Farsley Lit Fest at various venues

The third edition of Farsley Literature Festival is full steam ahead, organised in conjunction with Truman Books and The Old Woollen, and encompassing some of their friends from in and around Leeds suburb Farsley.

Headline names include Cecelia Ahern talking about her latest novel Into the Storm to Gaby Roslin, while award-winning novelist, playwright, performer, campaigner, interviewer and non-fiction writer Kate Mosse is in town on 2 November. The author of ten novels and short-story collections, her books have sold over five million copies, been translated into 38 languages and published in more than 40 countries, and she will be talking about her latest novel The Map of Bones, hot off the press, published as it was on 10 October.

Short story writer SJ Bradley popped into Farsley’s Truman Books with her new collection Maps of Imaginary Towns , published by Manchester’s Fly On The Wall Press (you can also catch up with her at Ilkley’s The Grove Bookshop on 7 November and the Book Corner in Halifax on 21 November), and Tawseef Khan will be following in her footsteps on 5 November when he discusses his latest modern contemporary fiction Determination at the indie bookshop.

On 6 November, music journalist, DJ and author Patrick Clarke will be in conversation about his latest release Bedsit Land – The Strange Worlds of Soft Cell with journalist, broadcaster and musician John Robb, while on 13 November, award-winning pop writer Miranda Sawyer will be sharing the vivid stories behind 20 key songs of the 90s in Uncommon People: Britpop and Beyond in 20 Songs.

Crime sells, and on 10 November, acclaimed crime author Elly Griffiths (also at Todmorden Book Festival the day before) will be in the spotlight rounding off a special Crime Day at 7pm – Josie Lloyd, JM Hall and Antony Johnston take on Cosy Crime at 3pm and Saima Mir and Lesley McEvoy investigate how to go about Creating Kick-Ass Female Protagonists at 5pm.

On 14 November, Yorkshire crime writer JM Hall (A Spoonful of Murder, A Pen Dipped in Poison and A Clock Stopped Dead) chairs an evening of discussion with Tom Hindle and Rachel North, exploring the lure of the glamorous location for thriller writers – these guys are experts: Tom Hindle’s Murder on Lake Garda involves a fancy party on the private island of Castello Fiore; Rachel North’s Happily Never After involves a wedding at a magical castle, the Finca Incantata.

Closing Farsley Lit Fest for 2024 on 22 November is award-winning, multimillion-copy worldwide-bestselling writer Sir Ian Rankin will introduce audiences to the brand-new John Rebus thriller Midnight and Blue, just out in October (tickets sold out at time of writing, but there may be returns, so keep your peelers, er, peeled).