An Invitation to a Shakespeare Ladies Tea Party
​
Sunday 8th March, 4 pm to 5 pm at The Orwell Hotel in Felixstowe, Suffolk​
Mai Black will be introducing the four Georgian women who saved Shakespeare’s literary legacy and reading from her debut novel inspired by their story. In the second half, tea and cake will be served and volunteers will read passages from Shakespeare and take part in related quizzes and tea party games.
​​
Mai is an Ipswich author, performing poet and founding member of Suffolk Writers Group. She was recently nominated for the Norwich City of Literature Award for her contribution to the literary life of East Anglia. Mai’s poetry collection Thirty Angry Ghosts was published in 2021 and her debut novel The Women Who Saved Shakespeare is due for release in May 2026.
Mai Black
Author Sally Harris’s first novel, Haverscroft centres around a family trying to stay together as the parents’ marriage struggles to survive infidelity. Life gets much more complicated once they move to a new home for a fresh start. No one told them Haverscroft House was haunted.
Alongside the supernatural and psychological suspense, domestic noir threads run through Sally’s writing, fuelled by her many experiences as a family law solicitor. Dysfunctional family relationships and long-held dark secrets weave their way between the hauntings.
Her second novel, Seahurst, is set on the Suffolk coast. The area is famous for its folklore, tales of Black Shuck and towns lost beneath the North Sea — all fabulous inspiration alongside abandoned abbeys and castle ruins. Sally was born in the county and spent her childhood on the beaches, running along narrow, sandy paths that crisscross the heathlands and thread through the dunes. The vast empty skies, mudflats and whispering reed beds have inspired writers over centuries. What better setting could there be for a contemporary haunted house ghost story?
Sally Harris
Erica James
Erica James is the author of twenty-six internationally bestselling novels, including most recently An Ideal Husband. Her books are loved by readers looking for beautifully drawn relationships, emotionally powerful storylines and evocative settings.
​
A keen gardener, Erica lives in Suffolk and has a growing obsession for doll’s houses. She is also a keen follower of F1 motor racing and, when possible, loves travelling to Japan and the US to see her sons.
Helen Fisher
Helen Fisher spent her early years in America, but grew up mainly in Suffolk where she now lives with her children, her partner, a cat called Bear, and Dave the indestructible goldfish. She studied psychology at Westminster University and ergonomics at UCL. She worked as a senior evaluator in research at RNIB and is now a full-time writer. Helen is the author of Space Hopper, Joe Nuthin’s Guide to Life and Once Upon a Winter Wood.
​
Website: helenfisherwrites.com
Instagram: @helenfisher_author
Jackie Carreira
Jackie Carreira is an author, playwright, arts feature writer and musician. Originally from East London, and first-generation British, she often draws on this colourful and diverse background in her work. Jackie has had plays performed throughout the world and twice been a winner of the Kenneth Branagh Award for New Drama. She is co-founder of QuirkHouse Theatre and the fringe literature inspired Foreword Festival. Suffolk has been her home since 2006 and features in two of her novels - The Seventh Train and Notebook Number Nine. Jackie will be compering the Author Jam this year.
​
Instagram: @jackiecarreirawriter
Facebook: JackieCarreiraWriter
​
Julie Missen
Julie Missen writes as JD Missen, and is the author of the Detective Inspector Morgan series, as well as psychological thrillers, children’s books, and poetry. Her writing focuses on the darker, hidden sides of life, delving into the complexity and dynamics of human relationships. Julie’s work is set in her home county of Suffolk and draws from the fragile beauty of its landscapes, both in the urban and natural environments.
​
Website: jdmissen.co.uk
Instagram: @juliedmissen.author
Facebook: JD-Missen-Author
Trilby Black
Trilby Black is a science editor by day, and fiction author and artist by night. Her zombie novel, Undead on Arrival, was published in 2024. As a graphic novelist, her first full comic, Chihuahuas of the Corn, will be launching on Kickstarter in Spring of this year. She lives in Suffolk and writes cosy mysteries under the pen name Tilly Chapman.
​
Website: trilbyblack.com
Instagram: @trilbyblack
Facebook: TrilbyBlackFiction
Elske Howeler
Elske Howeler is a single mum, IT consultant, and author of Left Behind, a historical fiction novel set in Amsterdam during the last few months of WW2. Being from Amsterdam herself, the setting of her debut novel is a personal one. And so is the story, which was inspired by her grandmother who, during the Second World War, saved the life of a Jewish girl by hiding her in her attic. When she isn’t writing or reading, Elske likes to go on adventures with her kids. She also loves surfing (mainly practising wipe-outs!) and singing.
​
Instagram: @elskehoweler_author
Rachel Churcher
Rachel Churcher is an award-winning author of books for Young Adults and geeky picture books for young children. She is a professional editor, promoter of East Anglian writers, and co-founder of the Foreword Festival. She spent many years working on national and in-house magazines for non-profit organisations before joyfully opting out of her nine-to-five captivity to write and edit fiction. Rachel lives in Bury St Edmunds and shares her house with books, plants, and her engineer and inventor husband. She is always happy to talk about YA fiction, dinosaurs, and the merits of various fictional starships.
​
Website: tallerbooks.com
Instagram: @rachelchurcherwriting
Facebook: rachel.churcher.73
Amanda Hodgkinson
What makes a writer and how do you become a published author? Join Dr Amanda Hodgkinson international best-selling author and creative writing tutor, to talk about writing, and why an MA might - or might not be - the right choice for you and your writing goals.
Amanda will be talking about her own writing journey and will be joined by two MA students from the University of Suffolk Creative and Critical Writing Masters programme. They will read from their own published work and talk about their experience of being part of a vibrant writing community and how their in-house University Talking Shop Press publishes a student anthology of new writing every year.
