The idea to set up a Salisbury Literary Festival came from the growth and development of the Salisbury Writing Circle. This was set up in Spring 2015 and meets monthly at Sarum College for a mixture of workshopping, guest authors and networking with fellow local writers. A community of authors from the Salisbury area has developed as a result, from absolute beginners to internationally published novelists.
Building on this base, we decided to launch the inaugural Salisbury Literary Festival in October 2017. The aims of the festival are as follows:
Firstly, one with a strong local content that supports and celebrates writing in Salisbury. There are many great writers, past and present, from the Salisbury area. (You can read my piece on Salisbury in Fiction here)
Secondly, one that is predominantly fiction based. We want a festival that focuses on creative writing, rather than non-fiction memoirs and celebrity-led books.
Thirdly, a festival that is focused on both readers and writers. The Writing Circle is about creative writing and we want this festival to have a practical element that supports writers.
Fourthly, a festival that celebrates all sorts of fiction. We want our festival to look at writing across all genres, and be one that celebrates both published and self-published authors.
TOM BROMLEY – Director, Salisbury Literary Festival
Who we are –
Festival Director – Tom Bromley
Digital Media & Marketing – Russell Mardell
PR & Sponsorship – Christine Nielsen-Craig
Festival Finance – Maz Dundee
Children’s Events – Jo Boyles
Sponsorship – Gina Gough
Bookseller, author events – Jenny Monds, Sarum College Bookshop
Salisbury Story Prize – Charlotte Phillips
Book Fairy – Dave Key
Festival Logo Design – Neil Smith
Festival Brochure Design – Phamie MacDonald, Fizzy Lemonade Design
Patrons – Mark Dawson, Barney Norris, Kristina Stephenson (Read more about our patrons here)