Writers & Readers Salon

Join us for an evening of readings and discussion from four exciting debut writers.

Come and join us at Spread the Word’s Writers & Readers Salon, a new event series featuring alumni of our writer development programmes and special invited guests. You’ll get to meet and hear critically acclaimed debut writers read from their work and ask about the craft and career of being an author.

In this launch event at the Africa Centre (SE1 0BL), we’ll be featuring three alumni of our highly successful London Writers Awards: Han Smith, Iqbal Hussain and Nilesha Chauvet who’ll be joined by the comedian, actor and blogger Zahra Barri. All four writers published their debut novels this year.

Each author will read for 10 minutes from their novels, followed by a panel discussion about writer development, underrepresentation in the publishing industry and taking your first steps to finding an agent. There will be time to chat with the authors directly and the opportunity to buy their books.

Access

BSL interpreted

Relaxed

Venue is wheelchair accessible with accessible toilets and a lift on the ground floor.

Please note: There are bursaries available for this event. Please email [email protected] to enquire about getting one.

ABOUT THE WRITERS

Han Smith


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A queer writer, translator and community literacy teacher, Han Smith was a recipient of a London Writers Award for Literary Fiction from Spread the Word in 2019/2020. Her work has been published/commissioned by Cipher Press, Five Dials, Versopolis, Litro, The Interpreter’s House and the European Poetry Festival, and shortlisted for prizes including the Mslexia Novella Award, the Bridport Prize and the Brick Lane Bookshop Prize. Han's debut novel: Portraits at the Palace of Creativity and Wrecking was published by John Murray in June 2024.

Iqbal Hussain


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Iqbal Hussain is a writer from Blackburn, Lancashire and he lives in London. His work appears in various anthologies and on websites including The Willowherb Review, The Hopper and caughtbytheriver. He is a recipient of the inaugural London Writers’ Awards 2018 and he won Gold in the Creative Future Writers’ Awards 2019. In 2022, he won first prize in Writing Magazine’s Grand Flash competition and was joint runner-up in the Evening Standard Short Story Competition. In 2023, his story ‘I’ll Never Be Young Again’ won first prize in the Fowey Festival of Arts and Literature short story competition. He was also Highly Commended in the Emerging Writer Award from The Bridge Award. Northern Boy is his first novel.

Nilesha Chauvet


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Nilesha Chauvet is a British Indian novelist and short story writer. Her debut novel, The Revenge of Rita Marsh, was published by Faber as a crime thriller super lead title in July 2024. Nilesha writes zeitgeist psychological suspense, crime, and thriller. She is also the Managing Director of GOOD which advises commercial brands on Purpose, and helps charities raise millions of pounds for good causes. An alumna of London Writers Awards 2021, Nilesha also studied creative writing at City Lit and is a graduate of Faber Academy. She read Philosophy & Theology at Oxford and is an ordained Interfaith Minister. Nilesha is represented by Nelle Andrew at Rachel Mills Literary.

Zahra Barri


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Zahra Barri is a Saudi Arabian raised, Egyptian/Irish writer, stand-up comedian and PhD researcher. She has featured on Channel 4's Only Jokes a Muslim Can Tell, BBC Radio, BBC Asian Network and BBC Period Dramas, as well as appeared in Harpers Bazaar Arabia, The New Arab, Dubai's Mojeh Magazine and DIVA Magazine. Her writing won Runner Up for the Comedy Women in Print Unpublished prize 2020. Her debut novel Daughters of the Nile won the Unbound Firsts Writers of Colour competition, out now and is described as, ‘A bold multi-generational debut, exploring themes of queerness, revolution and Islamic sisterhood.’ Her work is supported by The Society of Authors and the Arts Council.