Fane Logo

Jacaranda Twenty in 2020

Jacaranda Twenty in 2020

The standard ‘ticket’ package consists of access to all Jacaranda Twenty in 2020 events, whilst the 'book voucher and ticket' package gives access to all events and a £20 voucher to redeem at Jacaranda online bookstore. The event will initially be broadcast on 5 December at 14:00 UK time. It will be available to view up to 48 hours after the event has ended and can be accessed Worldwide.

If you have any questions please email [email protected]

The online festival will explore the Black experience through the work of the authors. Book lovers will be able to attend sessions including ‘Empowering Black women through Romance Writing’, ‘Between Two Worlds: Exploring Mixed-Race Identity’ and ‘The Poets of #TwentyIn2020’. There will also be conversations with Stella Oni, the author of Deadly Sacrifice, who’ll discuss being a Black female crime writer and Shola von Reinhold  whose book, Lote, investigates the censoring of Black queer voices in the arts and literature.

The event pays homage to the Twentyin2020 initiative, a first of its kind in the UK. Twenty titles by 20 Black Britons were published by Jacaranda Books in just one year. Covering adult fiction, nonfiction and poetry, the series aims to normalise the presence of diverse literature and to embed the voices of emerging Black authors as valued members of British culture and society.

A portion of the profits from this event will be donated to the event’s charity of choice, Black Cultural Archives (BCA). BCA is the UK’s only heritage centre dedicated to collecting, preserving and celebrating the histories of African and Caribbean people in Britain.

14:00 Between Two Worlds: Exploring Mixed-Race Identity

Esuantsiwa Jane Goldsmith and Katy Massey discuss their vivid memoirs, shining a light on their experiences of navigating class, race and identity. Goldsmith's The Space Between Black and White and Massey's Are We Home Yet? trace their journeys as mixed-race, working-class women, brought up by their white mothers, as well as exploring the North-South divide. The event is chaired by Susan Dale, the founder of HaluHalo, an online platform established in 2016 to explore and celebrate the mixed-race identity in all its forms.

The event is sponsored by HaluHalo

To purchase one or more of the books discussed during this event, please click here

15:00 The Importance of Place  

Chaired by Joy Francis, founder of Words of Colour Productions, Kabir Kareem Bello (The Street Hawker’s Apprentice), Abidemi Sanusi (Looking for Bono), Berni Sorga-Milwood (Under Solomon Skies) and DD Armstrong (Ugly Dogs Don’t Cry) discuss the importance of  place and setting in their work, and how the places they have written about act as characters. It will look at why they chose to set their novels in their respective locations and how these places add richness to their stories.

 The event is sponsored by Words of Colour Productions.

To purchase one or more of the books discussed during this event, please click here

16:10 In Conversation with Stella Oni

#TwentyIn2020 author Stella Oni talks to Sarah Ozo-Irabor, host of the Books and Rhymes podcast, about her debut novel Deadly Sacrifice. She explores her position as a Black British woman crime writer creating a British crime series with a British-Nigerian lead detective.

To purchase one or more of the books discussed during this event, please click here

17:20 Black History and the Untold Stories

Tony Warner (Black History Walks), Harris Joshua (A Circle of Five) and Niambi McGrath (Through the Leopard's Gaze) explore how their works highlight the hidden histories and untold stories of Black people in Britain. The conversation is chaired by Hena Bryan, a Booktube content creator and founder of independent publishing company Bryan House Publishing.

To purchase one or more of the books discussed during this event, please click here

18:20 In Conversation with Shola von Reinhold

Editor Cherise Lopes-Baker interviews Shola von Reinhold on their novel Lote, a decadent queer literary debut which immerses readers in the pursuit of aesthetics and beauty, while interrogating the removal and obscurement of Black figures from history. The discussion will explore Black queer identity, the censoring of the Black queer voices in the arts and literature, and the incredible response that the novel has received since its release.

To purchase one or more of the books discussed during this event, please click here

19:10 The Poets of #TwentyIn2020 

Jacaranda’s TwentyIn2020 poets Tolu Agbelusi (Locating Strongwoman), Sarah Lipton-Sidibeh (First Collection), Brenda Garrick (Jamakespseare), Hibaq Osman (Where The Memory Was) and Adjoa Wiredu (On Reflection) present and discuss their work.  

Hosted by Shaniqua Benjamin, a spoken word poet, writer, creative workshop facilitator, and Croydon’s first Poet Laureate. The event is sponsored by the Poetry Book Society.

To purchase one or more of the books discussed during this event, please click here

20:00 Empowering Black Women through Romance Writing

Four incredible romance writers Sareeta Domingo (If I Don’t Have You), Lisa Bent (Symona’s Still Single), Rasheda Ashanti Malcolm (Love Again) and Maame Blue (Bad Love) discuss representation in romance writing and the importance of creating a space for Black women to explore love, romance and sexuality.

Chaired by Victoria Sanusi, writer, editor, podcaster, producer and social media content creative, the event will be an open and frank discussion exploring Black Love and Black Joy and their role in our current times.    

To purchase one or more of the books discussed during this event, please click here

The event is produced by Jacaranda Books - a leading independent publisher - in collaboration with bespoke live events producer FANE and boutique marcomms and talent management agency TGRG.