Abena Eyeson’s debut middle-grade novel Running My Own Race was published by Nosy Crow in 2025 and is an accessible, contemporary, coming-of-age story about family, friendship, gaining courage and going for your dreams.

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When Kofi earns a spot at a prestigious private school, his dreams of becoming a professional athlete finally feel within reach. However, caught between the expectations of his mother, his community, and a jealous rival, Kofi must decide if he has the strength to forge his own path.

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Acclaim for Running My Own Race

• Winner: Coventry Inspiration Book Award 2026 (Junior Fiction).

• Shortlisted: Spark School Book Awards 2026 and Peters Children’s Book of the Year 2026.

• Best of Year Lists: Recognized by Waterstones, Amazon, and LoveReading4Kids (2025), with high praise from Book Trust and Books For Topics.

• Shortlisted: Charles Tyrwhitt Sports Children's Book of the Year 2026

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School Visits
Abena communicates engagingly with children and adults. She is experienced at delivering assemblies to large or small groups centered around Running My Own Race and her writing journey. She is able to offer workshops related to themes in Running My Own Race and on empathy.

 

Based in Hertfordshire, Abena is happy to do school visits in Hertfordshire, London, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and surrounding areas. Abena’s fees for school visits are in line with the Society of Author’s guidance.

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You can contact me at Contact - Abena Eyeson for more information.

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I am the author of The Mizzy Mysteries, a middle-grade series, featuring a 12-year-old wannabe-detective with Down syndrome. But, like Mizzy herself, the books are about much more than Down syndrome. Each fun, family-history mystery nudges readers to stop jumping to conclusions and imagine what people are really like beneath the surface.

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As a speech and language therapist with a Masters in Special Education, as well as an Empathy-Lab trained author, I believe SEND representation in fiction is essential—not only for boosting self-esteem in those children who are not used to seeing themselves as the star of a story, but also for increasing every child’s empathy and understanding of
diversity. To this end, I offer an interactive, detective-themed session, linked to the PHSE curriculum. FEELINGS DETECTIVES explores what empathy actually is, why it’s important and the clues we can use to understand what other people might really be thinking and feeling. I also offer a Literacy-linked creative writing workshop, in which I share my “secret recipe” for creating Mizzy and support pupils to come up with their own unsuspected-detective characters.

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NB If you are reading Mizzy with your class, I am always happy to drop in for a complimentary 15-minute Q&A session. As a children’s author, there really isn’t anything better than chatting with kids about books.

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Based on Vancouver Island, I am available for afternoon virtual events. I am also taking in-person bookings for March 2027.

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For more details, please visit my website clairehatchersmith.com or contact me at clairehatchersmith@gmail.com.

FAEDOM by Agnes Monod-Gayraud and Lorna White is a compendium of fairy lore, mythology and earth science from all over the globe. We present 24 different fairies across four elements, who represent the different realms of nature, superstition and folk beliefs. From the Tree Fairy to the Dream Fairy, these charismatic characters delve into the magic of the natural world, while engaging young people in the age-old power of storytelling.

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FAEDOM was selected by 'School Reading List' as a recommended title for gift-giving last December.

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As part of a one-hour school visit session, we present our book and the idea behind it, discuss the links between scientific fact and storytelling fictions, followed by the importance of writing complex characters as a solid foundation for plotting a story. Finally, we would engage students in an exercise to create a fairy together, including their appearance, characters, strengths, weaknesses, challenges, foes, friends, etc.

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The age group we would recommend for our workshop would be year 5 and above. We could host a larger assembly of about 50-60 pupils or two-three smaller sessions of groups of 20-30 each.

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Thank you for your consideration and we look forward to meeting with your pupils.

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You can contact us at Contact - Agnes Monod-Gayraud for more information.

I’m the author of the Guardians of the New Moon chapter book series: four action‑packed adventures inspired by East Asian myths and magical creatures. My school visits are lively and designed to ignite a love of reading and writing.

 

Through writing, drawing, and map‑making activities, students create their own lunar zodiac characters and build legendary lands. We explore empathy, diversity, friendship, and dreams, while building creative confidence and giving pupils practical tools to write their own stories. I also share my own winding path into writing from a boyhood love of books and dinosaurs to working at Disney and Penguin Books. It’s never too late to become a writer!

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Workshops are ideal for ages 6–11, with special sessions for Lunar New Year (Feb–Mar) and the Mid‑Autumn Moon Festival (Sep). For ages 12+, I run fantasy‑ and sci‑fi‑themed creative writing workshops focused on finding inspiration in the everyday.

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I live in London and am happy to travel. Email me at eric@dinoboyltd.com

I am the author of So Devin Wore a Skirt and I would love to come to your school for an assembly, some workshops, interactive story sessions or all three! 

 

My assemblies are suitable for KS1 and KS2 either together or separately and involve the journey towards creating a book, from inspiration to publication, through the themes of diversity, kindness and the courage to be yourself.  

 

I can run workshop sessions for EYFS, KS1 and KS2.   I am an Empathy Lab trained author and a teacher so I love to run creative writing workshops for all ages that link with the curriculum, as well as author sessions that are linked to PSHE or Reading for Pleasure concluding with a craft or creative task.  

 

Literacy linked sessions are centred around character building and the journey of a story, or creating a brilliant setting for a story.

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For more details on my visits, please visit my website Visits and Workshops -Shireen Lalji

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You can contact me at Contact - Shireen Lalji for more information.

I am a middle grade author who is passionate about telling stories which focus on unconventional families. I offer highly interactive assemblies, best suited for Years 5, 6 and 7. Debates unfold in a game of Would You Rather as we explore and celebrate the mix of nature and nurture that makes you uniquely you. I share my writing journey and inspirations and discuss what ingredients you need to create a great story of your own. I also run creative writing workshops where we focus on how to write a strong opening line as we unpick what you need to hook the reader in.

 

My books, The Doughnut Club and Max and Ella, Stuck Together, both centre around donor conceived characters, but they cover themes, fears and fun which are relatable to all children, no matter how they came into the world. Giving children opportunities to see the world through a different lens can be a huge step towards removing the fear of the unknown and building empathy, a hugely powerful skill which is at the heart of my visits.

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For more details on my visits, please visit my website Author Visits - Kristina Rahim

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To discuss availability and fees, please contact me via my website  Contact - Kristina Rahim

I write the Spooksmiths Investigates books and I’d love to visit your school. I am an Empathy Lab trained author, and I feel passionately about getting children interested in stories. My assembly is suitable for years 3-6 and delves into story inspiration and the world of the Spooksmiths. I also offer Think Like An Author workshops for years 5-6 delivering meaningful outcomes for young storywriters through suspense and atmosphere tasks and bringing characters to life through dialogue. 

 

I am based in Hertfordshire, but I am happy to travel.

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For more details on my visits, please visit my website School Visits - Alex Atkinson

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You can contact me at alexatkinsonstories@gmail.com for more information.