celebrating storytelling at Herne Hill kids’ Lit Fest

Stepping Into Stories Kids’ Lit Fest returns to Herne Hill for the fourth year running. Children’s Laureate Joseph Coelho is opening the festival, which brings together exciting names in the world of children’s literature for a week-long celebration of storytelling. Sign your little bookworms up for workshops, performances and the all-important Stepping Into Stories competition, which invites the next generation of storytellers to create a narrative around the theme of ‘All Aboard!’. Raps, poetry, performances and songs can be submitted, as well as written stories.

Lucy Reynolds, children’s author and member of the festival’s management team, tells us more about what we can expect from the 2023 line-up…

This Herne Hill Kids' Lit Fest has been running for four years now. How did it originally come about?

The Herne Hill Kids’ Lit Fest launched in 2019 and has grown year on year since then, skipping a year for lockdown. The 2019 festival was run on a shoestring and organised in just a few short weeks. But eight local schools took part and over 650 people came along. This proved there was strong demand for a local festival like this – and a huge supply of local talent too! By 2022, we’d grown a festival that delivered 45 events to over 2,000 participants, and for 2023 we are offering 61 events with an even larger turnout expected.

It sounds like a varied programme with a great mix of workshops, talks and performances. Who is the festival aimed at?

There’s something for everyone in the programme, including some virtual sessions. We’ve got events around picture books, poetry and theatre, and sessions for middle graders, young adults and grown ups.

Children's Laureate Joseph Coelho is opening this year's festival. Tell us about that…

It’s fantastic to have Joseph Coelho opening the 2023 festival. Having grown up in a tower block with his mum and sister on the outskirts of London, Joseph came to writing and performance gradually through life, and is an exceptional talent and inspiration for children. As the Waterstones Children’s Laureate and a multiaward winning author and poet, Joseph figureheads storytelling, inspiring children to read for pleasure, and promoting the importance of books for all.

Can you give us a sneak preview of what Joseph will be presenting?

Joseph is delivering two unforgettable events on the first Monday of the festival to launch our schools’ programme: ‘Smile Out Loud’ for ages 4+, and ‘Fairy Tales Gone Bad’, for ages 7+. Both will be hosted in Station Hall with around 100 children from a range of schools attending each session. We hope this will be a truly inspirational opportunity for children to hear from Joseph and learn about his journey. We are also offering an interactive after-school session at 4pm on Monday January 30, run by our team of festival writers. Although Joseph will not be present at the after-school event, this fun and creative session celebrates his works, explores some of his best loved poems and gives children the chance to roll up their sleeves and have fun writing their own.

Why is the Kids’ Lit Fest so important?

The festival aims to ensure all children have access to amazing books and book creators, and is designed to spark a life-changing love of reading for pleasure in the children who come along. Inclusivity underpins the whole week, which celebrates the rich diversity of local communities. The line-up includes LGBTQ+ authors and illustrators; authors with disabilities; participants from diverse socio-economic backgrounds; and speakers who represent many different cultures, ethnicities and journeys through their works. Forteen local schools are taking part, including many from some of London’s most deprived wards, and two sessions are for children with special educational needs.

Is the festival financially accessible to all?

With funding from Arts Council England and Aviva, concessions are available for all events to ensure that cost is never a barrier to people coming along. We are also partnering with The Baytree Centre, Brixton, and The Walcot Foundation to establish a young people’s writing academy in parallel with the festival for Lambeth residents from low income families. To find out more about the writing academy or to request free or concession tickets, email steppingintostories@ gmail.com and mark your email ‘Concession’.

Finally, what do you hope your attendees take away from it?

Whether children, teenagers or grown ups, we hope that all participants come away from the festival feeling inspired to create their own stories, and buzzing from an hour or two immersed in the wonderful world of books and their creators!

HigHLigHts

seven things to catch at the Herne Hill kids’ Lit Fest

Award-winning author and leading writer of LGBTQ+ teen fiction Simon James Green is giving an exclusive reading from his yet to be published new novel, Boy Like Me Feb 2, 6pm | Ages 13+

Discover how Moa fights for freedom from the sugar cane plantations with bestselling author Alex Wheatle MBE, winner of the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize and twice nominated for the Carnegie Medal. Feb 5, 2pm | Ages 11+

Patrice Lawrence MBE, winner of the Bookseller YA Prize and seven-times nominee for the Carnegie Award, is sharing the inspiring story of Ava's grandma, who came to England on the Empire Windrush boat.

Feb 5, 11am | Ages 4+

Bestselling children's author and illustrator Steve Antony presents his adored character Mr Panda with interactive drawing and storytelling. Feb 4, 10am | Ages 4+

Children’s TV presenter Cerrie Burnell gives a magical introduction to her new adventure novel, Wilder Than Midnight. Feb 5, 12pm | Ages 9+

Multi award-winning theatre company Collar & Cuffs Co present a musical, sensory retelling of The Tempest, ‘Be Not Afear’d’, fully inclusive for those with special needs. Feb 3, 4pm | Ages 0-7

Keen to break into the industry? Hear some tips at this virtual panel talk, ‘How To Get Published’, with commissioning editor and author Non Pratt, and agents Helen Boyle and Gemma Cooper. Jan 31, 7:30pm | Ages 16+

The Herne Hill Kids’ Lit Fest is running at Station Hall, Railton Road, London SE24 0JW. January 30 - February 5, times vary. Admission: dependent on event. www.steppingintostories.org/