Lincoln Book Festival to open with celebration of creative writing by budding Lincolnshire laureates

20th September 2018

Lincoln Book Festival opens its latest chapter next week (24th September 2018) with a celebration of the creative writing of local schoolchildren aiming to follow in the footsteps of literary greats from the county’s past.

The week-long literary festival this year has the theme revolution to commemorate the centenary of the 1918 Representation of The People Act which first gave some British women the right to vote.

Sponsored by the English Speaking Union, the free-to-attend festival launch party takes place from 6.15pm on Monday 24th September at The Collection museum and art gallery on Danes Terrace, in the city’s cultural quarter. Special guest is the award-winning young adult fiction writer Sally Nicholls, author of Things a Bright Girl Can Do, offering tips on creative writing inspiration.

The event showcases the talents of young writers from local schools with a celebration of the work of charity First Story in Lincolnshire. First Story is a national charity which believes lives can be changed through writing and that there is power and dignity in a young person’s story. It nurtures young people’s creativity by connecting schools, particularly in disadvantaged areas, with some of the UK’s most prestigious writers, including award-winning novelists, poets and short story authors via workshops and in-school writing residencies.

First Story launched its Lincolnshire branch at Lincoln Book Festival 2016 and has been working with three new county schools this year. Pupils from one of those schools, Priory Lincoln Academy, will present an anthology of their work, “Powered by Tea (and Coffee)”, at the book festival launch party.

Nicki Shore, Head of Programmes at First Story, said: “The launch is the moment when the hard work and the development of the young writers is really celebrated. As a result of their commitment and creative endeavour, they become published authors and that becomes part of their legacy and their story for the future.”

One of the young authors whose work features in the anthology said: “First Story was really good for me because you had to find your creativity and imagination. In school there isn’t always opportunity to do that. I’d still be proud that I’d taken part even if the book wasn’t published because of what I achieved; my writing!”

Winners of Lincoln Book Festival’s latest flash fiction competition will also be revealed at the launch party and First Story, in association with The Might Creatives, will kick off its new Wordsmith poetry competition to find a budding Lincolnshire laureate. The county was famously the birthplace of Britain’s longest serving Poet Laureate, Alfred Lord Tennyson, whose statue stands in the grounds of Lincoln Cathedral.

The Lincoln Book Festival 2018 Launch Party is sponsored by the Lincolnshire branch of The English-Speaking Union, an educational charity developing oracy skills for debating, public speaking and in classrooms.

“We help young people to become confident communicators, critical thinkers and empowered citizens” explained ESU Lincolnshire Chairman Sir Michael Graydon.  “Promoting the Lincoln Book Festival  and  First Story helps strengthen our own work with schools in Lincolnshire so we are delighted to be able to support this special launch evening once again.”

Phil Hamlyn Williams, Chair of Lincoln Book Festival Trust, said: “This year’s Lincoln Book Festival programme is our biggest and boldest yet featuring a new series of fringe events alongside the established author evenings, writers workshops, competitions, and local history talks.

“The Launch Party is a true celebration of the power of literature to inspire and change lives and that is why we’re delighted to share the occasion with the charity First Story who undertake such vital work in schools and the acclaimed author Sally Nicholls, with generous sponsorship from the English Speaking Union.

“I sincerely hope people of all ages and interests will find something to spark their imagination during the nine days of the festival.”

Lincoln Book Festival places ‘history at its heart’, celebrating the finest history writing and historical fiction. This year’s guest authors include Michael Morpurgo, Tracy Borman, Sally Nicholls, Rebecca Fraser, Marcus Chown, Marc Mulholland, and John Robb, among others. The festival is supported with grant funding from Arts Council England through the National Lottery as well as sponsorship from local businesses and other organisations.

Tickets for all Lincoln Book Festival events are available via the Lincoln Drill Hall Box Office on Freeschool Lane, online at www.lincolndrillhall.com or by telephone 01522 873894. Author events are typically priced £10 per ticket (Michael Morpurgo priced from £12). Some activities are free to attend. For the latest, visit www.lincolnbookfestival.org or see Lincoln Book Festival’s social media channels – Facebook: LincolnBookFestivalUK or Twitter: @LincBookFest