Never happier than when in a library or clutching a notebook, Francesca Baker is a writer, reader, and word lover. She started off with podcasts, then PR, and now helps programme Margate Bookie (and is pleased by alliteration). She’s your go to person for marketing at Bookie. Francesca works with …More

Aki Schilz is the Director of The Literary Consultancy (TLC), the UK’s longest-running editorial consultancy for writers, providing editing services, mentoring and events. Most recently, TLC has launched the ‘Being A Writer’ programme, which focuses on cultivating creativity and resilience…More

Dan Dalton is a writer and journalist. Born and raised in Huddersfield, he now lives in Margate. Johnny Ruin is his first book.

Vanessa King is a leading expert in positive psychology and the author of 10 Keys to Happier Living and, for children, 50 Ways to Feel Happy. She is a board member of Action for Happiness and a trustee of the Margate Bookie.

Novelist Louis de Bernières was born in London in 1954 and spent some of his school years in Brichington. He joined the army at 18 but left after spending four months at Sandhurst. In 1993, Louis was selected as one of the 20 ‘Best of Young British Novelists 2’ promotion in Granta magazine. His…More

Alison Weir is the top-selling female historian in the United Kingdom, and has sold over 2.7 million books worldwide. She has published eighteen history books, including Elizabeth the Queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, The Lady in the Tower and Elizabeth of York, and seven historical novels.

Lisa Jewell’s books include Ralph’s Party, Thirtynothing, After The Party and most recently The House We Grew Up In, The Girls in the Garden, and Then She Was Gone After being made redundant, Lisa accepted a challenge from her friend to write three chapters of a novel in exchange for dinner …More

Mark’s first novel, Sleepyhead, was an instant bestseller in the UK. The series of crime novels featuring London-based detective Tom Thorne continued with Scaredy Cat and was followed by a huge list of bestsellers including Lazybones, The Burning Girl and The Killing Habit. Mark is also the author…More

Born in Nigeria in 1984, Inua Ellams is an internationally touring poet, playwright, performer, graphic artist & designer. He is an ambassador for the Ministry of Stories and has published four books of poetry: ‘ Inua is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Elise Valmorbida is the author of several titles including NY Times best-seller The Madonna of the Mountains. She teaches creative writing at Central Saint Martins and Arvon, and fis ounder-director of communications consultancy word-design.

Tom Jackson quickly gained a cult following with his popular twitter feed and book Postcard From The Past, which curates the funniest, weirdest and most moving real messages from the backs of old postcards. Now he digs deeper into the personal stories behind old postcards. Tom’s welcoming two gues…More

Renée Knight was a documentary-maker before turning to writing. She is a graduate of the Faber Academy ‘Writing a Novel’ course, where she began her first novel Disclaimer. Disclaimer went on to become a Sunday Times number one bestseller.

Adrian Cross lives in London and loves Margate. He works in an advisory role with children in care and writes for the Times Educational Supplement and does live music reviews for Gigwise. He co-edited the #1 Vanguard Readings Short Story Anthology and is a Margate Bookie trustee.

Boozer, lover, fighter and desperately in need of a new bio.

Richard Skinner is a novelist and Director of the Fiction Programme at Faber Academy. In this workshop, Richard will be sharing novel-writing insight, tips, strategies and stimuli, drawing upon his bestselling writing guide Writing a Novel.

Dale Shaw’s first book, Letters Of Not, was published by The Friday Project in 2014, followed by F*** This Journal (Headline) in 2016 and Last Minute Rooms in Bethlehem (Boxtree) in 2017. His sketch show, What The Future was recently broadcast on BBC Radio 4.

Annie Sutton trained with Desmond Jones in Mime and Physical Theatre, Ecole Jacques Lecoq and has a PGCE in Film and Drama (distinction). With 30 years working globally as a theatre practitioner, writer, deviser, actor and director, young people remain the vein that runs through her career. Her coll…More

Chloe Timms is a writer from St Nicholas at Wade who is in the process of editing her debut novel, The Seawomen. Chloe completed a scholarship with the Faber Academy in 2018 and an early version of her novel was a runner up in Stylist Magazine’s novel prize.

Travis Elborough has been described by The Guardian as ‘one of the country’s finest pop culture historians’, His acclaimed books include Wish You Were Here, a survey of the British beside the sea, and The Long-Player Goodbye, a hymn to vinyl records.

Karen is a photographer, curator and writer. Karen recently co-authored Seaside Photographed with Val Williams and co-curated – again with Val Williams – the 2019 Seaside: Photographed exhibition at Turner Contemporary. This exhibition goes on national tour throughout 2020.

Dr. Sketchy’s brings artists a rule-breaking cocktail of dames, drinking and drawing. Dr. Sketchy’s branches draw in over a hundred cities around the globe, from Akron to Zagreb. Dr Sketchy’s is the brainchild of artist Molly Crabapple.

Helen Young is an author and digital editor. Breakfast in Bogotá, her second novel, was published in August with Unbound. Set in 1940s Colombia, the novel is about a broken architect trying to build something new. She will be reading from the first chapters.

Elspeth’s art is concerned with origins, journeys and destinations. She has e a background in sociology as well as art which is reflected in her practice. Her family’s background as emigrees to Argentina and her own reverse emigration from South America to the UK, has had a great influence o…More

Jeff Hilson has written four books of poetry: Stretchers (Reality Street, 2006), Bird bird (Landfill, 2009), In The Assarts (Veer, 2010) and Latanoprost Variations (Boiler House Press, 2017). He runs the Xing the Line poetry reading series.

Maggie Harris is a poet, prose writer, and visual artist. Originally from Guyana, South America, she recently re-located to Kent after 10 years in Wales.

French chanteuse Marianne Dissard is a singer-songwriter, musician, and now an author. She has spent many years writing and performing around the world, and has now come to settle in Ramsgate. Her book Not Me is gripping literary read about recovery.

The Bookie Slam, Whisky and Beards, Tongue Punch Connor Sansby is a Poet, Producer and Editor-in-Chief for Whisky & Beards Publishing. In 2016, Connor released his first short story collection, “I am not a well person”. His first collection of poetry, “Promise Me The Journey Back” was r…More

Meirion Jones is executive coach and trainer – and graphic novelist. Graphic Experience brings together his passion for transformative learning and development with his love of visual storytelling.

Lesley Kara is an alumna of the Faber Academy ‘Writing a Novel’ course. Her debut novel The Rumour was a Sunday Times Top Ten hardback and paperback bestseller. Her second novel, Who Did You Tell?, is coming soon.

Melanie McGrath is the author of critically acclaimed, bestselling non-fiction about the East End of London (Silvertown and Hopping). She can trace her family back 300 years in the East End and City of London. She also writes for the national press and is a regular broadcaster on radio.

Owen Lowery was a British Judo champion who suffered a spinal injury while competing and is now a tetraplegic. He has a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing and a PhD from Bolton University, His poetry has been listed in the Bridport Prize, the Welsh Open Poetry Competition, the Virginia Warbey…More

Scott Pack has worked in the book world for two decades. He was head of buying for Waterstones, spent several years as a publisher at HarperCollins and is now editor-at-large at Eye & Lightning Books. He runs a regular Guardian Masterclass on How to Perfect Your Submission.

PJ Whiteley is an experienced author of nonfiction and fiction. A Bookie regular, his third novel, A Love of Two Halves, is published by Unbound.

Sebastian Baczkiewicz writes for theatre, radio and television. He has written over 40 plays for Radio 4 since being their first writer in residence. He also has co-commissions with Somethin’ Else, CBC Canada, World Service and Radio 3. Sebastian has also written for TV series Holby City. Sebastia…More

Phoebe Locke is the pseudonym of full-time writer Nicci Cloke. She previously worked at the Faber Academy, and hosted London literary salon Speakeasy. Phoebe Locke is the author of two psychological thrillers, The Tall Man and The July Girls, which was published this summer.

Emma Hayley launched SelfMadeHero in 2007, after spotting a gap in the market for high quality graphic novels.

Tammy Cohen is the author of five psychological thrillers, including the bestselling When She Was Bad. She also wrote three commercial women’s fiction novels debuting with The Mistress’s Revenge which was published all round the world. In addition, she has written two historical fiction novels u…More

S J Watson’s first novel, Before I Go To Sleep, was a bestseller around the world. It won The Crime Writers’ Association Award for Best Debut Novel and The Galaxy National Book Award for Crime Thriller of the Year. The film of the book stared Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth and Mark Strong

Sam Gayton lives by the sea in Margate. In 2009 he completed the Writing for Young People MA at Bath Spa University and not long after published his first book, The Snow Merchant. He loves American novels, Italian food and the English countryside. When he’s not writing, he likes playing old board …More

Amanda Jennings writes dark contemporary fiction, set mostly in Cornwall, published in the UK and in translation. In Her Wake was a WHSmith Fresh Talent selection in 2016. The Cliff House came out in hardback last year, and the paperback was released in July, and was described in The Times as &#8216…More

Andrew is a freelance consultant, who delivers the innovative Love Where You Live project with Ben Bowles, using film and photography to improve community cohesion and connection to place. He also delivers a variety of young peoples’ engagement activities, focus groups and project evaluation repor…More

Ben is a freelance photographer and film maker who runs Love Where You Live with Andrew Dennis. Love Where You Live was set up to change people’s perceptions of their local community through photography and film. This is done by practical and interactive sessions which improve the skills of the pa…More

Marianne Cheesecake is an international burlesque performer with a name that brings smiles and sudden cravings for dessert. A forbidden treat, she is not only elegant eye candy but also the embodiment of provocation and humour. Born and raised in Canada with a Hong Kong history, Marianne is a classi…More

Pen to Print publishes the quarterly magazine Write On! Now on its third issue, Write On! links local writing communities to the publishing industry by showcasing the work of emerging writers. Backed by Arts Council England and the London Brough of Barking and Dagenham, the magazine presents homegro…More

Mark Billingham will be interviewed by Julia Wheeler. Julia is an experienced journalist and interviewer who worked for the BBC for more than 15 years, including 10 years as the BBC’s Gulf Correspondent, based in the UAE. She continues to work as a freelance journalist, for broadcast and print, in…More

Elizabeth Scrase; poet, writer, artist and historian; has just graduated with a BA (Hons) in Creative and Professional writing (2019). Elizabeth has written and performed across the UK and Europe for a long time. She has written for English Heritage, a variety of international magazines and historic…More

Pauline Holmes is a performance poet and storyteller. She is a past winner of the LicKitySpit Poetry Slam, has supported Anthony Anaxogorou and is a regular contributor to Mind the Gap Audio Anthology. She took her show Talk to The Paw to the Faversham Fringe and is well known locally for her poems …More

Alex Brand is a poet, author and an English Literature student who has just finished his MA in the subject. Since 2017, Alex has performed across Kent, which include: The Margate Bookie slam, Tongue Punch in Margate, Speakeasy and Lickity Spit in Canterbury, as well as performing in several other ev…More

Callum Beesley lives with his family in Deal, Kent where you’ll find him writing by the sea or in the haunted chair at his local Pub. Fixated by tales of the supernatural, Callum fell in love with the classic Victorian-Edwardian Ghost Stories of MR James, Edith Wharton and EF Benson from a young a…More

Janet Witts is writer, and currently doing a master’s in creative writing at Canterbury Christchurch University. Having recently completed a BA. She also works part time at a Monumental Mason’s where she sees the whole gamut of life and society pass through her doors looking for a headstone! She…More

Tommy Carver-Chaplin is a poet, performer and event host, based in Canterbury. After hosting some of Kent’s most talented poets at his event Rad(ish) Rhymes, Tommy decided that maybe he, too, could perform and entertain on top of producing. This delusion is one he has refused to let go of sinc…More

H. B. O’Neill is a London born writer on a mission to forge his beloved borough of Barking and Dagenham indelibly onto the literary map. He is a prize-winning short story writer and his soon to be released novel, According to Mark, describes in comically tragic detail Mark Twain’s return to this…More

Oisin Harris is a Poet, Librarian and aspiring literary fiction editor. Oisin has performed across Kent, including Margate’s very own Bookie Slam, Canterbury’s Lickity Spit and You’re Bard. He finds beauty in reading Rumi and listening to Nas or Joanna Newsom. His work tends to be highly poeti…More

David Blagden-Gibson is a poet and songwriter based in Margate. Since April 2019 he has made poetry the focus of his attention and output. In October 2019 his poem “Ok, Hello” was published on Thanetwriters.com and he performs regularly at Tongue Punch poetry night at the Tom Thumb Theat…More

Nina Telegina is a writer and performer who believes in the narrative power of poetry. Her story-poems often feature a cast of unlikely characters: space pirates, anthropomorphic farts, and the occasional manic animal. While Nina’s work tends toward the lyrical and the humorous, she is constantly …More

Henry Madd is a spoken word artist, theatre maker and workshop facilitator. After cutting his teeth on the Californian poetry circuit he returned to his native England and firmly entrenched himself in the poetry community in Kent. He won the 2017 Apples and Snakes/ Wise Words Festival Emerging Artis…More

Sam Rapp is dyslexic and performs around the UK/internationally as “Sam Rapp the dyslexic poet”. An award -winning writer, performance poet, playwright, inspirational speaker, winner of Crisis UK poetry slam 2017 and positive about dyslexia competition 2018. Sam has completed a run with her show…More

David Chitty – Author – Single – Performer – Beard – Poet. . It has been said and written that David Chitty is better than Shakespeare. Maybe he is, but what cannot be contested is that David has the better beard.