London Writers' Café

My bestselling seminar for writers of fiction and non-fiction on everything that writers can do to prepare themselves and their submission to be read by publishers or agents is on again.

If you're starting to think about your submission materials and approach to agents/publishers, or even if you've started already, join this one-day course find out all the ways to impress and common mistakes you want to avoid. Every writer can feel daunted at the prospect of approaching publishers and agents but this course will dispel any anxiety and leave you feeling much more confident.

Even better, we'll have time at the end of the day for a feedback session for those who want input on their submission pieces; opening pages, covering letter, synopsis, chapter summary etc.

Read full course details and book your place: https://www.bellhouse.co.uk/events/2025/6/14/are-you-ready-to-be-published

This time we'll be is the beautiful surrounds of Bell House in Dulwich (see photo above). The venue is a short walk from the Dulwich Stations or regular buses go door-to-door from Lewisham and Brixton stations.

Tickets: £45 for this one-day course over six hours with breaks with part of your ticket being donated back to the Bell House charity. There will be unlimited tea, coffee and soft drinks on offer as part of your ticket too.
Book your place via Bell House's website which is really easy here: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/bellhouse/1685424
Date & Timing: Saturday, June 14th from 10am to 4pm with a lunch break. We will be starting at 10am prompt so please do your best to arrive on time.

About me: I've worked in publishing since 2004 but also hosted more than 250 workshops for writers with the UK's most prominent literary agents, publishers and editors as Chair of London Writers Cafe community for the past fifteen years. I've taught this course previously at CityLit from 2018 to 2022 too. This course brings together all of the best advice from professionals plus my own experiences of advising new writers safely through the submission process.

Join us in 2025! In these regular writing workshops, we have three writers sharing a sample of their writing for immediate feedback, advice and encouragement. Critique is led and moderated by your host.

You learn more by listening to the writing of others and the feedback their piece receives on the night than you can imagine. We've been running these sessions since 2010 and there's a reason they fill up so fast!

For people reading, pieces must be 3,500 words or less as you'll have about 45mins for reading and discussion on your excerpt from around the table. Most people bring 3,500 words from their novel or a short story of all genres and styles. If you'd like to read, please post a comment below. You must have booked your place before making a request to read.

If you are reading, please bring enough printed copies (at least 10) of your pages so members can make additional feedback/editing notes for you during the reading. All copies will be returned to you after the feedback has concluded.

New members are always welcome in these groups. Most people come along to a few sessions before offering feedback, commenting or requesting to read but it's up to you. If you want to read right away, great, but if you want to come along and see how we roll first, that makes sense too. Again, you'll be surprised by how much you can learn from others by listening to the pieces and their feedback.

After the workshop, most of us head to the bar for a social drink or two and extended conversation about the joys and woes of writing.

Capacity: This room is a bit cosier than our usual room so places will be limited to 15 writers max, including me. If this sells out, please do consider booking early for one of our other workshops with seats still available.

TICKETS: £12.50 and please follow the steps to pay via PayPal when you RSVP. Covers the cost of organising, hosting and running these sessions for you. It's also my job to organise and lead these sessions so ticket price incorporates my labour in hosting these sessions for you. Thanks for understanding.

PLEASE NOTE: Refunds or credits will only be provided if the meetup is cancelled by us. We cannot offer refunds or credit for another session if you decide not to attend on the day. Please change your RSVP if you no longer plan to attend. We often have people on the waiting list and we'd hate for others to miss out.

NEW Location: *Central London Venue* The Square Pig 30-32 Procter St, London WC1V 6NX. Only 2mins from Holborn station. Grab a drink and come to the private room downstairs. We start promptly so please try and be on time.