The London Book Fair (LBF), the UK’s biggest gathering of international publishers and agents, is delighted to announce its Author HQ events programme. This is the area of the Fair dedicated to indie authors and aspiring writers and is sponsored by IngramSpark, Kindle Direct Publishing and Combined Book Exhibit, and supported by Good Housekeeping and BookBrunch.

Authors, literary agents, publishers and a comprehensive range of industry experts have been lined up to speak in a packed three-day seminar programme designed to provide the knowledge, tools and insight writers need to make informed decisions about getting their work published.

Genre spotlights this year include audiobooks, books to film and e-books, as well as self-editing, marketing, distribution and writing competitions.

Highlights from the Author HQ seminar programme are:

• Why We Commissioned These Debuts: What are publishers commissioning, how are they going about finding new talent and what is selling in today’s market?

• Making A Good First Impression: How to write a stand out cover letter to ensure your manuscript grabs an agent or publisher’s attention.

• How I Write – Damien Lewis: International bestselling author, journalist and filmmaker, Damien Lewis will be discussing his writing methods and creative inspirations.

• Get your Writing Heard: Find out more about the secrets of turning your work into an audiobook, from strategy and programme planning to casting and recording.

• Novel Competitions in Association with Good Housekeeping: A seminar about writing competitions, featuring experts from Good Housekeeping, publishers, literary agents, and previous winners.

• An introduction to Kindle Direct Publishing: Hear about the writing and publishing experience of some bestselling authors in a daily author panel discussion that will cover How to Get Started (Tuesday); Finding Readers Through Marketing and Engagement (Wednesday) and Tools and Best Practice (Thursday), with special author guests

• Demystifying Book Distribution for Authors and Publishers – What is it and how does it work? (sponsored by IngramSpark): Including the different distribution models available to authors and publishers, as well as which models can reduce financial risks and set authors up for success in the marketplace

Tapping into one of the fast-growing areas of the book market, BookBrunch is launching The Selfies, its first ever awards scheme aimed at self-published authors. The winner of the author fiction category will be announced at Author HQ and will receive a cheque for £1,000 and a profile in the magazine.

On Thursday afternoon Author HQ will again host LBF’s The Write Stuff competition – a “Dragon’s Den” style panel event that will see six authors pitch their books to a panel of literary agents, and the Author HQ audience. This year’s panel of judges includes representatives from Felicity Bryan Associates, Jo Unwin Literary Agency, Marjacq, MBA and Peters Fraser & Dunlop.

All Author HQ events are free-to-attend with the purchase of a three-day Visitor pass which also includes access to LBF’s extensive Insights Seminar programme of 200+ events covering all aspects of the publishing industry. Seminar places are allocated on a first come, first served basis.

Please visit here for further information on the Author HQ seminar programme. For further information about The London Book Fair and ticket information, please see here.