Fantasy Books

Join us at Craft Beer Co. Brixton for our structured Sci-Fi & Fantasy Feedback Session. A supportive, focused space where writers can share their work and receive constructive, thoughtful critique. These sessions are designed not only to help authors refine their writing but also to strengthen our community. Giving feedback is as valuable as receiving it: by learning to critique effectively, we sharpen our own editorial instincts and deepen our understanding of craft. Whether you’re submitting work or attending as a reader, this is a collaborative, growth-focused environment. **FOR THOSE SUBMITTING WORK** **We allow up to 4 people to submit their work** **for feedback. In order to submit please RSVP your attendance, and send your submission to** **scififantasyauthors@gmail.com no later than the Friday prior to the session** to give organisers time to review submissions and arrange critique groups in advance. *Priority for submission slots is given to those who have attended a previous session.* To ensure quality and fairness, submission guidelines are as follows: * **A short introduction (2–3 paragraphs max.) explaining:** * The context and status of the piece (early draft? polished?). It must be from an unfinished, unpublished project * What kind of feedback you’re looking for * **An excerpt (chapter or short story) of up to 3,000 words** * +10% flexibility allowed * Strict cut-off beyond that **FOR THOSE PROVIDING FEEDBACK** * Please RSVP and read the “How to Give Feedback” document that will be shared prior to attending. * Bring a device suitable for reading the submitted piece * There is no expectation to read anything in advance. All reading takes place during the session itself. We begin with dedicated silent reading time, ensuring that everyone engages with the piece equally and no one feels pressure to prepare outside the session. Just show up ready to read, think, and contribute. **SCHEDULE** Attendees will be placed into small critique groups of 5–6 people, each with an experienced facilitator to guide discussion and manage time. **6:30–6:45pm** – Arrival, drinks & group seating **6:45–7:30pm** – Silent reading & note-taking **7:30–8:00pm** – Structured feedback delivery **8:00–8:30pm** – Open roundtable discussion & author questions Each participant will have up to 5 minutes to share feedback during the structured critique section. Authors listen without interruption, with space for clarifying questions later in the roundtable. Whether you’re looking to polish a chapter, test an opening, or strengthen your editorial instincts, these sessions are an opportunity to grow together. RSVP early, as places are limited to ensure productive group sizes. If you can no longer attend, please update your RSVP.

We're the All Good Bookshop writing group - we've been around for 10 years now. We offer writing feedback and discussion, whatever your level. Never been before? That's fine. Can only come once in a while? That's fine. Want to come regularly? That's fine. While we're predominantly narrative-based, any type of writing is welcome. Fiction, non-fiction, screenplays, novels, short-stories... bring it along and see if it fits. The cost is £5 to join us. Half of this goes to the bookshop and the other half goes towards snacks/drinks for everyone. Pay when you get there. (If you're having any financial problems, feel free to have a discreet chat with Chris about it). HOW IT WORKS First, we do introductions, which cover: 1 - Who you are 2 - What kind of thing you write 3 - What you're working on 4 - What you've done in the last two weeks. Then we find out who has stuff to read out (1,000 - 2,000 words), and who has questions/discussion points. If you'd prefer to do written hand-outs, you can as well. We then run through as many people as we can fit in, so they can read out or run through a discussion point. The group is run by Chris Brosnahan, an experienced writer and a long-running facilitator of writing groups. HOUSE RULES 1 - No egos. Everyone's stuff is up for criticism/feedback. 2 - Be constructive. We're not a review group - we're trying to help each other improve. 3\. No pressure\. You can turn up and just observe if you want \- you're not under pressure to read out or feed back\. 4 - We do our best to be a safe space. You don't know the backgrounds of everyone in the room. If you're going to read something that might be problematic or emotionally difficult, talk about it first - and if you're unsure, ask. 5 - We do our best to be a safe space. For particularly graphic scenes, please discuss in advance. A reminder that listening to erotica is, in itself, a sex act, and needs the enthusiastic consent of everyone involved. 6 - Content warnings apply. This doesn't just mean things like sex or violence. It also includes things like abuse, long-term illness, death - think of things that someone may find difficult if they're dealing with at the moment. We do our best to be a safe space. 7 - If you're struggling with anything being read, you can take a break without any justification or questions. 8 - Banned question: "Is this based on your own life?" - it doesn't add anything and can make discussion awkward. Please don't ask it. 9 - Let other people talk. You'll get your chance to feedback or ask questions, but it can be all too easy to talk over people. You also don't need to respond to every piece of feedback. 10 - Keep it respectful. Keep it friendly. Any problems? Get in touch and ask.

😮 50% OFF EVERYTHING AT AYRA TONIGHT UNTIL 6PM! 😮 Ayra are still running their happy hour seven days a week between 4pm and 6pm! During these times EVERYTHING will be 50% off - that's ALL food AND drink! Making Ayra likely more cost effective than eating at home 😂🤯 On top of that, they have a brand new menu they have launched recently too! And there will STILL BE FREE FOOD & FREE ENTRY! (read to the bottom to find out more)🍔... Along with our main venue opening hours of Tues, Thurs & Sat at The Mercury Mall, and after the huge success of the last few Weds at Ayra, we have made it our second home & are running official DWL sessions there every Weds for the foreseeable future! We will always keep running our main sessions at The Mercury Mall but our next Ayra session is tonight from 5pm-11pm (join us anytime during these times). You can find Ayra here: https://maps.app.goo.gl/rqMM1rkcK8UEfRfb8 Ayra 101 Brentwood Rd, Romford RM1 2EH In case you haven't been yet, Ayra's space is perfect for gaming - it's very large with many big tables (ideal for all types of games), full lighting & heating. Plus the food & drink options are exceptional. EXCITING FREE & DISCOUNTED FOOD!🍔🍛... After the 50% off offer ends at 6pm, they are still willing to offer us all 10% off all food every Weds plus another 10% of all your food orders will go to DWL. AND! They will again do a free sampling of food during the session - including free tasters of things like chicken tikka, onion bhajis, their legendary naan bread, samosas & possibly more! Vegi & Vegan options will be available too. Ayra does have a Bangladeshi & Indian themed menu but it also has plenty of more Anglicised options as well including, but not limited to their signature burger - one of the best burgers I've ever had! No lie. Plus all their food is homemade with 100% fresh & natural ingredients & yet is still excellent value for money. ☕GREAT SOFT & ALCOHOLIC DRINKS AVAILABLE AT AYRA🍺 Including their legendary Karak Chai! We again won't charge an entry fee for this session (feel free to put that towards a drink or food) & kids are allowed too (well behaved ones of course 😉) The pub is a 10min walk from Romford station, has plenty of free parking, & buses 165, 193 & 294 stop right outside with 370 & 496 stopping nearby too. We will have a small range of popular items in stock as well as a library of games! So please join us again this Weds & support DWL as well as a lovely local business whilst enjoying the usual fun & games. Hope to see you there, Dan ❤️🎴🎲🦐🍻

Join OverBoard to play the brilliant social deduction game Blood on the Clocktower in person at the brand new board game cafe Otter Chaos in Brixton. If you haven’t heard of Blood on the Clocktower before it is an evolution of classic party games like Mafia/Werewolf where a hidden evil team takes on the good team by lying and killing. The good team has a few tricks up their sleeve but will have to work together to deduce who the evil doers are in their midst. **This is a beginner friendly event so no experience with the game is necessary.** Please note that a gaming cover charge of \~£5 will be payable by each attendee to the venue so that we can make use of the space. We also encourage you to buy food and drink from the bar so we are supporting the business (I can highly recommend their pizzas!) If you want to know more about the rules of the game check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-aZP47Nm9g

**Come try quadball - a mixed-gender sport open to anyone and everyone regardless of gender, ability, or background.** Quadball, formerly quidditch, features players on each side aiming to outscore their opponents by throwing a volleyball through one of three opposing hoops, whilst defending their own hoops with tackles or knocking out opponents with dodgeballs - all while on a broom. **[Short Video on How To Play Quadball](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tKUZ9LLH-_c)** These sessions are casual mixed games, and are very beginner friendly, so this is a fantastic opportunity for new people to get involved! Despite our quidditch origins, quadball is very much a sport unto itself and has no relation to or any involvement with Harry Potter or JK Rowling. We celebrate the inclusion of members of the LGBTQ+ community and welcome people of **all** backgrounds and gender identities to get involved. --- **These sessions are designed to be casual and easy to get involved with** * Each session will start with a small warm up, alongside a brief introduction of the rules for newer players. * Players will be sorted into teams, and we'll have several mixed games across the evening (sunlight depending) * Games will run for 20 minutes each, split into two 10-minute halves. * Afterwards we'll head to either The Finbsury or the Twelve Pins to relax, hang out, and get to know the other players. **Please bring** * Suitable athletic or outdoor footwear * *Trainers or Football Boots* * Suitable clothing for exercise Whether you’re brand new to sport, a seasoned athlete, or just wanting to give something new and interesting a go - this is the place to be!

Hi guys! Super excited to announce we'll be hosting our first West London Book Club meetup next week! 🎉📚 📅 Sunday 24th 📍 Hyde Park 🕑 2pm – 4pm 🆓 Free to attend It's a book swap — bring a favourite book you're happy to share and swap with someone else. We'll also be playing a round of Articulate, so come ready to have a laugh! Bring your own food and drinks and just come as you are. The more the merrier! **Running order:** 📖 Intros + book shares 🔄 Book swap 🎲 Articulate 😊 Chill, chat, connect

Do you want to meet new people in a relaxing chill atmosphere surrounded by new books? Do you dislike loud and smelly places like pubs and clubs? This is the event for you. Science and Philosophy Book Club is creating a new kind of meetup where people who love books and knowledge can meet new friends in a big book shop. We will explore around different sections of the book shop together as a group while making interesting conversations with each other. We will go to both fiction and non-fiction areas. If you feel shy and feel nervous to come alone, I will make sure you will feel comfortable and accomodate to your needs. I will help introduce you to others so you can go over the barrier of anxiety when approaching a new person. We will meet on the ground floor lounge area of Doubletree Hilton Hotel at 6 p.m. It is an amazing cosy bar with classy vibes. We will wait for everyone to show up while getting some drinks and socializing. At 7 p.m we will head to the Waterstones book store near Russel Square and UCL. After we explore the book store, we will come back to the hotel bar and stay there for the rest of the night. This event requires £5 donation to cover the venue fees. You can pay via cash or card. Thank you for helping the book club!

Join us for a special edition of Deeper Discussions, where we dive into thought-provoking **fiction** that challenges perspectives, sparks imagination, and opens doors to meaningful conversations. Whether you're a lifelong reader or rediscovering the joy of novels, this is a space to explore stories that stay with you long after the final page. **This Month's Book - One hundred years of solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez** One Hundred Years of Solitude follows generations of the Buendía family in the fictional town of Macondo. It blends everyday life with magical, surreal events in a dreamlike style. The story explores time, memory, and the repeating patterns of family life. **How does it work?** * Brief introductions and reflections on what struck you most * Moderated discussion exploring plot, themes, and characters * Open conversation where different interpretations are welcomed ️ * We wrap up by sharing insights and connections made **What to Expect?** **Close Reading:** We go beyond surface-level plot summary. Expect discussions that examine the author's choices, narrative techniques, and the questions left lingering in the silence between pages. **Thoughtful Dialogue:** This isn't a race to share opinions—it's a space for genuine exploration. We listen, we reflect, we build on each other's insights. **Meaningful Connections:** Great fiction holds up a mirror to the human experience. Through discussing characters' choices and moral dilemmas, we often discover something about ourselves and each other. **How to get the most out of this event?** **Finish the Book:** Please attend only if you've completed the book. Spoilers will flow freely, and the richest discussions come from those who've made the full journey. **Ground it in the Text:** Bring your interpretations, but anchor them in what's actually on the page. Quote passages. Reference scenes. Let the author's words guide us. **Respect & Openness:** Every interpretation matters. Make space for quieter voices. Challenge ideas, not people. Stay curious rather than defensive. **Why a Fiction Book Club?** **Explore the Human Condition:** Fiction lets us inhabit lives we'll never live, forcing us to confront questions about identity, morality, love, and loss. **Sharpen Your Thinking:** Close reading develops critical thinking—noticing what the author chose to include, exclude, and how the story is told matters as much as what happens. **Deepen Connections:** Discussing characters' choices and moral dilemmas creates surprisingly intimate conversations with fellow readers. **Who is this event for?** * You find yourself thinking about books long after you've finished them * You want more from book discussions than "I liked it" or "I didn't" * You're curious how others interpret the same story differently * You value thoughtful dialogue over debate ️✨ * You're looking for meaningful connections with fellow readers **What's in it for you?** * **Fresh Perspectives:** Discover interpretations you'd never have considered alone * **Deeper Understanding:** Unpack themes and symbols that enrich your reading * **Genuine Connection:** Bond with others over shared literary experiences * **A Space to Think:** Slow down from the noise and engage with ideas that matter **Ready to dive deeper into stories that matter?** Join us for an evening where fiction becomes a gateway to understanding ourselves and each other. ✨ **We really hope to see you there!** **About Deeper Connections** We have a mission at Deeper Connections to improve the quality of people's lives through conversation. All our events are centred around the concept of connecting deeply, because we believe we all deserve to be seen, felt and understood for who we really are. To have the 'deeper conversation' approach when relating with others can change our lives and can change the world. **Our Values** * **Respect:** Treat everyone with kindness and consideration. ❤️ * **Open-mindedness:** Be open to different perspectives and ideas. * **Active Participation:** Share your thoughts and engage in meaningful discussions. ️ **Staying in touch** Interested in finding out about all the events sooner than on Meetup or staying in touch beyond the events, you can join our WhatsApp channel and community using [Deeper Connections WhatsApp Channel](https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029Vb6CBAdIN9ijrEYdv33z) [Deeper Connections WhatsApp Community](https://chat.whatsapp.com/EqGsmF3021RKTwBpGcuR80) **Keep This Event Free** If this event brings you something meaningful, you can help others access the same transformational experience. Whether it's £5 or £15, every contribution keeps these events accessible to everyone in our community. You'll find a QR code on your conversation sheet during the event, or you can contribute here #SupportYourCommunity [Ko-Fi](https://ko-fi.com/deeperconnections) [Buy Me A Coffee](https://buymeacoffee.com/deeperconnections) [PayPal](https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/DDSNCCFCYUEB2)

Would you enjoy a relaxed evening with fellow Science Fiction and Fantasy fans? If so, we’d love to meet you. Our next gathering takes place on **Saturday 23rd May from 6pm** at **The Mad Hatter**, just by Blackfriars Bridge. Drop in, say hello, and join us for a drink. We’re a long‑running group that’s been meeting since **1998**—long before meetup sites existed. Over the years we’ve hosted celebrity meet‑and‑greets, attended conventions together, run role‑playing games, organised cinema trips, LARPs, and plenty more. These pub meetups are all about socialising and connecting with other Sci‑Fi and Fantasy enthusiasts. To help break the ice, we’ll be running a fun **team quiz at 8.30pm**. There’s no fee to attend—just pay for whatever food or drink you order at the venue.

Hi everyone, in May our theme was classic literature and Orlando narrowly beat Persuasion to be our winner! Synopsis below: Virginia Woolf's exuberant `biography' tells the story of the cross-dressing, sex-changing Orlando who begins life as a young noble in the sixteenth century and moves through numerous historical and geographical worlds to finish as a modern woman writer in the 1920s. The book is in part a happy tribute to the `life' that her love for Vita Sackville-West had breathed into Virginia Woolf's own day-to-day existence; it is also Woolf's light-hearted and light-handed teasing out of the assumptions that lie behind the normal conventions for writing about a fictional or historical life. In this novel, Virginia Woolf plays loose and fast: Orlando uncovers a literary and sexual revolution overnight. See you there 🍻 Steph & Christina

Join us for a thoughtful discussion of White Nights by Dostoevsky. It’s a short, quietly powerful story about loneliness, hope, and fleeting connection—perfect for a meaningful conversation without a huge time commitment. If you enjoy reflective reads or just want to explore something a little different with good company, this is for you. No pressure, no need to be an expert—just bring your thoughts, impressions, or even questions.

If you're looking for a laid back Saturday playing some board games and talking nerd stuff in a pub with some awesome people, this is the meetup for you! Whether you're new to London or just want to get some long-lost in-person socialisation, we're a friendly community and welcome you all. **What to expect:** We officially play from **2 PM to 7 PM**, but we keep it casual. Show up when you can, and stay as long as you like. If you’re having a good time, there’s usually a group that stays late for a few extra pints and chat. **Some house rules:** * We aim to ensure these events are friendly, welcoming and safe, and so we ask you abide by our [Code of Conduct](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YEl0gv61SkBFN-YF6fyVvuQYicWbWhRL/view?usp=drive_link) * We have a community box of games we keep in the pub, but please feel welcome to bring your own games along. Just be prepared to teach us how to play! * We don't charge a cover fee, so please help support the pub by ordering food and drink throughout the afternoon. * Please keep your RSVPs updated so we can manage numbers and ensure we can reserve enough tables.

Welcome, readers! Our May read is **_Kindred_ by Octavia E. Butler.** The story follows Dana, a Black woman living in 1976 California, who is suddenly pulled back to a Maryland plantation before the Civil War. She learns her survival is tied to a white slaveholder’s son. Forced to move between centuries, she must endure the brutal realities of slavery while fighting to hold on to her identity. Tense, intimate, and unforgettable, Kindred explores how the past refuses to stay buried. Looking forward to discussing with everyone! We will meet at Zaftig Brewing Co in their event room in the back. We are welcome to bring in our own food, but **drinks must be purchased at the bar.** Happy reading! 📖

The theme for May is Thriller. • The book we will be discussing is A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson. (determined by votes from April Book Club. Let me know if you'd like a free digital copy of the book) • This event will be at the main library. Feel free to come whether or not you've started or finished the book. • Small snacks will be provided. You're welcome to bring your own snacks & drinks too! Let me know if you’d like to volunteer to bring snacks or drinks for the group.

**Our May novel is: *The Quiet Librarian* by Allen Eskens** **This month’s book is set in the 20th century and mixes historical fiction with suspense and thriller elements. It also centers on women’s stories and relationships. The novel is 368 pages in print or 8 hours and 12 minutes on audiobook.** Hana Babic is a quiet, middle-aged librarian in Minnesota who wants nothing more than to be left alone. But when a detective arrives with the news that her best friend has been murdered, Hana knows that something evil has come for her, a dark remnant of the past she and her friend had shared. Thirty years before, Hana was someone else: Nura Divjak, a teenager growing up in the mountains of war-torn Bosnia—until Serbian soldiers arrived to slaughter her entire family before her eyes. The events of that day thrust Nura into the war, leading her to join a band of militia fighters, where she became not only a fierce warrior but a legend—the deadly Night Mora. But a shattering final act forced Nura to flee to the United States with a bounty on her head\*\*.\*\*

Private Group. Closed to the Public Knowing ourselves and understanding our abilities is the first step toward wielding our gifts with control and accuracy. In subsequent classes we will verify and hone our talents with activities and discussion. These are hands-on workshops and participation is expected. The goal of our series will be to develop expertise in areas of particular interest such as mediumship, channeling, divination, healing and, etc.. Our ultimate directions will be determined by class members as we evolve. I look forward to sharing and discovering with you. - Cynthia

Join us for our May Book Club gathering where we will come together to discuss *[Cantoras](https://caroderobertis.com/books/cantoras/)*[ ](https://caroderobertis.com/books/cantoras/)by [Caro de Robertis](https://caroderobertis.com/bio/) in a safe and welcoming environment. Make new friends who share your passion for books and connect with fellow LGBTQ book enthusiasts.