London Writers' Café

Do you want to meet other writers in your genre? Join this session to meet and share with writers producing stories for the same readers as you.

Genres in focus: Crime, Romance, Science-Fiction, Fantasy, Horror, Children's, Historical, Young Adult, Contemporary and Literary.

I've chosen a relaxed space at The Henry Addington in Canary Wharf where we will have tables for all of the main categories and each table will be given a menu of questions to ask each other, general and specific to your genre, in the hopes that you'll leave this meeting with many more contacts than when you arrived.

If you're unsure of your genre, you could use this meeting to talk to writers who know theirs to see where yours fits best. Is it horror or fantasy? Romance or contemporary? Remember 'genre' is only a label assigned by publishers / booksellers so readers know what to expect from a story. Naturally, all stories fall across more than one category but, usually, it is about signalling which audience of readers will be left the most satisfied.

If you're looking for a beta reader, someone to swap pages, or you want to connect with writers who like the same kind of stories as you do. Do come along. You never know who you might meet. This sessions is ideal for writers who haven't attended our events before now.

I hope to have 4-6 writers of each genre there on the day so please be there if it sounds useful or interesting to you. I'll have to combine genres if we don't have enough for a table (sad face). I hope to have more than one table for the bigger categories if we have lots of writers show up.

Eating and drinking during the event is welcomed too. It is a social event with a bit of focus. We have the space from 12-4pm and usually we kick on for social drinks after the event but no pressure if you can't hang around.

This session is about meeting writers and letting them see who you are as a writer - your style and taste - so could you bring the following?
> A paperback book by your favourite author in your genre.
> A book to swap from your genre. Something you liked/loathed but wouldn't read again.
> An item that your character would carry in their pocket or on their person.
> A short excerpt of your writing (up to 300 words) printed out on A4 (Times New Roman, 12pt) for sharing.
> Notepad and pen.

Once you've booked your place, please post a comment below (optional) to signal your genre 'I'm writing Crime' 'I'm all about Romance' 'I write Sci-Fi & Horror' so others can see who's who a bit before they attend. Thanks so much!

Date: Saturday, July 5th from 12:30pm to 4:00pm.

Location: The Henry Addington 22-28 Mackenzie Walk, London E14 4PH. Closest stations are Canary Wharf tube and DLR.

Cost: £10 to cover venue, organising, preparation and hosting. Please note: we're unable to offer a refund or credit if you decide not to show up on the day. We will refund if the meeting is cancelled by admin.

Capacity: up to 30 writers MAX.

Any questions, please post a comment below or send me a DM via Meetup. Cheers!

Congratulations! You've finished a first draft! It might have taken months, or years even, to complete, but now revising it begins *face palm*

In this masterclass, we'll define the makings of a second draft and learn to navigate established paths of rewriting towards it. By learning to redraft through the lens of character, structure, conflict, voice, storytelling and more, you'll find a path that best suits you to produce the next draft. Learning to rewrite effectively is a prized skill within its own right. This will be a very practical workshops with writing exercises, examples and plenty of group discussion. You are not alone in your worry over rewriting - not at all.

Incidentally, most full-length novels are redrafted from start to finish at least four times before they're ready for agents or publishers, but every single novel and its writer are different and there is no hard and fast rule. It's a fact that every first draft will need revising before it is submitted to any competition, agent or publisher.

Moving from first draft to second can be the most challenging for some writers who find rewriting the hardest. So many novels languish as a first draft because beyond the freewheeling writing process comes the editing, refining and redrafting hell which many writers find too daunting. Fear not! Come to this workshop and learn what comes after you write 'the end' for the first time.

Date & Timing: 2:30pm to 5:30pm with a quick break in the middle. Doors open at 2:15pm. Please aim to arrive on time as we'll start at 2:30pm. We'll adjourn to the main bar after the session for a few social drinks and conversation but no problem if you can't hang around.

Location: The Artillery Arms, 102 Bunhill Row, London EC1Y 8ND. Closest stations are Old Street, Barbican and Moorgate. Please grab a drink at the bar (they have all the drinks + coffee/tea) and come to the room upstairs.

Cost: £15.00 to pay for venue hire, content, preparation and event organising. Please follow the steps to pay via PayPal when you RSVP. Refunds or credits will only be offered if the meetup is cancelled by admin. Please change your RSVP to 'Not Going' if you can no longer attend as we often have people waiting and we'd hate for them to miss out. Download the Meetup app to manage your RSVPs quickly.

Not sure this is for you? Any questions, please post a comment or DM the organiser.