Bookfest has been a huge support for Glossopdale's writers and artists

Several years ago, a few local residents met to plan an event - a BookFest - that would support and promote authors and illustrators in the Glossopdale area.

Thanks to small grants from two local councillors and from The Bureau, the four-strong team of organisers were finally able to launch the venture late in 2022. 

In order to be eligible for those grants, they had to become a Constituted Group.

Their mission statement summarises the main points in their Constitution: “We provide opportunities for poets, playwrights, novelists, short story writers and illustrators in all media, and across all ages and demographics, to develop their work and to engage with and offer it to the public by oral presentation and/or for sale, thereby promoting literacy and education within the community and forging connections among individuals to the benefit of their well-being and mental health.” 

The first Big BookFest Event was held in Glossop Methodist Church in March 2023.

Authors and illustrators from around the area and further afield - hired stalls at which their work was displayed for sale.

They offered writing and illustrating workshops, open to any member of the public who visited. There were also collaborative activities such as a Collage Poem and Literary Graffiti; children’s activities, including drawing and face painting; and a raffle.  

By then, they had already started the open mic events. Open mics are held on the first Thursday of each month except January and August, starting 7.30 p.m., in the bar area of Glossop Labour Club.

Apart from featuring well-known guest poets, these evenings offer opportunities for any author, irrespective of experience, to present five minute excerpts of their work: story, poem, short play - or, in one or two instances, song.  

There is also a musical interlude. A number of authors have had their first experience of public performance at BookFest open mics, in front of friendly audiences numbering anywhere between 14 and 42. 

The Big BookFest Event of 2023 was widely praised, but then made some improvements for the second Big Event, held in November 2024. These included recruiting volunteers to help with the smooth running of the event, and providing an opportunity for the brilliant performance poet Dominic Berry to entertain the stallholders and visitors. Among the many visitors who enjoyed the afternoon - and took the opportunity to buy Christmas presents for their families - were the mayor and mayoress of High Peak. 

As per their Constitution and the terms of the grants, they also organise writing competitions for Glossopdale children. The first competition, for 500-word stories on the theme “Christmas”, was held in December 2023.  

In 2024 they invited poems on the themes “My town” or “New life” to coincide with the Glossop Heritage Weekend, and selected entries were displayed in local shops.

The cooperation of the shopkeepers was greatly appreciated. Most recently, in November-December 2024, when they ran a story competition on the theme “Winter Wanders” in collaboration with the Friends of Glossop Station (FOGS).

Thanks to the FOGS designers, selected entries to this competition have been displayed - and are still being displayed - on Glossop station. Prizes for the winning entries in all these competitions have included book tokens and pencil-and-notebook sets. 

In spring 2024, they partnered with the local library to arrange a children's event with local children's authors.  

They have recently produced and published a  booklet of the children’s “Winter Wanders” stories, and have plans to produce/publish/market booklets of further children's work submitted for theme-based writing competitions in 2025.  

The novel writing courses, held in 2023 and 2024, have given aspiring writers an opportunity to get started and develop their craft. Through these and the “Meet the Author” evenings they’ve already helped two (adult) local writers to find publishers.  

Their aim will be to achieve more of the same, and also to provide more free/affordable courses and workshops geared to the needs of local authors.  

They plan to identify these by reaching out through the website, social media and email lists. The next novel writing course is planned for March-May 2025.  

A new project, an affiliated podcast, hosted by a member of the team, is underway. Its aim is once again to give local writers a voice and to highlight their work. 

They wouldn’t have been able to run any of these recent activities without further financial support. Fortunately, on the basis of the activities to date, they were awarded a generous grant from the Fothergill Family Fund via Foundation Derbyshire in March 2024. Apart from enabling them to pay for advertising, venue hire and prizes for children’s competitions, this grant made the new website affordable, thanks to the work of web designer David Mawdsley.  

All the current and planned activities, and photos of previous events, can be found on this user-friendly website: https://glossopbookfest.co.uk/, also on  Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/GlossopBookFest.