Festival Events for 2010

Award winning journalist and best-selling author Tim Butcher will discuss his new book, Chasing the Devil, the story of his 350mile trek through Sierra Leone and Liberia, coming out in hardback in September.

His first book, Blood River, topped The Times best-seller list in 2008 and was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize for non-fiction the same year.

'A Track of Light': Five Chichester University poets, Stephanie Norgate, Hugh Dunkerley, Diana Barsham, Naomi Foyle and Simon Jenner, read from their new book of poems inspired by Chichester and West Sussex.

* Please note that there is a '3 for £12' offer on many of the ticketed events on this day.

Writer's Workshop with Stella Duffy

Be inspired on this half-day course with celebrated author, theatre director and our patron! Stella uses practical exercises and improvisation techniques to help kick-start your writing. Last year's workshop was very popular and enormous fun.

Stories for younger children in the Gallery ages 4yrs - 8yrs

Gabrielle Kimm will talk about her novel, His Last Duchess, a passionate story of 16C Tuscany. Gabrielle has written two historical novels, which have just been signed by Little Brown, this first, His Last Duchess will publish in August 2010.

Vera Forster will talk about her extraordinary life and how she came to write her autobiography, Daughter of her Century. Vera's story is so much more than a narrative of one person caught up in some of the most significant events of the twentieth century.

Writing for Radio and Theatre - Shelley Silas

Enjoy an exciting opportunity to hear this successful writer talk about her work; Shelley has had five stage plays performed, largely in London and seven original plays for radio broadcast. She has also adapted her own and other writers' work for radio, including Paul Scott's Raj Quartet.

The Curzon Group - a panel of crime writers - Leigh Russell, Matt Lynn and Tom Cain

This promises to be a lively discussion from three writers of crime and thriller books. Leigh Russell's debut crime novel Cut Short was reprinted twice in 6 months and broke sales records in British bookshops. Road Closed, second in the series, publishes in July.

Matt Lynn is a journalist and ghost writer who has written three books in the Death Force series of military thrillers, deemed to be a window on high-tech, maximum-risk modern warfare.

Tom Cain is the pseudonym for an award-winning newspaper and magazine journalist. Tom has written four thrillers featuring his hitman hero Sam Carver, the most recent of which are Assassin and Dictator.

Theodora: Actress, Empress, Whore.

Stella Duffy talks about the inspiration for writing her breathtaking new novel in which Theodora comes to life as a fascinating, controversial and seductive woman who rose from nothing to become the wife of the Emperor Justinian and the most powerful woman in the history of Byzantine Rome.

Tom Connolly started writing at fifteen and has written ever since. The Spider Truces is his first novel, a touching story and simply a great portrait of life. Tom is also a film maker and screenwriter and lives in a remote corner of East Sussex.

Celebration and Prize-giving

Poetry competition judge, Charles Bennett, will present the prizes for the 2010 Open Poetry Competition. Patrons Stella Duffy and the Mayor of Havant Cllr Yvonne Weeks will say a few words. You are especially welcome to join us for this event.

Havant Literary Festival Cabaret

An exciting evening of theatre, poetry and music. There will be contributions from Dynamo Youth Theatre; the poet Charles Bennett, our Poetry Competition judge; The Bench theatre, the harpist John Corin and the Havant-based theatre company, SOOP.