Developing the next generation of creative professionals
Want to be at the heart of Norwich’s creative community? Join our young creative collective and develop your skills, meet like minded people, and kickstart your cultural career!
Lit From the Inside is for anyone aged 14–17 who lives or studies in Norwich or Norfolk. We meet fortnightly at the National Centre for Writing, Dragon Hall. Read on for more information on how to get involved!
Applications for Lit from the Inside 2026 are now closed.
About Lit From the Inside
The Lit From the Inside collective exists to open the door to the creative industries.
By taking part, you will discover how publishers, poets, scriptwriters, designers and festival organisers bring books and cultural events to life.
As a UNESCO City of Literature, Norwich is home to amazing literary festivals, arts organisations and a vibrant community of creative professionals. Through Lit From the Inside, young people experience this first-hand through eye-opening visits to events, meetings with writers from the city and beyond, as well as regular hands-on creative workshops.
- ‘I loved the R.F. Kuang trip – it was an incredible experience to meet such an amazing writer with such interesting insights and then to meet her in person, and get a signature too was surreal’
- ‘Through the festival and all the trips we’ve had, I’ve learnt so much about Norwich that I didn’t really notice or know about before in terms of its literary and art culture. It’s been fantastic.’
Towards the end of the programme you have the option to participate in a group project that puts your new knowledge and confidence into action. Previous groups have produced open‑mic poetry nights, virtual events, zines and more!
Lit From the Inside is generously supported by the Norfolk Community Foundation Building Skills for Better Futures Fund.
I have learnt a lot about Norwich and its importance in the literature scene, especially with the National Centre for Writing. Before the programme, I didn’t understand how amazing Norwich really is but I definitely feel more connected.
What will you do?
Being part of the collective helps you think about your future. Not just what job you might want, but what kind of creative person you are and could become.
You’ll explore what you’re already good at, discover new skills, and build confidence in what you can achieve in the future. You’ll meet like-minded young people and get a look behind the scenes at NCW and the literary world.
The group also acts as a space to explore important things like staying motivated, looking after your wellbeing, thinking about how your creativity can support the community, and how you can benefit in future from teaching, mentoring or volunteering.
- Learn about careers in publishing, marketing, and the arts
- Take part in workshops with writers, artists, and publishers to hone your writing and hear about how they built their careers
- Participate in trips to local cultural and arts venues to learn about festivals, putting on gigs and shows, and running events
- Find out how to manage life as a freelance artist or producer from those in the know
- Have the opportunity to curate your own DIY event or publication at the end
Anyone aged 14-17 living or studying in Norwich or Norfolk who is interested in learning more about their creativity and working in the arts can join.
The group is led by an experienced creative facilitator who will be a consistent face, alongside regular visits from guest writers and creative professionals at NCW and beyond.
Submissions closed on Tuesday 7 July 2026.
Lit from the Inside sessions run between August 2026 – July 2027. The sessions take place two Wednesdays a month from 5-7pm. They are free to attend at the National Centre for Writing (Norwich) and require no previous experience.
Got a question? Email learning@nationalcentreforwriting.org.uk and we’ll get back to you as soon as we can!
We’ve all been able to connect through a shared appreciation for writing and literature. I’ve learnt so much from everyone and they’ve been such a supportive and fun group of friends.
Past projects
I just wanted to say a massive THANK YOU for such an informative and inspiring session… the Collective had such positive feedback afterwards – I know a lot of them are struggling with how to find their footing on the literary career ladder, so I think they really appreciated the invaluable insights
The story so far
2024 – 2025
Given responsibility to managing a budget for a ‘flagship’ plenary event or activity, the 2024-25 ‘Lit Insiders’ decided to host an ‘open-mic’ style performance event at Dragon Hall, welcoming artists, peers and family to NCW’s venue for talks, spoken word and digital screen presentations of work created throughout the project. This was, in part, inspired by collaborative workshops with young people in Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature, during which they learnt about how the Edinburgh group had organised and performed at their own ‘poetry slam’.
‘The showcase was an amazing way to end our year together and it was such a satisfying feeling to see our work pay off. It was great to get out of my comfort zone and perform and it meant a lot to me that the group and my family could support me for such an important moment. It really was something I won’t forget’
The group included young poet Evie Parker Hornsby. Through taking part in Lit From The Inside, Evie was able to benefit from some one-to-one mentoring and was commissioned to write and perform a new poem ‘A Girl Named Julian’ for the launch of the new Norwich UNESCO City of Literature strategy.
Evie’s emerging talent has since gained national recognition: she was commended in the Foyle Young Poets of the Year Award, placing her among just 85 commended poets selected from more than 10,000 entries worldwide.
2019 – 2022
The National Centre for Writing launched Lit From The Inside in November 2019. Supported by a generous grant from Anguish’s Educational Foundation, it aimed to use creative writing and skills development to raise aspirations and improve future opportunities for young people from low socio-economic backgrounds in Norwich, with a focus on creative career skills and knowledge.
From 2019 to 2022, Lit From The Inside engaged 47+ participants (age 14 – 17) across three annual groups. Activities included 28 workshops with writers or creative professionals; coordinating the Young Norfolk Writing Competition; visiting Verve Literary Festival (Birmingham), publishing 2 ‘zines’ and producing 3 creative events for peers.
12 participants completed Arts Awards.
Due to Covid-19, we moved activities online when required, and used a mix of online and in-person activities from 2021 onwards in response to young people’s needs.
‘Not only did Lit live up to my expectations but surpassed it! I have loved being in a group of lovely and interesting people, especially during lockdown. Continuing through lockdown on zoom was amazing as I had expected Lit to stop as we couldn’t meet up. Thank you for keeping it going! The opportunities have been incredible, and I have done many things that I would never have dreamt of being able to do!’ – Collective member, 2020
Chrysalis: A day of events by young people
The group ran a day of literature events on the theme of their choice. Under the title Chrysalis, these online events took place across Saturday 23rd January 2021.
They gained experience in inviting artists, contracts, managing the technical side of online events, working with a designer on branding and planning the marketing strategy.
The programme consisted of:
- Reading Diversely with Holly Ainley – book buyer for Jarrold, Hannah Chukwu – assistant editor at Hamish Hamilton (Penguin), So Mayer – writer and activist and young reader and Lit Insider, Amelia Platt. A panel discussion on the importance as a reader or writer to ensure your bookshelves are as diverse as the world we live in.
- 2020 Vision: A Reflection on the Year Playwright, poet and performer Inua Ellams read his specially commissioned poem live followed by a Q&A with the Lit Insiders and the audience.
- Workshop: Writing the Present with Alex Holmes. This sold-out workshop focused on how writing can help us make sense of the world we are living in today and support our wellbeing and good mental health.
Zines
The 2021 cohort created Observe/d, and each brilliant piece highlights the power of seeing and being seen at a time – during lockdown – when having your camera on or off was a deeply purposeful choice.
Download the full version of ‘All the things you are’ by Efe →
2022’s collective produced Life Lines, a collection of stories and poetry linked by the theme of time – exploring a fictionalised past, this tumultuous present and dreaming of imagined futures.
Zine illustrations and design by Kristyna Baczynski.
