Local talents to take to the stage at Wolverhampton Literature Festival

A Black Country festival is set to bring together authors, poets, artists and photographers this weekend for what is to be an event full of tips, workshops and inspiration.

Wolverhampton Literature Festival, which is the first of its kind to ever take place in the city, will be putting on workshops for both old and young as well as opening the doors to many of the city’s buildings that the public rarely get to see.

Beginning today (Friday) and running until Sunday, the festival will play host to local talents in a bid to raise awareness of just how cultured the city is.

Phil Turner, organiser of the event, said that the idea for the festival came around when a team of people realised that many of the city’s venues are not being used to their full potential.

He said: “There are a lot of council venues and spaces that aren’t being used and nobody has ever really done anything like this in Wolverhampton.

“So, we thought we would give it a go and depending on how successful it is, it could become an annual event. We are classing this as a pilot event, to get a feel of what the local interest is in the concept.”

The festival will boast a whole range of events, including talks and discussions with local authors like Sathnam Sanghera, Paul McDonald, Kerry Hadley-Pryce, Louise Palfreyman & R.M. Francis.

The event will also feature workshops, including an introduction to audio books, writing horror stories, creating a debut novel and a family book session.

There will also be a writer’s showcase, giving the opportunity for local people to meet and perform their work, as well as playwriting and comic workshops. Local poets will also be performing their work over the weekend.

Phil said: “The beauty of the event is that the majority of it is free, so anyone can come along. There are a few ticketed events, but I think you always find the best surprises at the events you wouldn’t normally go to.”

There will also be events for children and teenagers to get involved in, including an evening at Wolverhampton Art Gallery with children’s author Narinder Dhami, the woman behind Bend It Like Beckham. Music lovers are also in for a treat, with local musicians set to take to the stage at The Slade Rooms for discussions and performances.

Phil is hoping that the festival will trigger other culture-related events in the city.

“We are hoping that the event encourages more people to get involved with arts and culture in the city. The local community have all worked together to create this event and you would be surprised at how much literature history Wolverhampton has,” he said.

“What has surprised me is how many budding writers there are in the community and just how diverse they all are. It is something that I have been completely unaware of until I started organising the event, so hopefully the event will be able to showcase these talents.”