New literary foundation takes children’s authors under its wing

Bromley’s brightest literary stars came together at the Central Library yesterday to celebrate winning awards from a new literary foundation.

Marcela Ferreira, Alex Falase Koya, Adeola Sokunbi and Alom Shaha joined library staff for tea and cake and to meet their new mentor, Bromley Children’s Librarian Caroline Nolan – who will be supporting them this year via her role as ‘Literary Foundation Champion’.

Each writer will receive £750 alongside additional support from Caroline and her team – which includes a series of author events, and networking opportunities with local booksellers, publishers, literary festivals and schools. The authors will also be offered three online training courses on brand identity, marketing and business planning.

A secondary tier of online support will also be given to two more local authors – Natascha Biebow and Mireille Cassandra Harper. They will take part in a webinar on delivering successful author events.

The GLL Literary Foundation was established in November to support ‘up-and-coming’ children’s authors who are based in Bromley, Greenwich and Wandsworth – areas where GLL operates public libraries under its ‘Better’ brand.

Authors across all genres of children’s literature were encouraged to apply – the scope including picture books, early readers, chapter books, poetry, non-fiction, graphic novels and verse novels.

Nominations were accepted from the authors’ publishing representative, with the entry criteria stating that applicants be required to have published between one and three books in the past five years.

Alom Shaha, one of the winning authors from Bromley said: “Growing up as an immigrant on a council housing estate, my local library, and the librarians who worked there, were a hugely positive influence on me. They didn’t just help develop my love of books, they also provided a safe place to play with toys and activities which I didn’t have access to at home.

“I have gained so much from my use of public libraries throughout my life and I am so excited about this fellowship. I know I will gain a lot from the experience, but I hope there will also be lots of opportunities for me to give something back.”

Caroline Nolan said: “I’m thrilled to be part of this exciting initiative and feel extremely lucky to be championing such an incredible cohort of authors at Bromley Libraries.”

Rebecca Gediking, head of libraries for GLL said: “We are delighted to welcome such a great and inspiring group of authors to be part of the GLL Literary Foundation. We look forward to bringing together all people locally and nationally to support our authors, encourage reading and champion public libraries.”

Renowned children’s author and GLL Literary Foundation trustee, Mo O’Hara, said: “I’m so excited that our first cohort of GLL Literary Foundation authors is being announced. This is such an amazing opportunity for them to learn new skills and gain confidence in so many aspects of our industry.”

Pictured top, left to right: Alom Shaha, Alex Falase Koya, mentor Caroline Nolan, Marcela Ferreira, and Adeola Sokunbi (Picture: GLL)