Megaphone Writers Community Interest Company is organising the Thousand Stories Conference in Birmingham, UK, on July 11, 2026. It is a day for people of colour who create books for children. Speakers include authors Serena Patel, Mayo Agard-Olubo, Abena Eyeson, Shireen Lalji, G M Linton, Ashley Thorpe, Anika Hussain, and Eva Wong Nava. Speakers also include editors Safae El-Ouahabi, Louise Lamont, Anjem Anwar, and Stephanie King.
Birmingham, UK, was once called The City of A Thousand Trades because of its many, bustling, diverse worshops creating thousands of different goods. Today it is a bustling, creative, super-diverse, youthful city. Nearly 40% of its population are under 25, and ethnic minorities represent over 50% of the city’s population: We think that is strength, cultural wealth and makes Birmingham a city of (at least) a thousand stories. It is the perfect place to celebrate diversity in literature for young people, and to help new stories and fresh voices become heard. This is Megaphone’s first conference but we hope it will not be the last. We want to help you find your writing voice and make it stronger, discover the joy and reward of writing for children and reaching an audience, connect with your creative community and with people who can help you reach publication.
See more info about the Thousand Stories Conference on the Megaphone website.
