Northern Lights Writers' Conference

Creative Industries Trafford presents its acclaimed Northern Lights Writers’ Conference - a full day on the craft and business of writing, featuring sessions with screenwriter Lisa Holdsworth, poet Oliver Sykes, literary agent Monica MacSwan, award-winning writer & creator Emma Nuttall, publisher Kevin Duffy (Bluemoose Books), plus many more.

Now in its ninth year, the Northern Lights Writers’ Conference at Waterside is a significant event in the region for established and emerging writers, screenwriters, poets and authors. Hosted by Ric Michael, the full-day event features a mix of inspiring talks from leading writers and authors, experienced publishers and literary agents along with creative workshops on writing development and one-to-one advice sessions for writers of all kinds.

Panel talks will take place in The Robert Bolt Theatre:

In The State of The Art writers Lisa Holdsworth (TV writer & former Chair of the Writers’ Guild) explores the landscape for writers in 2024, alongside author and screenwriter Danielle Jawando and poet and children’s author Oliver Sykes.

Following this session, independent bookseller Ayesha Ansari (Mirror Me Write) will be discussing the importance of representation in literature in Diversity in Literature.

Other panel talks include Monica MacSwan (Aitken Alexander Agency) and Kevin Duffy (Bluemoose Books) giving practical and up to date guidance for writers on how the representation and publication process works plus a talk on routes into the publishing industry with Imogen Davies and Caitíe Woolridge from the Society of Young Publishers (North).

A series of creative sessions will take place concurrently in The Chambers:

The first - How To Develop Your Writing Voice – is with award-winning author Oliver Sykes and is an in-depth look at finding and maintaining your voice as a writer.

Eleanor Pilcher – author and fiction marketer – leads a session on Marketing & Social Media for Writers - a guide to marketing and developing social media content for writers.

Business consultant Phil Birchenall delivers a practical session looking at how writers can use AI tools to help develop new projects.