THIS WEEK
The Black Issue 2023 Festival Spotlight: The Black British Book Festival
The Black British Book Festival looks to broaden its reach—again ‘Where there’s a need, people will come’, says
Selina Brown of the Black British Book Festival, iti
which uses accessible pricing and ambitious programming to target non-readers
Lauren Brown @laurenrbrown95 W
hen author Selina Brown self-published her first two books, poetry and prose collections entitled Before Breath (2015) and Nena: The Green
Juice (2020), her experience was mixed. The books were successful: Brown toured the likes of Jamaica, New York and the Gambia with Before Breath, and Nena: The Green Juice sold upwards of 3,000 copies and saw Brown appear on the BBC to discuss Nena’s message of healthy eating. However, along the way she has encountered “some barri- ers, some issues”.
“I can say it is because I’m a Black woman,” Brown says. “I thought it was me alone, but I spoke to other authors of colour, Black authors, and they sadly also experienced problems.” In 2019, Brown says, “Somebody within the publishing industry basically told me that my book wouldn’t sell because it’s got a Black girl with an afro on the front and people aren’t going to be buying that”. Speaking to other Black authors, she heard that people were being told that agents could “only take on one Black author right now”. This prompted Brown, in 2021, to found The Black British Book Festival, a one-day annual event in Birmingham championing Black British writers. “[It’s] basically a direct response to the issues that I faced and that Black authors face. It’s about really representing, showcasing, supporting, celebrating authors, to really create visibilit and reach,” she says. The festival, which aims to demystify the publishing
industry and assist in removing barriers for Black authors, saw 800 atendees in its inaugural year; that total doubled last year, with esteemed speakers including David Olusoga, Lenny Henry, Jasmine Richards, Laura Henry- Allain, Diane Ewen and Lola Jaye, and headline sponsors including Pan Macmillan, Penguin Random House and BookTrust.
Speaking of last year’s event, Brown describes the programming as “extremely experimental”. “We were very intentional when curating it, as Black authors are not a monolith,” she says. “Our aim was to offer a unique experience that kept different audiences engaged and leſt a lasting impact. We had agents come down from London, doing in-depth workshops. We had The School Library Association do a workshop on how you can tour your books around schools.” She adds that she was “blown away” by the turnout: “There’s a definite need for this, and we are making a great impact.”
Arguing that the way the festival has taken off in such
a short span of time—atracting the sponsorship and support of big publishers and organisations as well as festivalgoers—“goes to demonstrate that where there is a need, people will come”, Brown concludes: “People were wanting this and seeking this.”
Another core goal of the festival is, Brown says, “to
promote reading for pleasure within marginalised commu- nities and also expose communities to literature by Black British authors”. She adds: “That will build the economy and enable more Black British authors to sell more units. We have economic goals as well.” She is keen to highlight that the festival’s “main target audience”, perhaps unconventionally for a literary festival, is non-readers. Brown explains: “There are a
22 26th May 2023
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