The writer is an explorer. Every step is an advance into a new land. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

God this poem is haunting me again.

I believe this is a golden age of children's literature. There are books being published today that will shape the minds of generations; life-changing books whose readers will change the world. There really is a book for EVERYONE now - if we can just help every reader find those books!

Someone said to me, "I'm sorry but I got your book from a library." Nobody should ever apologise for that. You read my book! That's brilliant! I grew up hanging out in libraries and the idea of a world without them fills me with dread. Without libraries, authors, like readers, will only suffer.

a welcome plague on all my bookshelves!! 😜🤦🏾‍♀️📚

The long overlooked, centuries-long, culture of the book in West Africa. Writing Timbuktu by Shamil Jeppie is now available worldwide! Learn more and order yours: press.princeton.edu/books/hardco... #History #ReadUP

My proudest achievement is building a book family that powers this prize In 10 years, Jhalak Prize has grown from a single prize to a portfolio of 3 awards: 1. Jhalak Children’s & Young Adult Prize, 2. Jhalak Poetry Prize 3. Jhalak Prose Prize BEHOLD THIS EXCELLENCE! #jhalakprizeat10

Love this!! ☺️ Hope you also get to cover ancient and precolonial history, especially what's not in school textbooks that often forget the cool and impactful histories of Africa and Asia

I've been shortlisted for the Historical Novel Society's 2026 First Chapters Competition in the Children's and YA category!! ☺️ 🖋️ 📖 Thanks to the judges and congratulations to my fellow authors 👏🏽 🎉 #historicalfiction #kidlit

For my fellow writer friends, read the great comments for Louie's post to get some good editing tips! ✍️ 💻 ⬇️

The government should review those chosen to draft the new national curriculum because the list has a ‘deeply concerning lack of diversity’, according to an open letter with nearly 100 signatories

Revealing the longlist for the #Carnegies2026 Medal for Writing! 🏅✒️ Highlighting diversity and community, these 19 works span from humorous narratives and creative reimaginings to artfully using history to explore identity and relationships . 💫📖 https://carnegies.co.uk/2026-longlists-announced/

As a long-term supporter of EmpathyLab’s work to raise an empathy-educated generation through books and reading, I’m super proud to be an official EmpathyLab ambassador. Here’s to giving time and energy to things that make a difference. #kidlituk #ukkidlit @empathylabuk.bsky.social

ICYMI: Those two journeys, of grief and growing independence, have evolved for me… I have something else to say now that I didn’t back then, says Sophie Anderson in our recent interview 👇 #BookSky

Over a 100 authors left the event in solidarity, and Louise Adler - longstanding director of the event - resigned along with them leaving this statement (Guardian) we should all pay attention to 👀 🔊 What jumps out for me is: "We need writers more than ever" and "AWW is the canary in the coalmine."

The thing that depresses me in the whole AI revolution in my industry (I’m a literary translator and publisher) is that the question is not whether machines can replace human translators, but how will we deal with the fallout after machines are forcibly introduced regardless.

✨✨✨ HUGE NEWS!!!! ✨✨✨ Authorfy is going to be an official resource for the National Year of Reading 2026 & the whole platform will be FREE for the entire year. 🎥 13,000+ hours’ worth of author videos - FREE! 📖 Thousands of resources & activity packs - FREE! 📚 Hundreds of book extracts - FREE!

😭 this is exactly what I'm doing right now 🥹

This is winter in #Gaza. People are facing a third winter of cold temperatures, torrential rain and heavy winds after being repeatedly forcibly displaced. Conditions have destroyed and flooded the makeshift shelters people are living in.

My childhood best friend, a doctor, has set up a project to get kids who need urgent specialist medical care, out of Gaza, to get the help they need. They're crowdfunding here: www.purehope.co.uk

You will face many defeats in life. But never let yourself be defeated. ~ Maya Angelou

Unsolicited writing advice, no. 71616: If you're struggling to stay creative during the dark part of the year, go back to what you love. Re-read, re-watch, rediscover old favourites. Remind yourself why you're doing this. Find your joy.

Families of Palestine Action hunger strikers seek urgent meeting with Lammy: www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Second this! Especially for those who are very particular with their reading choices 😉 😂 What's also very cool is these tokens cover indie booksellers and @bookshop.org too! 👏🏽 🙌🏽

Here are almost 40 of my favourite #MiddleGrade reads for 2025. A fantastic range from wild fantasy, to gritty realism, historical adventures and more than a few scares. What a brilliant year its been for children’s books

#quotes #maya_angelou ❤️

Waking up to see we raised ninteen grand in #Creatives4Sudan. Amazing, everyone. Thank you all for your generous bids, and donating items. If you bid, the auction will put you in touch with the relevant creative by email.

Very true! I've found that all the little rabbit holes I'd wandered down have somehow come to be useful fodder and inspiration for writing and plotting. What I was once told was time wasting or procrastination is now a central part of my process, but perhaps a little more steered than before 😊

Some 44,000 people displaced by flooding across the country as relief operations intensify amid widespread destruction.

Spread the Word has rebranded as the London Writers Centre, after 30 years 👇 #BookSky

ICYMI: The National Literacy Trust has highlighted the “urgent need to broaden our understanding of literacy in the digital age” in a new paper titled The Future of Literacy: Multimodal Reading 👇 #BookSky

The 8th Annual Reflecting Realities Report is out now, showing progress in ethnic representation in children’s books and urging publishers to keep inclusion as a standard practice. https://clpe.org.uk/research/clpe-reflecting-realities-survey-ethnic-representation-within-uk-childrens-literature-3

We welcome the publication of the government's Curriculum and Assessment Review. We particularly support its recommendation that children be exposed to a wider range of literary voices, and the inclusion of reading in enrichment activities. However... www.gov.uk/government/p...

Happy publication day to Wild Journey: A Flight of Stories Across Deserts & Forests, Cities & Seas by A.M. Dassu and illustrated by Joe Lillington. Five captivating stories of emotional growth from across the globe connected by migrating starlings with stunning illustrations👇🏽 For ages 7+

🚨4 days left to submit to #LondonWritersAwards 2026! Have a look at what our agent judges are looking for. ⏰ Applications for the #LondonWritersAwards close at 5pm on Thursday 30 October – happy writing!

Ooohh!! 👀 Going to have to use all my willpower to not listen to this right away or risk not finishing my manuscript redraft ✍️ 😧 📖 I'll treat myself to it later 😊

'I don’t think it’s ever a good idea to deny history. I think it’s always really important to face your own history honestly ...' Toppling statues is an act of protest. It's about contesting a collective memory. NEVER about denying history. observer.co.uk/culture/inte...

You should be concerned about the rate of authors leaving publishing. Especially from marginalized communities. This year I have seen so many authors just pack it up and go. And it's only getting worse.

Publishing is a broken system, and most individuals can't fix a whole-ass system, but a thread of ways you can support marginalized authors.

One of the things about this study is that a lot of baby and toddler books are written in house, by editors. So the study reveals the whiteness of editorial in kidlit even if not explicitly. But, big picture, this trend is unacceptable. I remember so many promises www.theguardian.com/books/2025/o...

"There's a word for a writer who never gives up: published." ~ Joe Konrath

✨ The Excluded Voices 2025 report is here! We’ve updated last year’s findings on children’s books (ages 1–9) by British creators from marginalised communities — showing where progress is happening & where it’s still not. https://ow.ly/G5Hq50X8fph #IBCExcludedVoicesReport

In an open letter, Walker Books 'is concerned to see the latest developments in Weymouth, particularly given the extreme reality of book banning in the US. We must ask ourselves is this the beginning of something, and what comes next?' www.bookbrunch.co.uk/page/article...

Exciting to see the posts on #kidlit reading from #kidsconf as I take a break from redrafting my upper MG novel 😊 ☕️ ✍️ 📖

"Mass appeal and literary quality are not mutually exclusive", says Belinda Rasmussen at #KidsConf.

Downloading it right now! 🎧 📱 😃

The London Writers Awards is open for applications until Thursday 30 October at 5pm. Find out more in audio and BSL video formats on our website: www.spreadtheword.org.uk/applications...

Your 2026 UKLA Book Awards Longlists are here - the only national children’s book awards judged by teachers! This year they feature books in translation, past winners, exciting debuts and a huge range of genres and themes. Click here to see the full Longlists: ukla.org/ukla-book-aw...

“During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.” George Orwell