Friend of Newsnibbles Claire Buss recently dropped us a line to tell us about an exciting new project she’s involved in. Speaking to our reporter she said:
Write On! Magazine is a great community initiative designed to bring together diverse writers from across Barking & Dagenham, Newham, Redbridge, Southend and beyond. Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been writing for years, Write On! aims to be a platform for individual writing voices as well as a writing resource.
See the press release below for more details.
Publishing lies at an intersection of entertainment, information and education and is the method by which we record our culture. Our culture is shifting and diverse communities such as the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, supported by the Arts Council under the Project Banner Pen to Print, are creating structures that ensure everybody can participate. Write On! is a new quarterly magazine published by Pen to Print, that links local writing communities into the publishing industry by showcasing the work of emerging writers.
Sue Williamson, Director for Libraries, Arts Council England, said:
“The Arts Council is delighted that the Pen to Print project, run by Barking and Dagenham Libraries, is launching Write On! magazine in print and online. Pen to Print is being funded as one of the six new library National Portfolio Organisations (NPOs) in the Arts Council portfolio and we believe that Write On! provides a great platform for the excellent work that is being done to support writing talent in the community.
We are keen for the UK’s literary landscape to become more representative. Write On! catalyses outreach and opportunity by showcasing homegrown voices, built with expert support from their local community. We are hopeful that by inviting engagement from other emerging writing communities, Write On! will encourage the publishing industry to engage further with underrepresented grass roots writers.”
A projected 30,000 readership comes from the 10,000 copies of the magazine to be distributed directly through Libraries and other community spaces in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham as well as Havering, Newham, Southend, Redbridge. National and international communities are reached via an online publication on pentoprint.org. The volunteer editorial team is drawn from local writing communities, including Wilbur and Niso Smith adventure writing finalists.
Pen to Print’s ethos is simple, by growing local writing communities, communities are built. The diversity of our changing world is captured by emerging storytellers who Write On! is connecting into a formal platform that allows them to be heard. This new magazine is a vehicle that makes it possible for the publishing world to connect with diverse, and sometimes alienated, communities. It doesn’t just showcase people, work and ideas, but invites publishing and business communities to participate by offering real value in the terms of engagement.
In the words of Barbara Nadel, best-selling author and Pen to Print Mentor:
“I’m from the East End and believe that we East Enders are natural storytellers. Pen to Print builds on this by creating a bridge between an informal storytelling community and the main stream (and sometimes very exclusive) publishing world.”
With mentors drawn from across the writing spectrum, Pen to Print supported authors like Claire Buss, have gone on to win industry awards and find agents.
A final word from Cllr Saima Ashraf, Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Community Leadership & Engagement, LBBD and Chair of the Pen to Print Advisory Panel.
“We believe that Write On! provides a unique meeting point, propelling writers from working-class and minority backgrounds with something to say into publication. An authentic storytelling platform inspires readers, writers and commercial entities to come together in new and innovative ways; building positive social change by helping our Borough record who we are now, while creating a blueprint for who we want to be in the future.”
We invite publishers and agents and the publishing press to engage with us, building on the platform Write On! provides to offer expertise and opportunities for local writing communities across the country. Further information and commercial opportunities see our the media pack. We also welcome partnership discussions.
For more information or further comment, please contact:
Madeleine White, Editor
Write On! Magazine by Pen to Print
madeleinefwhite@hotmail.com
+44 (0) 7904835188
