Wales is full of literary events, book fairs and writing festivals, from the very small to the very large, celebrating literature in all its forms. So here’s a list of all the literary / book festivals taking place in Wales during 2019…
*Are you looking for the updated list? Click here to see the list of festivals in Wales for 2020*
Please use the comments below to add information about any literary festivals which I have missed out, and I’ll continue to update this post throughout the year.
It was reassuring to hear that Claire Fayers, who introduced this Cardiff Children’s Literature Festival event, was actually in the audience five years ago, when it first took place, wondering if she’d ever get her work published. She now has two children’s books published (the Accidental Pirates series), which proves that these things can happen! She introduced us to author Horatio Clare and literary agent Philippa Milnes-Smith, who shared their advice on writing for children and getting published.
Wales is home to one of the most famous literature festivals in the world (The Hay Festival), but it is also full of other, quirkier literary festivals, in all shapes and sizes. So, to help you plan ahead, I’ve compiled a list of all the literary / book festivals taking place in Wales during 2017. I’m sure there will be other festivals that I haven’t come across, so please use the comments below to add information about anything I’ve missed out… Some of the later festivals haven’t confirmed their details yet, so I’ll continue to update this post throughout the year. Continue reading
Jacqueline Wilson is an impressive author. I read and loved her books when I was a child and she is still churning out brilliant (and fabulously illustrated) books, year after year, with 38 million books sold in Britain alone. The Story of Tracy Beaker has been turned into four different series on CBBC, and Hetty Feather has been adapted for TV and stage. She also has her own magazine and regularly speaks at events around the country. I should not have been surprised, therefore, to see a queue of families snaking its way outside Cardiff City Hall in anticipation of this event. Continue reading
If disaster strikes on the other side of the globe, the Welsh media always succeed in finding some Welsh person whose second cousin or neighbour’s son was present at the event. This habit of claiming everything for Wales can be amusing and ridiculous, but in the case of Roald Dahl, we (I count myself as Welsh now, after living here for seven years) can definitely claim at least a small part of him for ourselves. He was born here, baptised in the Norwegian church (his parents were Norwegian) and spent his early childhood living in Llandaff (which is now a suburb of Cardiff, although it pretends not to be). Continue reading
Last night I attended a lecture on this topic, which was organised as part of the Cardiff Children’s Literature Festival. I was unsure what to expect. My own opinion is that all literature should be taken seriously, including books written for children. At the age of ten I was regularly reading adult books and yet as an adult I am happy to re-read the books of my childhood. I even organised a Roald Dahl themed party for my thirtieth birthday. So what’s the problem? Continue reading