Writing the future, the present and the past

Event details

Writers at York

Join us for a special Writers at York event, which showcases the explosion of talent in writing for young adults.  

Get behind the thinking which has produced award winning literature for young people. Hear from three writers about their inspiration and a discussion of the power of story and why fiction is important for thinking about the challenges of being a future adult. 

The discussion will be chaired by JT Welsch, Lecturer in English and Creative Industries in the Department of English and Related Literature.

About the panellists

Mike Kenny. Based in York, Mike Kenny (born in the Welsh borders, with a Welsh mother) is one of England's leading writers specialising in young people's theatre. He was included in the Independent on Sunday's list of Top Ten Living Playwrights and his plays are performed regularly throughout the UK and all over the world. His Olivier Award-winning adaptation of The Railway Children for York Theatre Royal, has been performed at Waterloo and Kings Cross stations, as well as at the National Railway Museum.  He has done theatre adaptations of several Young Adult novels for OUP. They are published in their Oxford Playscripts series.

Tracey Mathias. Now based in London, Tracey grew up in Cardiff, South Wales. She studied history at Oxford University and anthropology at SOAS and was a teacher and administrator before beginning to write for children. She is writer in residence at the Da Capo music foundation. Author of the fantasy trilogy Assalay, her latest novel Night of the Party was published in May 2018 to outstanding reviews.

Fiona Shaw. Fiona grew up in London and is now based in York. Since graduating from York in 1985 and gaining her PhD here in the Department of English, she has written a critically acclaimed memoir and fiction for adults and children. Her most recent novel, Outwalkers, is her fifth book and her first for a young adult audience and has been shortlisted for the YA Book Prize in 2019. A film adaptation of her third novel, Tell It to the Bees, starring Anna Paquin is now out on release. In addition to writing, Fiona is a Senior Lecturer in Creative Writing, Northumbria University.

This is a Writers at York event.

Writers at York offers a lively programme of public readings and workshops, and aims to celebrate and explore the work of emerging and established contemporary writers.

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