Launch of Middleway Words online festival

NEW CHAPTER FOR MIDLANDS AUTHORS WITH LAUNCH OF MIDDLEWAY WORDS FREE ONLINE FESTIVAL

A new online Midlands Book Festival is to be established to celebrate the large number of lesser-known writers in the region – and to inspire a new generation to express their creativity.

Organised by members of the Society of Authors, Middleway Words will feature five days of free online events between September 5-11 2021, bringing together readers and writers to discuss and discover the many great books, covering a broad range of genres, which do not get huge displays in the major bookstores.

Ignaty Dyakov-Richmond, a co-chair of Society of Authors Warwickshire and co-founder of the Festival, said, “We have a long and proud tradition of great writing in the Midlands and there are so many excellent writers in the region who readers would love if only they were introduced to their work. With Middleway Words, we aim to bring them together.

“We are formulating an exciting programme of events which will have something for everyone who loves books. Not only will Middleway Words promote those who are already creating great work, we want it to provide helpful advice to inspire others to write.”

The festival will feature five days of events which will be available to view live, for free; these interviews and videos will be available on the Festival' YouTube channel.

It will begin on Sunday, September 5, with author-led panel discussion on how a book is born. Sessions aimed at adults and children on how to write fiction and poetry to appeal to readers of all ages will follow.

The closing panel, on Saturday, September 11, aims to introduce different types of writing, including script, translation, education and theatre narrative. 

In between, there will be two or three sessions a day on selected days, running at lunchtime and the early evening, in which regional authors will talk and answer questions about their books and the writing process. You can also expect talks from a literary agent, a publisher, a book-seller and a library about their roles in the book business.

Short videos from other authors speaking about their books will be aired prior to and during the Festival, giving readers plenty of chance to add new names to their reading list.

This week promises to add a new chapter to the Midlands tradition for producing great writing. 

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