a BAFTA in 2025), Here We Go, Humans, The IT Crowd (for which she won a BAFTA in 2014) and Doc Martin. On stage she has been in The Seagull, Cock and Much Ado About Nothing, and was nominated for an Olivier award in 2019 for Home, I’m Darling for Best Actress in a Play. In 2019, her debut work as a playwright, Sitting, opened at the Arcola Theatre, London, after a successful run at the Edinburgh Festival. It was filmed for BBC4 in 2021.
Zubs J Malik (Chair) is an award-winning bookstagrammer and content creator, widely respected for her engaging literary commentary and sharp, insightful reviews. With over a decade of experience in education, including her role as a former Head of English, Zubs now serves as Head of Media, where she brings her passion for storytelling into both the classroom and the digital space. A committed advocate for diverse literature and inclusive education, she champions accessible reading opportunities for all. Through her work, Zubs continues to spark meaningful conversations at the intersection of books, culture, and media, cementing her position as a trusted and influential voice in the literary community.
Between the Covers! LIVE
3–4pm | Hosted by Amanda Ross with Anita Rani, Alan Davies and Jo Brand
Join Amanda Ross for a special Women’s Prize edition of Between the Covers! inspired by the much-loved BBC book club that has brought readers, writers and celebrity booklovers together to celebrate the joy of reading. Amanda’s all-star fantasy book group, Anita Rani, Alan Davies and Jo Brand, will each bring a beloved “BYOB” (Bring Your Own Book), chosen from past nominations for the Women’s Prize for Fiction. They will champion novels by Hilary Mantel, Yael van der Wouden and Kate Atkinson, but you’ll have to be there to discover who picked what, and why! Alongside their own recommendations, the panel will also discuss Amanda’s specially selected Women’s Prize title, The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters, longlisted in 2010 and one of her Richard & Judy Best Read choices that same year. The group will also share insights into their own bestselling books and writing processes. Expect lively conversation, plenty of laughs, and even a surprise appearance from a literary legend. After the event, stay for book signings with the panel – perfect for adding that personal touch to your ever-growing TBR pile.
About the Speakers:
Anita Rani
Award-winning broadcaster Anita Rani is one of the most recognisable faces on British television. She hosts BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour and has been a lead presenter on BBC One’s Countryfile for over a decade. Anita has fronted series including My Life At Christmas and The Brontës for Sky Arts. Her memoir The Right Sort of Girl became a bestseller and her debut novel, Baby Does a Runner, was published in 2023. Beyond broadcasting, she serves as Chancellor of the University of Bradford and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador. Anita is an avid reader and the last time she was on Between The Covers she converted everyone to the joys of poetry.
Alan Davies
Alan Davies is a critically acclaimed stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and TV personality, known for his performance as Jonathan Creek, and as a permanent panelist on QI. His talk show, Alan Davies: As Yet Untitled, recently reached its seventh season. He is also one of the UK’s best-loved comedians. His memoir, Just Ignore Him was published in 2020 and the follow-up, White Male Stand-Up, was published last year. This autumn he is touring, for the first time in a decade, with Think Again. Alan loves reading, especially an audiobook on a dog walk and has made some brilliant book recommendations over the years on Between The Covers.
Jo Brand
Long established as one of the UK’s best comics, Jo Brand is one of the stars and co-writer of Getting On, the BAFTA award-winning series inspired by her earlier career in nursing. Other TV credits include, hosting twelve series of Bake Off: An Extra Slice, Taskmaster, Have I Got News for You and Would I Lie to You? Jo has written several best-selling books including The More You Ignore Me which was made into a feature film and won a National Film Award. Jo is a Between The Covers favourite and took part in the inaugural BTC Live! stage tour. Jo was named after Josephine – the feisty one – from Little Women.
Amanda Ross
Co-Founder & CEO of Cactus TV and Executive Producer of Between The Covers Live! Amanda has created and produced many major book-based campaigns on TV over the past 20 years, including BBC One’s Between The Covers, Richard & Judy’s Book Club, Channel 4’s TV Book Club, The National Book Awards and many more. She personally selects the books for these campaigns and is responsible for launching the careers of many bestselling authors. She oversees all of Cactus’ book and writing initiatives, and in 2007 her TV book choices accounted for over 26% of all books sold in the UK. She was named no 1 in The Observer list of the 50 most powerful people in publishing.
Love Beyond the Margins
4.15–5.15pm | Kiran Millwood Hargrave, Elle McNicoll and Candice Carty-Williams, chaired by Miriam Robinson
Love stories are rarely simple, especially for those whose lives, identities and desires exist outside the expected centre. Join Kiran Millwood Hargrave, Elle McNicoll and Candice Carty-Williams for a moving conversation about writing love, longing and belonging beyond convention. From queer and bisexual desire in Almost Life, to neurodivergent romance and second chances in Unapologetic Love Story, to the messy realities of friendship, fertility and self-discovery in Queenie Is Working on It, these authors explore intimacy in all its complexity. Together, they discuss how contemporary fiction is helping to expand reader expectations of who gets to be at the centre of a love story—and what it means to love beyond the margins. Chaired by Miriam Robinson, author of And Notre Dame is Burning, a heartbreakingly beautiful novel about the beginnings and ends of life, love and marriage.
About the speakers:
Kiran Millwood Hargrave
Kiran Millwood Hargrave is an award-winning poet, playwright, and novelist. The Mercieswas her first novel for adults, and became an instant Sunday Times bestseller. It won a Betty Trask award, was longlisted for the Jhalak Prize and was named amongst the NYT 100 Most Notable Books of 2020. Her bestselling works for children include The Girl of Ink and Stars and have won or been short- and longlisted for numerous awards including the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, Costa Children’s Book Award, the Blue Peter Best Story Award and, twice, the CILIP Carnegie Medal. Kiran lives in Oxford with her husband, the artist Tom de Freston, and their rescue cats, Luna and Marly.
Elle McNicoll
Elle McNicoll is a bestselling and award-winning novelist and screenwriter. She is a four time Carnegie nominated author, and was also honoured in the US with the Schneider Award in 2022. A Kind of Spark, has also been adapted for television, which debuted on UK and US screens on 2 April, 2023. It is Emmy-nominated and won Best Children’s Programme at the Broadcast Awards and a Royal Television Society Award in London, 2024 and is now streaming in many territories around the globe.
Candice Carty-Williams
Candice Carty-Williams was born and raised in south London, by way of Jamaica. She is a novelist, culture writer, and author of Book of the Year Award winning and Sunday Times bestselling Queenie, as well as young adult novella Empress and Aniya, and the Sunday Times bestselling People Person. Queenie received global acclaim, and was described as vital, disarmingly honest and boldly political. It was adapted for Channel 4 and Hulu in 2024, and her original drama, Champion, aired on BBC One in the UK, and on Netflix globally in 2023, receiving five stars across the board.
Miriam Robinson (Chair)
Miriam Robinson has worked in the world of books and bookshops for over fifteen years. Previously the host of the podcast My Unlived Life, she holds an MA in Creative Writing from Goldsmiths, University of London, and her short fiction has been shortlisted for a Pushcart Prize, the inaugural Pindrop/RA Short Story Prize and the Pat Kavanagh Prize. Originally from Colorado, she lives in East London with her daughter and their six-toed cat, Astrid. And Notre Dame is Burning is her debut novel.
2026 Women’s Prizes Shortlist Readings
6–8.30pm | 2026 Women’s Prize for Fiction and Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction 12 shortlisted authors with Thangam Debbonaire and Julia Gillard
To complete our day of wonderful events, guests will be treated to a rare opportunity to listen to live readings from the books that dazzled our 2026 judges, from the authors themselves. At this hugely popular event, the 12 shortlisted authors of both Prizes will be taking to the stage to read from and answer questions about their work. Hosted by their respective Chair of Judges, Thangam Debbonaire (Non-Fiction) and Julia Gillard (Fiction), this evening is not one to miss!
2026 Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction Shortlist:
- The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People’s History of Afghanistan by Lyse Doucet
- Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health by Daisy Fancourt
- Artists, Siblings, Visionaries: The Lives and Loves of Gwen and Augustus John by Judith Mackrell
- Hotel Exile: Paris in the Shadow of War by Jane Rogoyska
- Mother Mary Comes to Me by Arundhati Roy
- Nation of Strangers: Rebuilding Home in the 21st Century by Ece Temelkuran
2026 Women’s Prize for Fiction Shortlist:
- Flashlight by Susan Choi
- Dominion by Addie E. Citchens
- The Correspondent by Virginia Evans
- The Mercy Step by Marcia Hutchinson
- Kingfisher by Rozie Kelly
- Heart the Lover by Lily King
Please note, this event includes an interval, and will be followed by a signing.
Discoveries Debuts
1.45–2.45pm | India-Rose Bower, Rukky Brume, Lorna Elcock, Genevieve Marenghi, Rebecca Taylor McKay, Ruth Rosengarten, hosted by Kate Mosse
Meet six exciting new voices from the Women’s Prize Discoveries programme: India-Rose Bower, Rukky Brume, Lorna Elcock, Genevieve Marenghi, Rebecca Taylor McKay and Ruth Rosengarten.
During this showcase, you’ll hear a taste of their recently published or forthcoming debut novels recognised by Discoveries, which is run in partnership with Audible, Curtis Brown and Curtis Brown Creative. Spanning literary fiction, contemporary storytelling, speculative fiction and bold new perspectives on identity, relationships and belonging, these debut authors represent the breadth and strength of emerging female voices across the UK and Ireland. Their success demonstrates the long-term impact of Discoveries in opening doors for unpublished women writers and supporting them in building sustainable literary careers.
About the Speakers:
India-Rose Bower was longlisted for Discoveries 2023, and has several short stories and poems published in magazines and anthologies. Her hobbies are attending pagan festivals and watching horror films, while working as a librarian. India-Rose has a long-term disability and lives with her non-binary partner in Yorkshire. Her debut novel, We Call Them Witches, is a fresh take on dystopian horror, and was published in January by Michael Joseph.
Rukky Brume grew up in Lagos, Nigeria. She studied Law at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and works as a finance lawyer. Rukky is an alumna of the Faber Academy’s flagship writing course. It Comes in Waves, her debut novel (an early draft of which was longlisted for the inaugural Discoveries programme) will be published by #Merky Books/Penguin Random House UK in June, and is both an honest exploration of grief and a captivating story about legacy. She lives in London.
Lorna Elcock is a writer from Scotland. She was shortlisted for Discoveries 2021 with the opening chapters of her debut novel The Windhover, about a family which arrives from a Glasgow tenement to run a remote youth hostel in Perthshire, setting in motion a terrible chain of events. The Windhover is forthcoming from Dead Ink Books in July 2026.
Genevieve Marenghi is a writer with a BA in English and Philosophy. She worked for eleven years at the Weekend FT, where she helped create and launch How To Spend It magazine. She also volunteered for years as a National Trust guide at Ham House, which inspired the setting for her debut art-heist novel, No Oil Painting, longlisted for the inaugural Discoveries programme and published in October 2025. Her writing uses dark humour to explore perception, class and the hidden lives of ordinary people.
Rebecca Taylor McKay was born in West Yorkshire, a stone’s throw from Brontë Country, and named after Daphne du Maurier’s bestselling novel, Rebecca – so believes that her pull to the dark side of literature was inevitable. She currently lives in Calderdale with her husband and two teenagers, where she writes full-time. Rebecca was runner-up in Theatre Cloud’s Gothic Fiction Contest in 2018 and shortlisted for the 2022 Northern Writers Sid Chaplin Award for working-class writers. Her debut novel, The Honeymoon Suite, was longlisted for Discoveries 2022 and will be published in June.
Ruth Rosengarten is a writer, artist and dog lover. She spent many years writing as an art historian but in recent years has moved towards memoir, hybrid writing and poetry. She talks of both her writing and visual practice as strongly indebted to the semantics and aesthetics of collage. In its earliest form, her hybrid book Over, was shortlisted for Discoveries 2022. It is a genre-defying work of lyrical, hybrid prose/poetry, with themes of ageing, sexuality, parenting, attachment and loss woven into musings around works of art, cinema and literature.
Kate Mosse (Host) is an award-winning novelist, playwright, performer, interviewer and writer of history and memoir. The author of twelve novels and short-story collections, her books have been translated into thirty-eight languages and published in more than forty countries. Fiction includes the multimillion-selling Languedoc Trilogy (Labyrinth, Sepulchre, Citadel), the No 1 bestselling Joubert Family Chronicles (The Burning Chambers, The City of Tears, The Ghost Ship, The Map of Bones) and Gothic fiction The Taxidermist’s Daughter and The Winter Ghosts. Her highly-acclaimed non-fiction includes An Extra Pair of Hands, Warrior Queens & Quiet Revolutionaries and her first YA non-fiction book Feminist History for Every Day of the Year.
The Founder Director of the Women’s Prize for Fiction and the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction, and the Founder of the global #WomanInHistory campaign, Kate is also a trustee of the British Library, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Authors and a Visiting Professor of Contemporary Fiction and Creative Writing at the University of Chichester. She was awarded a CBE in the King’s New Year’s Honours list 2024.
Difficult Women: Why Society Still Demonises Women
3–4pm | Meena Kandasamy, Emily Maguire and Natasha Walter, chaired by Jamie Klingler
Women who defy social expectations have been demonised in books throughout history, cast as dangerous, disruptive, or morally suspect. These archetypes endure across centuries, from witches, madwomen, and monsters to the fallen woman, the seductress, and the modern-day ‘difficult’ woman. In this vital conversation, Meena Kandasamy, Emily Maguire and Natasha Walter will trace these narratives from myth, folklore and the gothic tradition through to contemporary culture and the digital world. They will explore why women are still punished for expressing power, anger, ambition and refusal, and how writers are reclaiming these stories to challenge misogynistic tropes and reshape what it means for women to be seen – and heard – on their own terms. Chaired by activist and campaigner Jamie Klingler.
About the Speakers:
Meena Kandasamy is a poet, writer, translator, anti-caste activist and academic based in India. Described by The Independent as a “one-woman, agit-prop literary-political movement,” her work spans poetry, fiction and political writing, often exploring caste, feminism and resistance. Her books include the poetry collections Touch and Ms Militancy, and the novels The Gypsy Goddess, the Women’s Prize-shortlisted When I Hit Youand Exquisite Cadavers. She is also the author ofThe Orders Were to Rape You and a noted translator of Tamil literature.
Emily Maguire is the author of seven novels, includingAn Isolated Incident, shortlisted for the Stella Prize and the Miles Franklin Literary Award in 2017, and Love Objects, shortlisted for the ABIA Literary Fiction Book of the Year and the Margaret & Colin Roderick Literary Award in 2022, as well as three non-fiction books. Her latest novel Rapture won the 2025 Queensland Literary Award for Fiction and the ARA Historical Novel Prize Reader’s Choice Award, and was longlisted for the Stella Prize and the Indie Book Award for Fiction and shortlisted for the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Fiction and the ABIA Literary Fiction Book of the Year. Emily was the 2018–2019 Writer-in-Residence at the Charles Perkins Centre at the University of Sydney and the 2023 HC Coombs Creative Arts Fellow at the Australian National University. She works as a teacher and as a writing mentor to young and emerging writers.
Natasha Walter’s latest book, Feminism for a World on Fire, fearlessly examines the challenges that are rising for women across the world, as well as the potential for resistance. She is also the author of Living Dolls: the Return of Sexism, as well as a novel, A Quiet Life, and a family memoir, Before the Light Fades. She is the founder of the charity Women for Refugee Women, former Visiting Professor of Women’s Rights at Cambridge University and currently Honorary Professor at Queen Mary University of London. She has also worked as a journalist for the Guardian and the Observer.
Jamie Klingler (Chair) became an activist and campaigner for women’s safety and police reform as one of the founders of Reclaim These Streets, an organisation that was created when Sarah Everard, was abducted, raped and murdered by a serving police officer. The organisation tried to hold a vigil for Sarah, but the Metropolitan police forbade it. In doing so and trying to silence them; Reclaim These Streets fought them in the High Court for violating their human right to assemble and won. Jamie appears regularly on Sky News and the BBC and has written for The New World, British Vogue, The Guardian, and The Times.
The Mermaid Collection: Championing Forgotten Female Voices
4.15–5.15pm | Jennie Godfrey and Sophie Hannah, chaired by Kate Mosse
Join Kate Mosse in conversation with Jennie Godfrey and Sophie Hannah, plus more guests to be announced, as they discuss being part of the Mermaid Collection, a series that champions forgotten female voices that would have been the commercial bestsellers of their day.
Think bestselling page-turners, iconic storytellers, women who were breaking the mould from the very beginning of the 20th century. Chroniclers of the female experience who address issues that remain relevant today and whose writing has been undervalued for too long.
The Mermaid Collection is published by Penguin Michael Joseph who pride themselves on discovering and championing female voices for over 90 bestselling years, from Jojo Moyes to Sue Townsend, Dawn French to Marian Keyes.
Be a Mermaid. Make Waves. Supported by Penguin Michael Joseph.
About the Speakers:
Jennie Godfrey was raised in West Yorkshire and her debut novel, The List of Suspicious Things which was a #1 Sunday Times bestseller, is inspired by her childhood there in the 1970s. Jennie is from a mill-working family, but as the first of the generation born after the mills closed, she went to university and built a career in the corporate world. In 2020 she left and began to write. She is now a writer and part-time Waterstones bookseller and lives in the Somerset countryside.
Sophie Hannah is a Sunday Times, New York Times and Amazon Kindle UK No. 1 bestselling writer of crime fiction, published in forty-nine languages and fifty-one territories. Her books have sold millions of copies worldwide. She writes contemporary psychological thrillers and, at the request of Agatha Christie’s family and estate, the new series of Hercule Poirot novels. Sophie’s murder mystery musical, The Mystery of Mr E, was released as a feature film in 2023, directed by Martyn Tott, and is available on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+ and soon to be on several other platforms too. In 2023, Sophie won the Crime Writers Association’s Dagger in the Library Award for her body of work, and in 2013 her thriller The Carrier won the Crime Thriller of the Year Award at the Specsavers National Book Awards.
Kate Mosse (Host) is an award-winning novelist, playwright, performer, interviewer and writer of history and memoir. The author of twelve novels and short-story collections, her books have been translated into thirty-eight languages and published in more than forty countries. Fiction includes the multimillion-selling Languedoc Trilogy (Labyrinth, Sepulchre, Citadel), the No 1 bestselling Joubert Family Chronicles (The Burning Chambers, The City of Tears, The Ghost Ship, The Map of Bones) and Gothic fiction The Taxidermist’s Daughter and The Winter Ghosts. Her highly-acclaimed non-fiction includes An Extra Pair of Hands, Warrior Queens & Quiet Revolutionaries and her first YA non-fiction book Feminist History for Every Day of the Year.
The Founder Director of the Women’s Prize for Fiction and the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction, and the Founder of the global #WomanInHistory campaign, Kate is also a trustee of the British Library, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Authors and a Visiting Professor of Contemporary Fiction and Creative Writing at the University of Chichester. She was awarded a CBE in the King’s New Year’s Honours list 2024.
Women’s Prize LIVE presents a full programme of workshops and publishing industry 1-2-1s for ticket holders to add on to their booking.
If you already have your ticket to Women’s Prize LIVE, book your add-ons here
To book your ticket and add-ons, go here
Workshops
The Art of Storytelling with Silk Road Slippers
12.30–2.30 | Alexandra Pringle, Alex von Tunzelmann & Faiza Khan | £30.00
This immersive two-hour writing workshop led by three titans of the publishing industry is suitable for writers of all levels and genres. Covering the essentials of storytelling, character development and editing, this participatory workshop will address issues of style, substance, and narrative in an intensive yet welcoming environment that will take your creative skills to the next level. Led by publisher Alexandra Pringle, historian and screenwriter, Alex von Tunzelmann and editor, Faiza Khan, this experienced team will give immediate constructive feedback on your writing, combined with advice on a writing and publishing career. Bring along whatever you most like to write with – a laptop, iPad or notebook and pen.
Alexandra Pringle was Editorial Director at Virago Press in the 1980s and Editorial Director at Hamish Hamilton and a literary agent in the 1990s. In 1999 she joined Bloomsbury Publishing where she was Editor-in-Chief for over twenty years. She is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and a Visiting Professor at the Centre For Fiction at Manchester Metropolitan University. Her memoir, Caravan, is to be published by Canongate in the UK and Simon & Schuster in the US in 2027.
Alex von Tunzelmann is a historian, broadcaster and screenwriter. The most recent of her five books, Fallen Idols, was shortlisted for the Wolfson History Prize 2022. Her debut, Indian Summer, was an international bestseller. Her feature film debut, Churchill (2017), starred Brian Cox. She has also written episodes of Medici (Netflix), starring Richard Madden and Dustin Hoffman. She writes History’s Secret Heroes for BBC Radio 4, narrated by Helena Bonham Carter, and wrote and presented The Lucan Obsession (Radio 4), one of The Observer’s top ten podcasts of 2024.
Faiza Khan is former Consulting Editor at Bloomsbury Publishing. She has worked with critically acclaimed authors with a special interest in emerging voices from around the world. She currently works as a freelance editor with publishers and literary agents in London, and as a mentor for writers. She leads writing and editing workshops for international cultural institutions including the National Museum of Sweden in Stockholm and the Academy of Art and Design in Basel.
This is a uniquely personal and immersive opportunity for emerging and established writers alike.
The Fool, The Devil, The Moon, The Magician, The Sun: Tarot for Fiction Writers
2.45–3.45pm | Jill Dawson | £20.00
Suitable for all novelists. No prior knowledge of Tarot needed.
Whether you know a lot or a little about Tarot it can help unblock your writing or offer surprising directions for narrative or character. Bring something to write on and your own Tarot deck if you have one. Come prepared to write!
Jill will look at writing blocks and negative beliefs; unconscious material for you and your protagonist; how to bring your writing out into the sunshine. This is a generative and playful workshop and will include writing, discussion and a chance to ask Jill questions about her own writing practice.
In 2000, while writing her novel Fred and Edie, Jill was stuck and decided to give her protagonist, Edie Thompson, a Tarot reading. Twenty-six years later, and now a qualified Jungian Tarot reader, Jill has used the Tarot many times and in various ways: to help with character development, or shake up the narrative; to unlock voice and form; to understand herself as a writer. In her twelfth and most recent novel Pixie (Bloomsbury) she looks at the life of the world’s most famous but unsung tarot artist, Pamela Colman Smith.
Jill Dawson has won prizes for poetry, short stories and fiction. Twice nominated for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, she has written twelve novels. Her latest is Pixie, published by Bloomsbury described as ‘captivating’, ‘profoundly feminist’ and ‘a work of genius.’ Jill has taught writing in many different settings from the Faber Academy to the University of East Anglia. She founded her own writing programme, Gold Dust Mentoring which helps new writers reach publication.
Finding Flow: Finding your Creative Focus (Grass & Co)
4–5pm | £20.00
How do we find focus in such a distracting world? This interactive workshop explores the idea of flow state—those moments when creativity feels effortless, ideas come freely and we become fully immersed in the work in front of us. Designed for writers, makers and creative thinkers of all kinds, the session looks at the barriers that prevent us from getting started, from procrastination and overwhelm to imposter syndrome and doomscrolling, and offers practical tools for building momentum and creative rhythm.
Led by Parul Bavishi, founder of London Writers’ Salon, this workshop invites attendees to think about productivity not as pressure, but as a way to create the right conditions for clarity, confidence and creative flow. Rooted in the idea that wellbeing and creativity are deeply connected, it draws on themes of focus, energy, rest and routine to help participants develop a more sustainable and joyful creative practice.
Whether you’re writing a novel, developing a personal project or simply trying to make more room for creativity in everyday life, this session is designed to help you get unstuck, reconnect with your work and find your own version of free flow.
Sponsored by Grass & Co – a leading functional wellness brand committed to providing natural solutions to the modern world.
Book a 1-2-1 with an expert
£15.00
Looking for tips on how to start writing, or need help refining your synopsis? Curious about what happens behind the scenes in publishing, or how to build your profile as an author? Want advice on publicity, pitching your work, or navigating the industry? Don’t miss this unique opportunity to put your questions about writing, publishing and all things books to our friendly industry experts. Attendees can book exclusive one-to-one sessions with publicist Becca Mundy, ‘The Book Pitch Doctor’ James Spackman for synopsis feedback and general industry questions, author Kate Mildenhall, and agents Catherine Cho from Paper Literary and Catriona Paget from C&W. Whether you’re just starting out or already deep into your writing journey, these personalised sessions offer invaluable advice and direct access to expert support.
1-2-1s are available with:
Catherine Cho is a literary agent and the founder of Paper Literary. She started her career in New York at Folio Literary Management before moving to Curtis Brown UK. She has built a list of New York Times and Sunday Times’ bestsellers, with the majority of her clients coming from submissions. Catherine is also the author of the memoir, Inferno which was shortlisted for the Sunday Times’ Young Writer of the Year Award. Her debut novel, The Devoted, will be published in June.
Becca Mundy is an award-winning publicist working at Hodder & Stoughton, a leading commercial publisher at Hachette UK. As Deputy Communications Director she oversees campaigns and the publicity team, as well as working broadly across fiction and non-fiction with authors including John Grisham and Holly Bourne, Tristan Gooley, Chris Hoy and the recent #1 Sunday Times Bestsellers from Liz Earle and Liza Minnelli. Her specialism is non-fiction and in her fourteen years at the business she has been part of the team that launched the imprints Yellow Kite (health and wellbeing), Catalyst (creator lead non-fiction) and Hodder Press (home of authoritative non-fiction by distinctive expert voices – two authors on this list have worked with the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction; one as a judge and one as a longlistee). Before working in-house she worked for a leading UK Literary Festival.
James Spackman has worked in books since his eyecatching ‘96 debut in the postroom of Bloomsbury Publishing. From there he moved on to sales, marketing and management roles for Hachette and Osprey. Currently he combines his work as an agent at The bks Agency with coaching publishers in presentation skills as The Book Pitch Doctor. He regularly tutors for The Arvon Foundation, having designed their ‘Prepare for Publication’ course. He also founded Profile’s cycling imprint Pursuit and the regional diversity non-profit The Spare Room Project.
Catriona Paget joined C&W in 2022 having worked previously as a bookseller. She works with Susan Armstrong, supporting on her list of authors including ML Stedman, Miranda Cowley Heller and Joanna Cannon. She is also building her own list, with a particular focus on rom coms, contemporary upmarket or book club novels, and insightful literary fiction. She is part of the team behind Discoveries and helps run the Curtis Brown and C&W joint outreach program Project North, which focuses on expanding connections with northern literary and publishing communities.
Kate Mildenhall is the author of four novels – Skylanking (2016), The Mother Fault (2020), The Hummingbird Effect (2023) and The Hiding Place (2025). The Hummingbird Effect was longlisted for the 2024 Stella Prize and shortlisted for the 2024 ABIA literary Fiction Book of the year. In 2024 she released her first children’s book To Stir With Love illustrated by Jess Racklyeft, shortlisted for the 2025 Indie Book Awards and the 2025 ABIA Children’s Book of the Year and Notable in the CBCA Book Awards for Early Readers. For six years she co-hosted The First Time podcast interviewing hundreds of writers including Tim Winton, Helen Garner, Richard Flanagan, George Saunders & Sarah Winman. Kate lives on Wurundjeri lands in Hurstbridge with her partner and two children.
