As part of a nationwide campaign to seek out and publish new and under-represented voices, Penguin Random House UK is bringing together 150 aspiring authors at three special events across the country in September.
- Penguin Random House has invited 150 talented writers from BAME, LGBTQ and other under-represented communities to meet 1:1 with its editors at free regional events
- Writers have the chance to receive year-long mentoring and a publishing deal as part of a major campaign to ensure books reflect the whole of UK society
- Penguin Random House has set itself a company-wide goal to ensure its new hires and the books it acquires reflect UK society by 2025, in terms of social mobility, ethnicity, gender, disability, and sexuality.
The WriteNow days in London, Bristol and Newcastle will give these writers the exclusive opportunity to get one-to-one feedback from editors and hear from leading authors and literary agents to help them better understand the industry and how to get published.
Penguin Random House editors reviewed over 1,700 manuscript extracts submitted by new UK writers to select attendees for the WriteNow insight days. These editors will give all 150 participants a one-on-one personalised feedback session at the events to discuss their book and how to better get their story heard. As part of the company’s aim to bring new perspectives to bookshelves, ten exceptional writers from this group will go on to benefit from a year of one-on-one mentoring, with the ultimate goal of having their book published.
Speakers at the regional events include Penguin Random House authors, such as Elif Shafak, Kit de Waal, Afua Hirsch and trans campaigner and artist, Fox Fisher.