Black lives matter

Bernardine Evaristo, the Booker prize-winning novelist, is heading a major project to republish books by black British writers that generally disappeared without trace before they could receive the recognition they deserved.  Read more

For the publishing industry, 2020 began with an explosion and ended with a contraction.  Read more

In 1981 Alex Wheatle served time in prison in London following the Brixton riots. His teenage life was turned around by another prisoner who suggested he should start reading the work of black writers - it was the creative spark for his own career as a novelist.  Read more

The late Andrea Levy, author of the award-winning Windrush novel Small Island, is to become the first writer of colour to have her pen join the Royal Society of LiteratureThis British site may seem rather formal (stated aim ‘to sustain and encourage all that is perceived as best whether traditional or experimental in English letters, and to strive for a Catholic appreciation of literature’), but has a lively series of lectures and discussions involving distinguished authors. Also administers literary prizes. http://www.rslit.org/index1.html's historic collection, which includes pens belonging to George Eliot and Lord Byron.

Black-owned bookshops in the UK are calling for better representation of black authors in the long-term after reporting a surge in interest following the protests over the summer sparked by the killing of George Floyd and by Black History Month.