Marcela Ferreira, Alex Falase Koya, Adeola Sokunbi and Alom Shaha joined library staff for tea and cake and to meet their new mentor, Bromley Children’s Librarian Caroline Nolan, who will be supporting them this year via her role as ‘Literary Foundation Champion’.
(Adeola also learned yesterday that she’d won the Illustrated Children's Fiction Category at the Inclusive Books for Children Awards 2025.)
Each writer will receive £750 alongside additional ‘in kind’ support from Caroline and her team which includes a series of author events, and networking opportunities with local booksellers, publishers, literary festivals and schools. Authors will also be offered three online training courses on brand identity, marketing and business planning.
In addition, a secondary tier of online support will be given to two more local authors – Natascha Biebow and Mireille Cassandra Harper. They will take part in a webinar on delivering successful author events and be invited to a sector networking event. They will also have free access to work from GLL’s business library spaces.
The GLL Literary Foundation was established in November 2024 to support ‘up-and-coming’ children’s authors who are based in Bromley, Dudley, Greenwich, Lincolnshire and Wandsworth – all areas where GLL operates public libraries under its ‘Better’ brand.
Authors across all genres of children’s literature were encouraged to apply, including picture books, early readers, chapter books, poetry, non-fiction, graphic novels and verse novels. Nominations were accepted from the authors’ publishing representative with the entry criteria stating that applicants be required to have published between one and three books in the past five years.
Entries were assessed by a board of trustees drawn from GLL libraries, children’s librarians and the publishing world - seventeen children’s authors from across the UK were chosen to receive bursary placements for 2025 worth up to £4,000 each.
Alom Shaha, one of the winning authors from Bromley said: “I’m delighted and honoured to have been awarded a GLL Literary Foundation fellowship. Growing up as an immigrant on a council housing estate, my local library, and the librarians who worked there, were a hugely positive influence on me. They didn’t just help develop my love of books, they also provided a safe place to play with toys and activities which I didn’t have access to at home.
“I have gained so much from my use of public libraries throughout my life and I am so excited about this fellowship. I know I will gain a lot from the experience, but I hope there will also be lots of opportunities for me to give something back.”
Caroline Nolan comments, “I’m thrilled to be part of this exciting initiative and feel extremely lucky to be championing such an incredible cohort of authors at Bromley Libraries.”
Rebecca Gediking, Head of Libraries for GLL says, “We are delighted to welcome such a great and inspiring group of authors to be part of the GLL Literary Foundation. We look forward to bringing together all people locally and nationally to support our authors, encourage reading and champion public libraries.”
Renowned children’s author and GLL Literary Foundation trustee Mo O’Hara adds, “I’m so excited that our first cohort of GLL Literary Foundation authors is being announced. This is such an amazing opportunity for them to learn new skills and gain confidence in so many aspects of our industry. I hope that they’ll build up a great network with their librarian champions and also with each other. It’s so great to have a ready-made support group in an industry with so many challenges. Well done to our fantastic GLL team for 2025!”
For further information visit: www.better.org.uk/library/gll-literary-foundation