Afternoon Tea with Joseph Coelho

Grab a cuppa and get to know British Poet and Children’s book author, Joseph Coelho. Joseph will be in conversation with SoA Chief Executive, Nicola Solomon, to discuss his work and career, offering a glimpse into his creative routine and his role as Waterstone’s Children’s Laureate.

In conjunction with our Children’s Writers and Illustrators Group. Find out more.

Programme:

• Welcome, introductions and housekeeping from Nicola Solomon, Chief Executive (2 mins)
• Introduction from Joseph Coelho and a glimpse into his creative routine (15-25 mins)
• Q&A with audience (10 mins)
• Joseph Coelho will do a short reading from his book The Boy Lost in the Maze (5 mins)
• Summary and closing comments (3 mins)

Send us your questions in advance

If you would like to send questions in advance, email sjackson@societyofauthors.org with ‘Joseph Coelho – Question’ in the subject header. We will prioritise questions sent in advance and answer as many as we can from the audience on the day.

SoA @ Home Fundraising Bookshop

Browse our virtual Bookshop.org store featuring books by authors and speakers taking part in the SoA @ Home Festival. When you make a purchase using our affiliate links a percentage will go to the Authors’ Contingency Fund, providing hardship grants to authors in financial difficulty.

The Line-Up

Joseph Coelho – Author, Poet and Playwright | Waterstone’s Children’s Laureate

Joseph Coelho is a multi-award winning children’s author and playwright. He writes across several mediums for children including stage plays, picture books, non-fiction and middle grade. His  The Girl Who Became a Tree: A Story Told in Poems was shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal and received a special mention from the Bologna Ragazzi Award 2021. His latest stage play The Wishing Tree recently finished a run at the Little Angel Theatre in London. He wrote and presented ‘Teach Poetry’ – a 10-part BBC online series that aims to make the writing of poetry fun and accessible to all. Joseph is currently the Waterstone’s Children’s Laureate 2022 – 2024.

Website: thepoetryofjosephcoelho.com | Twitter: @JosephACoelho | Instagram: @josephcoelhoauthor

Nicola Solomon – Chief Executive, SoA

Nicola Solomon’s role encompasses protecting authors’ interests in negotiations/disputes with publishers and agents, advising individual authors and campaigning for authors’ rights, as well as for the wider cultural environment. Nicola is an expert in the publishing industry and the associated law, from copyright and defamation, to privacy, data protection and contract. She is a Deputy District Judge and sits on the board of the International Authors’ Forum and the British Copyright Council. She is Chair of the Creators’ Rights Alliance. At the SoA Nicola liaises with the Management Committee to set and implement strategy and policy and to manage finance. She liaises with external organisations and manages the SoA team of professional staff.

About the Children’s Writers and Illustrators Group

The Children’s Writers and Illustrators Group is the largest of all the Society of Authors’ special interest groups with more than 1,300 members. It was founded in the 1960s to address challenges facing writers and illustrators and advocate for better industry standards. It is run by an elected committee of nine authors who lead campaigns, develop resources and organise events. Every Group member can give up to three Reading for Pleasure Awards a year to hard-working and imaginative schools for their promotion of reading for pleasure. Find out more here.

Need to know 

Before the event

• Once registered, you will be sent a confirmation email with the Zoom link
• If the confirmation email doesn’t arrive in your inbox, please check your junk /spam email folder.
• Please add events@societyofauthors.org to your Safe Senders list so you receive our confirmation, and reminder emails

During the event

• This online event will take place on Zoom Webinar; you will not be visible on screen but will be able ask questions via the Q&A function or interact via the chat box
• This event will be recorded but you won’t be on screen
• Attendees have the option to turn on the live transcript option
• This event is 45 minutes.

After the event

• Hashtag for this event: #SoAatHome
• You’ll be able to catch the recording on our Vimeo channel

Booking

Book your place by using the registration below.

All SoA @ Home Afternoon Tea sessions are free to SoA Members but, if you can afford it, we recommend a minimum £5 donation to the Authors’ Contingency Fund to help us support authors facing financial hardship during the health crisis. DONATE HERE

If you are unable to book using the registration box below, please email events@societyofauthors.org with the name and date of the event you’d like to register for and we’ll confirm your place.