Festival Programme

Join Greg Mosse, author of The Coming Darkness and The Maisie Cooper Mysteries, for a two-day intensive novel-writing course. Develop plot, characters, twists, and endings in this hands-on workshop for all writers.

Pitch your novel to Meredith Miller, top UTA agent! Bring a synopsis, blurb, and first five pages for ten minutes of feedback on your story’s potential—perfect for darkly funny, thrilling, speculative, or smart contemporary fiction.

Discover the formula behind every market-ready story in this immersive workshop with award-winning novelist and literary juror Shereen Malherbe . From audience and genre to story positioning and author voice, uncover the pillars that publishers, editors, and agents look for. Walk away with your own Story Identity Sheet, a professional blueprint for your manuscript, and the clarity to take your work to the next stage. A must for writers wanting to get their writing ready for publishing.

Pitch your novel to Oli Munson, a top agent from A.M. Heath. Bring a synopsis, blurb, and first five pages for ten minutes of honest feedback on plot, pace, character, and your book’s publishing potential.

Translator Sarah Enany, a leading figure in translating Arabic literature into English, presents a knowledge-based workshop on the fundamentals of translation and the realities of the global publishing market, drawing on her experience with award-winning Arabic works.

Pitch your novel to Jemima Forrester, top David Higham agent! Bring a synopsis, blurb, and first five pages for ten minutes of feedback on your story’s potential — perfect for thrillers, historical, women’s, or speculative fiction.

Learn The UNMUTE Method with Mariana Missakian to discover,  shape, and share the real, unfiltered stories only you can tell.

Discover how picture-book characters come to life in this workshop with award-winning illustrator Petr Horáček. Learn sketching, expression, and storytelling techniques, then create your own charming storybook character.

UAE muralist Captain Barboza showcases his murals, demonstrates spray-paint techniques, and invites you to try them yourself in a high-energy intro to street art, colour, and creative expression. Curated by Art in the Middle Magazine. 

Discover botanical drawing with acclaimed illustrator Sue Wickison. This beginner-friendly masterclass teaches essential techniques to capture plants’ beauty, sharpen observation, and develop your own artistic style.

Learn traditional embroidery techniques while creating your own unique bookmark, as author Joanna Barakat shares her journey preserving this timeless craft in contemporary art.

Bestselling author Alwyn Hamilton reveals how to build immersive worlds, craft mythology and culture, and weave vivid details into stories. Leave with the tools to create settings readers can truly inhabit.

The workshop offers a practical perspective on the standards of translating children’s literature from a publisher’s viewpoint, focusing on language quality, cultural integrity, and ways to preserve the original spirit while ensuring suitability for young Arab readers.

Join Momo Al Shaibani for a hands-on introduction to one-page comics. Learn to structure panels, craft punchlines, and tell stories visually. No experience required.

Unleash your inner child and indulge in playful creativity as you sketch and sip your way through hands-on drawing tutorials with acclaimed writer-illustrator Rob Biddulph. No experience needed. All materials provided.

Join a delightful workshop with author Dr Shahla Ujayli to learn how to write reviews that balance personal taste with critical insight, and transform your passion for reading into words that inspire others!

Take part in this unique workshop with UK Poet Laureate Simon Armitage inspired by L’ÉCOLE’s exhibition ‘Poetry of Birds.

Join bestselling author Ruth Ware for a masterclass in the art of setting.

Join Carlos Andrés Gómez for a creative writing workshop. Explore storytelling, channel emotion and experience onto the page, and develop your voice and imagination in a session open to writers of all levels.

​Join Hesa M. Aldahel​ for a hands-on bookbinding workshop. Fold, stitch, and create your own handcrafted notebook. It's the perfect creative pause for stationery lovers, makers, and bookworms alike.