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Talks, panels and workshops

The full programme of adult talks, workshops and panels to inspire writers to write and to support you in improving and progressing your writing.

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All talks on this page will take place at either Pavilion Dance, Patch or St Peter's Church. Talks last one hour and workshops last 90 minutes.

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Our At A Glance document has all our events and activities across the festival in one place and in chronological order.

Early Bird Discount!

Get 15% Off

Enter EARLYBIRD15 in the "Savings" screen in the Basket section for 15% off all talks, panels and workshops.

 

Excludes 1-2-1s, literary walk and headshot photo studio.​

 

Offer ends 28th February 2025.

Friday 25th April 2025

Writing Reality - Tattoo Stories

Every tattoo has a story - but what story do your scars tell

The Outsider's Project

Pay What You Can

13:30 - 14:30

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book Here

Workshop for International Students

The Snack-Rap-Shack. Using rhythms and rhymes to express what is happening in their lives, and how they feel about it.

Jane Skellett

Free - Sponsored by IEA

16:00 - 17:00

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book Here

How to market yourself on social media

Tips and tricks to establish yourself as a writer/author on social media.

T.H. Carrington

£10

14:00 - 15:00

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

Fantastic Fonts!

A talk of typographic tricks to attract, connect and engage your readers for your book cover

Briony Hartley

£10

16:45 - 17:45

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

21st Century Publishing – Blank Page To Bestseller

How to publish a Paperback, eBook and Audiobook from scratch for a 21st Century audience.

Nigel Jones

£10

15:15 - 16:15

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

The Friday Night Social starts at 7pm at Flirt Cafe

Saturday 26th April 2025

Putting the Y in Wryting

When’s the right time to be a writer and why shouldn’t it be now? 

Timo Peach / Peter Cooper

£10

10am - 11am

Pavilion Dance - Ocean

Book here

SAS! Synopsis Avoidance System

10 ways to put the sizzle into your synposis!

Joanna Knowles

£10

10:30 - 11:30

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

6 things to do before you start writing

Validate, expand, and propel your story before you start your first draft.

Sam Parks

£15

12:00 - 13:00 (workshop)

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

A.I. - How it affects writers

Artificial Intelligence for Authors: How AI affects writers and how to use it.

Martin J Lake

£10

1:30pm - 2:30pm

St Peter's Church

Book here

Making your writing feel REAL

Create verisimilitude in your writing, using real events, places – even living people!

James Woolf

£10

15:15 - 16:15

Pavilion Dance - Ocean

Book here

Plot Your Perfect Mystery

A Hands-On Guide to Crafting Cozy to Thrilling Whodunnits

Suzy Bussell / Paula Harmon

£15

16:00 - 17:30 (workshop)

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

Let’s Get Villainous

We all love a villain! Create your baddy in this interactive workshop.

K.M. Kelly

£15

10:00 - 11:30 (workshop)

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

Publishing with Purpose

Finding the Right Self-Publishing Strategy for You.

Alex Thompson (Troubadour)

£10

11:45 - 12:45

Pavilion Dance - Ocean

Book here

Your Life Story, Your Legacy

Build a lasting legacy by unearthing the wisdom in your life story.

Beverley Glick

£10

12:15 - 1:15

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

From Their Pages to Yours

Transform museum collections and family records into captivating fiction.

Erni Salleh / Katie Heaton

£10

14:00 - 15:00

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

Build Characters Readers Will Never Forget

Master backstory techniques to enrich your narratives and captivate readers.

Francesco Sarti

£10

15:15 - 16:15

St Peter's Church

Book here

Short Steps Into the Dark

How to create atmosphere and generate fear in the genre short story

Paul Draper

£10

10:00 - 11:00

St Peter's Church

Book here

Let's Make A Murder

All you need to write a twisty mystery that will keep readers guessing

Andreina Cordani

£10

11:45 - 12:45

St Peter's Church

Book here

Organising Chaos

Turning Your Messy Draft Into a Publishable Novel. Self-editing your book without losing the plot.

Gary Dalkin / Sophie Beal

£10

13:30 - 14:30

Pavilion Dance - Ocean

Book here

Your Poetry Basecamp

A poetry workshop for climbing the mountains in our lives with success.

Tom Shaw

£15

14:00 - 15:30 (workshop)

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

Write your play, get it on Stage!

A practical guide to scriptwriting and how to get your work seen.

Stacie Bates

£10

15:45 - 16:45

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

The Bourn Jammy live music / improvisation event starts at 7pm

Sunday 27th April 2025

Working with a Literary Agent

Why you need one, how to get one and what happens when you get one?

Laura Williams / Megan Carroll

£10

10:00 - 11:00

Pavilion Dance - Ocean

Book here

Write a Script in 10 Weeks

"No time" to write that script? No more excuses - you can get it done in 10 weeks.

Tim Clague / Danny Stack

£10

10:30 - 11:30

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

Light the Writing Fuse

Engage from start to finish. Interactive workshop to take writing  forward.

Kanthi Ford

£15

12:00 - 13:30 (workshop)

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

Potential Publishing Pitfalls and Clear Clarification Contracts

Deep dive into a professional book publishing agreements

Luke English

£10

13:30 - 14:30

Patch

Book here

The Querying Process

From letter of introduction to avoiding the slush pile, rejection to acceptance, and everything in between.

Saskia Leach / Anna Britton

£10

15:15 - 16:15

Pavilion Dance - Ocean

Book here

Perfect Endings

Great stories deserve perfect endings - let's find yours

Adrienne Dines

£15

16:00 - 17:30 (workshop)

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

Heroes, Villains and Sticky Bears

Practical approaches to devising characters with distinct voices and development

Paul Coomey

£15

10:00 - 11:30 (workshop)

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

Understanding the publishing business

Learn how publishing works and decide how to get your books to readers with million-selling-author Rachel McLean.

Rachel McLean

£10

11:45 - 12:45

Pavilion Dance - Ocean

Book here

Pain into purpose: Writing through adversity

Accepting ourselves, our pasts, and moving past shame through our writing.

Jade Levell

£10

12:15 - 13:15

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

Writing Rituals

How to build a writing habit that lasts

Ellie Hawkes

£10

14:00 - 15:00

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

TBC

TBC

TBC

£10

15:15 - 16:15

Patch

Coming Soon

Write your first full-length book - let's do it!

Kick-start your first full-length book and bring it to fruition.

Valerie French / Katherine Baldwin

£10

10:00 - 11:00

Patch

Book here

Memoir Writing to change your life.

Life stories are a fabulous resource for all genres of writing. 

Miriam Coley

£10

11:45 - 12:45

Patch

Book here

Lift Your Characters from the Page

Tips to make your characters interesting and fully rounded.

Lisa Sell

£10

13:30 - 14:30

Pavilion Dance - Ocean

Book here

Write Nature Poetry Now!

How to write nature poetry from first word to crafting a collection

Estelle Phillips

£15

14:00 - 15:30 (workshop)

Pavilion Dance - Garden

Book here

Quit your job! Make a living from self-publishing!

Learn all the tips and tricks to launch your own successful writing career.

Matt Shaw

£10

15:45 - 16:45

Pavilion Dance - Seafront

Book here

The Arts University Showcase event, Making Waves, starts at 7pm.

Events are subject to change.

Bournemouth Writing Festival is not responsible for the content of the events.

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