We are thrilled to announce the new cohort of 15 Room 204 writers-in-development. The programme started in 2012 and they will join over 200 others who have life-long membership.
Each year, Writing West Midlands opens for submissions from emerging writers from across the West Midlands region, writing in all genres, from poetry to screenwriting and fiction to narrative non-fiction.
This year we’re excited to welcome 15 talented new writers from the region into the fold. The writers’ interests and experience span a wide range in genre and style including poetry, fiction, non-fiction and playwriting.
The initial Room 204 meeting took place on Saturday the 18th April 2026 at the Writing West Midlands offices in Birmingham. The new cohort had the opportunity to meet each other as well as Jonathan Davidson, Chief Executive of Writing West Midlands, and Clive Judd, Festival Programmer for Birmingham Literature Festival 2026. There was a chance to have a professional headshot taken as well as talk through what to expect for the coming year.
The new cohort are Alison Manning, Dr Ammad Butt, Cath Lambert, Charlotte Dale, Cherry Doyle, Erin Gilbey, Laura Celeste, Lisa Marie Shepherd, Lucy C Hayward, Pat Noxolo, Shakquille Millington, Simon Bolton, Siobhan Maher, Stacey Warner and Tom Milner.
You can find out more information about them here.
