Spark your pupils’ imaginations and boost their creativity with one of the FREE author events taking place this summer term. From books inspired by historical events to imaginary worlds full of magical creatures, there is an event to cater for all reading ages and interests in our roundup.

Events for Pupils

April

• Carnegie Scholastic Schools Live: Meet this year’s Carnegie-shortlisted authors and illustrators in a week of online events for primary and secondary schools. Each of the 14 events will last approximately 30 minutes and will also be available as a recording to watch back at a later date.
  • Date 28th April to 2nd May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 3 – 14+

May

• Book Clubs in Schools: Celebrate 10 years of Book Clubs in Schools with Tom Palmer as he shares his journey as a reader and acclaimed writer of historical fiction and football stories.
  • Date: 1st May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 8-12.
• Book Clubs in Schools: Acclaimed author Sita Brahmachari talks about the inspiration behind her award-winning novels and shares a sneak preview of her latest title Phoenix Brothers in an online event to celebrate Book Clubs in School’s 10th Birthday.
  • Date: 1st May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 11-13.
• Book Clubs in Schools: Younger readers can watch a pre-recorded interview with author/illustrator David Litchfield as he reads some of his award-winning picture books and shares some top drawing tips in a special event to celebrate Book Club in Schools’ 10th Birthday.
  • Date: 1st May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 5-8.
• Children’s Authors Live: Explore Egypt’s fascinating history and design a piece of Egyptian jewellery with author Laila Rifaat in this interactive event as she introduces her two new time-slip adventure stories Aliya to the Infinite City and Aliya Aboard the Time Train. A free discussion Guide for Aliya to the Infinite City is available to accompany this event.
  • Date: 2nd May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 8-11.
• Children’s Authors Live: Dust off your magic wand and join author Anna Kemp as she discusses fantasy, adventure and fairies in this interactive workshop based on her Goblyn Wood series.
  • Date: 2nd May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 8-11.
• Waterstones Virtual School Visit: Award-winning author Jenny Pearson introduces her latest middle-grade novel The Shrapnel Boys in a special online event to mark the end of World War II. Learn about the real-life experiences that inspired this historical adventure about friendship and the realities of living in war-torn London, with the opportunity for pupils to put their own questions to Jenny. The event is free but schools need to purchase a copy of the book for £6.50 to register.
  • Date: 7th May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 7-12.
• Mr Dilly’s World of History: Celebrate the 80th Anniversary of VE Day with Mr Dilly as he brings history to life in an engaging, high-energy online event that includes authentic WWII footage.
  • Date: 8th May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 7-14.
• Children’s Authors Live: Help young readers understand big emotions with award-winning author/illustrator Sophy Henn as she introduces her latest picture book I Hate Everything, all about finding the positives even when you are having a very bad day.
  • Date: 9th May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 4-6.
• Scholastic Schools Live: Build a story with award-winning author Helen Rutter to celebrate her brand-new title The Boy with Big Decisions, an innovative, interactive novel where readers stand alongside hero Fred Timple and make decisions about how his story progresses. Readers will have the opportunity to build their own branching narrative, inspired by real-life decisions that they have faced.
  • Date: 15th May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 8-12.
• Children’s Authors Live: Rachel Bright, best-selling author of The Way Home for Wolf, The Lion Inside and The Koala who Could introduces her latest picture book The Camel who had the Hump in an interactive session for younger readers.
  • Date: 19th May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 4-7.
• Hay Festival Primary Schools Programme: Jasbinder Bilan, Frank Cottrell-Boyce, MC Grammar, Patrice Lawrence, Jenny Pearson, Louie Stowell and Ross Welford are just some of the best-selling authors taking to the stage in a day of online events that cover all reading interests.
  • Date 22nd May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 7-11.
• Hay Festival Secondary Schools Programme: From fantasy romance and the lives of women through history to the world of politics and the power of personal identity, explore a range of topics with top authors such as Ana Adebogun, Alastair Campbell, Nicola Davies, Christopher Edge, Matt Goodfellow, Liz Hyder and Anthony McGowan in a carefully curated programme for secondary pupils.
  • Date 23rd May
  • Suitable for pupils aged 11-16.

June

• Authors Live: Watch giant of the comics world Jamie Smart in action as he creates a three-panel comic based on suggestions from the audience, talks about his own creative process and shares some top tips on how to create your own comics in this fun-filled and inspiring event.
  • Date: 5th June
  • Suitable for pupils aged 6+.
• Empathy Day Festival: Jump into someone else’s story with a host of authors as part of this year’s Empathy Day Festival. Annemarie Anang, Rob Biddulph, Joseph Coelho, Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Sarah Crossan, A.M Dassu, Phil Earle, Tom Palmer and Rashmi Sirdeshpandi are just some of the authors and illustrators talking about emotional intelligence and seeing things from another person’s point of view in this programme of live and pre-recorded events for primary and secondary schools.
  • Date: 2nd-12th June
  • Suitable for pupils aged 4-14

Events for Teachers and Librarians

• An Evening In: Matt Goodfellow and Joe Todd-Stanton join Nikki Gamble to celebrate the publication of The First Year, their much-anticipated sequel to the award-winning verse novel The Final Year.
  • Date: 29th April.
• An Evening In: Christina Balit, award-winning author/illustrator, explores the world of Elizabethan theatre as she talks about her latest title The Boy Who Became Queen with Nikki Gamble.
  • Date: 8th May.
• Teachers Make Great Authors: Jenny Pearson, Sara Stanley and Martin Stewart are all former teachers turned children’s authors. Together with Nikki Gamble, they discuss what impact their teaching experience had on their writing and talk about their latest projects.
  • Date: 15th May.

If you are interested in hosting an in-person author event, don’t forget that Authors Aloud, Authors Abroad and Speaking of Books are all organisations dedicated to helping schools spark a love of reading by bringing young people and authors together.