Creative Industries Trafford presents its acclaimed Northern Lights Writers’ Conference at Waterside in Sale – a full day on the craft and business of writing, featuring sessions with screenwriter Lisa Holdsworth, poet Oliver Sykes, literary agent Monica MacSwan and publisher Kevin Duffy (Bluemoose Books), among others.

Now in its ninth year, the Northern Lights Writers’ Conference at Waterside is a significant event in the region for established and emerging writers, screenwriters, poets and authors. Hosted by Ric Michael, the full-day event features a mix of inspiring talks from leading writers and authors, experienced publishers and literary agents along with creative workshops on writing development and one-to-one advice sessions for writers of all kinds.

The panel talks will take place in the theatre. In The State of The Art writers Lisa Holdsworth (TV writer and former Chair of the Writers’ Guild) explores the landscape for writers in 2024, alongside author and screenwriter Danielle Jawando and children’s poet and author Oliver Sykes.

Following this session, independent bookseller Ayesha Ansari-Choudhury (Mirror Me Write) will be discussing the importance of representation in literature in Diversity in Literature. Other panel talks include Monica MacSwan (Aitken Alexander Agency) and Kevin Duffy (Bluemoose Books) giving practical and up-to-date guidance for writers on how the representation and publication process works and a talk on support for writers and routes into the publishing industry with Manchester City of Literature and the Society of Young Publishers (North).

A series of creative workshops will take place concurrently in the Chambers space. The first – Finding Your Voice, Developing Your Stories – is with award-winning author Oliver Sykes and is an in-depth look at finding and maintaining your voice as a writer. Eleanor Pilcher – author and fiction marketer – leads a session on Marketing and Social Media for Writers – a guide to marketing and developing social media content for writers and business consultant Phil Birchenall delivers a practical session looking at how writers can use AI tools to help develop new projects.

Running throughout the afternoon in Waterside’s ‘Sup Bar and Coffee House will be a series of 15-minute drop-in advice sessions, ideal for writers looking for their next steps in creativity, signposting and career advice. Advisers for these sessions are writer and editor Adam Farrer, children’s author and book editor Dr Liz Flanagan and literary agent, Monica MacSwan.

For more information and to book tickets, visit watersidearts.org/nlwc24.

🗓️ Saturday 13 April 10.30am – 4.30pm

💸 £35 / £25

📍Waterside, Sale M33 7ZF

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