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Ages 5+

Young Voices – AIM Literary Festival

Saturday 19 October

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Join us at the Museum where we will be hosting the children's event of the 5th annual Author In Me Literary Festival

Enjoy a magical day at the Museum packed with inspirational author sessions, fun-filled activities, interactive storytelling sessions and creative workshops — all tailored just for kids.

With appearances from beloved children’s authors and illustrators such as Aishwarya Gupta and Alan Durant, this event aims to ignite the imagination and nurture a love for reading and writing in children of all ages. Bring your little ones for a day of joy, creativity, and literary adventure.

Tickets
  • Adults and children aged 5 and over: £14.90
  • Roald Dahl Museum annual ticket holders and Blue Peter Badge holders: £4.95
  • Concessions: £12.90
  • Under 5s and carers: Free

Ticket prices include entry to the Museum and the festival activities onsite. Please note that on the booking pages this ticket is split into two parts: ‘Museum Admission’ and ‘Young Voices AIM Literary Festival’. Each person in your party will need both of these tickets for entry to the Museum on this day. See ‘Need to know more?’ section below for more info.

Join in with plenty of activities taking place throughout the Museum. All included with your ticket, no need to book a space.

 

Enjoy reading sessions by both young and adult authors
  • No Fireworks Please by young author Aanya Arora.
  • Ebbs and Flows by Sarah Surgey.
  • Reading session with Rani Singh.
  • Shine Like a Star: A Book of Affirmations by Monica Sood and Ekta Bajaj — book reading and workshop session.

Plus join in with readings by young authors in the Museum’s replica of Roald Dahl’s chair.

 

Keynote Speech with young author Aishwarya Gupta

Aishwarya Gupta is a 10 year-old writer, poet & artist. She won the Kensington & Chelsea Art Week competition for her poem, Open your Heart, and was featured on BBC Breakfast in 2021, showcasing her involvement in Katha – an innovative dance theatre project aimed at supporting folk artisans and musicians in India during the pandemic. 11:30am to 12pm

 

Book Launch: I Am So Much More Than the Colour of My Skin

Join us for the book launch of I Am So Much More than the Colour of My Skin by Divya Thomas and Ruchi Shah and celebrate the release of an inspiring picture book that empowers children to look beyond skin colour and focus on their dreams. The book encourages young readers to explore the many possibilities they can achieve—whether they aspire to be artists, athletes, or work in fields like nature or technology. With beautiful illustrations and relatable messages, it teaches that what truly matters is how one thinks, not the color of their skin. This captivating book is sure to resonate with children and adults alike, sparking important conversations about identity and self-worth. 12.30om to 1.15pm

 

Join Priyanka Pandya for Courageous Conversations

Inspired by her heartfelt book When Mummy had Cancer, in this session Priyanka shares her journey of navigating illness with honesty and love, offering insights on how to approach difficult discussions with children about life’s toughest challenges. 2pm to 2:30pm

 

Listen to live music

Enjoy a live musical performance from SwaramUK, featuring bright, young, talented musicians.

 

Be inspired with talks

Dip into a range of inspirational, five to seven minute TEDx-style talks by young and adult authors as well as publishing industry experts.

 

Join our Knowledge Exchange

Enjoy a discussion with young authors, adult authors and publishing industry experts. They will share their perspectives on creativity, imagination and writing.

 

Festival bookshop

The Museum shop will be stocking copies of the books featured in the festival, and there will be signing opportunities throughout the day.

 

There will be a host of FREE workshops running though the day. Book onto these in advance to secure your space.

 

The Quill Soup Adventure with Alan Durant

12pm to 12.45 pm – fully booked

Step into the world of Quill Soup with Alan Durant! In this creative workshop, young adventurers will enjoy an interactive storytelling session, dive into imaginative activities, and learn how to write their own stories. They will discover the magic of sharing and community while unleashing their creativity and becoming a budding author.

 Suitable for children aged 6 to 9 years

“My Zine, My Story” — Creating Graphic Stories with Debasmita Dasgupta

1pm to 2pm – fully booked

Explore the vibrant world of graphic storytelling with Debasmita Dasgupta. Kids will learn how to combine art and narrative to create their own graphic stories, unleashing their creativity and bringing their ideas to life on the page.

Suitable for children aged 8 to 12 years

Celebrating You: Beyond the Colour of My Skin with Divya Thomas

2.15pm to 3pm – fully booked

Join author Divya Thomas for an empowering workshop based on her book, I Am Much More Than the Colour of My Skin. In this session, children will explore self-acceptance and diversity through interactive discussions and creative activities. Perfect for young minds eager to celebrate their unique identities and learn the importance of seeing beyond appearances.

Suitable for children aged 7 to 11 years 

NEW EVENT: Writing a Story Within a Story

3pm to 4pm 

Join author Eva Wong Nava for a workshop based on her books I Love Chinese New Year and East Asian Folktales, Myths and Legends.  Many of Eva’s stories take readers back to ancient lands where craggy mountains peek from cotton candy clouds. She knows children love magic so she sprinkles magic dust in every tale she spins.

Suitable for children aged 8 and up 

Find out more about our visiting creatives

Need to know more?

Your ticket includes entry to the Museum and to the Young Voices Literary Festival.

There will be various author/illustrator workshops taking place on the day. These are free, but please book your spaces for these in advance to avoid disappointment.

Other drop-in activities will be happening throughout the Museum during the day, including creative activities and storytelling. These are included with your ticket and do not need booking.

The hands-on Museum galleries will also be open for you to enjoy and explore. Peek into Roald Dahl’s Writing Hut, explore items from the Museum archive and enjoy over 40 interactive exhibits.

We recommend booking in advance for this event, which you can do on our booking pages.

When adding tickets to your basket, you’ll need to add a Museum admission ticket and a Young Voices AIM Literary Festival ticket for each person in your group. This includes those eligible for free entry and for those with an annual return ticket. You’ll see the relevant options for these on the booking page.

Everyone who visits on Saturday 19 October will need a these two tickets for entry.

You’ll be given the option to book on to one of the free workshops running that day after you add your Museum and festival tickets to your basket.

There may be tickets available to buy on the door, on the day but we can’t guarantee this will be the case.

There are various free author and illustrator workshops taking place throughout the day. You’ll find details of these above and you can book free spaces on these once you’ve added your Museum admission and festival tickets to your basket.

You’ll need to book a space for every member of your group attending the workshop, including adults. Under 16 will need to be accompanied by a grown-up aged 18 or over.

Yes, if you have a current 12 month Museum admission ticket you can use this. Simply select the annual ticket holders option on the booking pages for your Museum admission. You’ll still need to pay for the Young Voices AIM Literary Festival ticket which costs £4.95 and covers the additional festival activities.

You’ll need to enter a valid reference from your previous booking to book these tickets.

See our annual ticket terms here

Yes, any Museum admission tickets you book for this event will be treated as standard general admission tickets. This means they have the same benefit of allowing you to return to the Museum for free re-entry for 12 months.

The Young Voices AIM Literary Festival tickets will only be valid for Saturday 19 October.

See our annual ticket terms here

If you have a question about your booking or would like more information, we’ll be happy to help. Please email us at hello@roalddahlmuseum.org or call us on 01494 892192 and leave us a message with your name and number.

About the festival

The AIM Literary Festival has been curated by the award-winning small press Author In Me Publishing, based in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. Author In Me was a regional finalist for Small Press of the Year by the British Book Awards in 2023 and 2024. To know more about the festival please visit www.aimlitfestival.com.

Their ‘Young Voices’ imprint specialises in transforming stories written by children into beautifully illustrated picture books. They also publish select works by young authors and nurture emerging talent through creative writing classes. The AIM Literary Festival for Children is an annual celebration dedicated to young authors, providing a platform to inspire children to embrace the power of storytelling. Through workshops, author talks, and opportunities for children to share their voices, the festival actively promotes reading and writing among the younger generation.