With over thirty programme items, ALL OF THE BOOKS features workshops, game shows, debates, signings and panels covering all aspects of literary geekery. As well as discussions of everything you might expect (and more!), here are a few highlights of this year's programme.

At The Event

Pro Advice (with Creative Writing)

ALL OF THE BOOKS and Creative Writing are jointly curating a series of programme items for writers new and established. These include working with artists, marketing your books online and at events, and other sessions with our publisher, editor, agent, translator and bookseller guests!

New Voices



The evening showcase of new writers - one of last year's most popular events - returns! Bring your drinks, bring your friends: this is your chance to find your next literary addiction. New Voices is an opportunity for debut writers - if you know someone who would fit the bill, why not nominate them at @booksnineworlds?

MONSTERCLASSES!

What would that zombie smell like? Do mummies really get buried with curses? How could someone scream in space? Experts in topics ranging from psychology to Egyptology will be hosting workshops for the curious-minded.


Review Your Manuscript with Conville & Walsh



Literary agents Conville & Walsh will be attending Nine Worlds, and are keen to read your work of genre fiction. They'll be spending Friday, 8 August doing one-on-one sessions with writers, helping you with your manuscripts. Please go here for details on how to take part.

Signings at Forbidden Planet

The UK's greatest geek megastore will be at Nine Worlds in force, with all your literary needs - plus a steady stream of signings throughout the whole convention! 

Share-a-Table for Indies

Independent presses and authors can take advantage of our ALL OF THE BOOKS table - an opportunity to sell your books in the vendor area! Under the stewardship of Fox Spirit books, we'll flog your wares for you (at a small commission - donated to our charity partners at PEN). Get in touch at allofthebooks@nineworlds.co.uk and we'll talk you through the details!

Main Programme

Friday

Urban Fantasy: Cities of Angels & Demons & Bug-Monsters
10.00am - 11.15 am
County C&D
The lure of cities - wherever they are in time and space. Why are urban environments the best places for adventure? What's the secret of their appeal?
Panel: Ed Cox, Laure Eve, Paul Cornell, Benedict Jacka

Time Travel: where, why, how and when?
11.45am - 1.00pm
County C&D
This is a message from your future self: go to this panel!
Panel: Paul Cornell, Lauren Beukes, Kate Griffin, Fabio Fernandes , Simon Guerrier

MONSTERCLASS: Nonlinear Narratives
11.45am - 1.00pm
Room 30
Stories that don't behave the way you might expect, with Robert Sharp

Mythology and Fairytales: pernicious supernaturalism or meaningful exploration of existence?
1.30pm - 2.45pm
County C&D
Where do myths and fairytales come from, and how are they influencing genre today?
Panel: Lauren Beukes, Joanne Harris, Rochita Loenen Ruiz, Aishwarya Subramanian, John Connolly, Nazia Khatun

Writing the Inhuman: more yeti than human...
1.30pm - 2.45pm
County A
From Frankenstein's creation to Lady Stoneheart, literature is constantly probing the the boundaries between the human and the inhuman to ask: who is the true monster?
Panel: Pete Sutton, Adrian Tchaikovsky, David Mumford, Laure Eve, Jennifer Williams

Superheroes and Superhuman: exploding the myth of the superwhathaveyou
3.15pm - 4.30pm
County C&D
Superheroes are everywhere these days, from comic books to literary novels to the Disney Store. How is society exploring what 'super' means, and how does that change depending on the suffix attached?
Panel: Jenni Hill, Nick Harkaway, Stephanie Saulter, Barry Nugent , Taran Matharu

MONSTERCLASS: Archeological Worldbuilding
3.15pm - 4.30pm
Room 30
Debbie Challis, from the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaelogy, on what we can learn from ancient worlds.

Looking Forwards
5.00pm - 6.15pm
County C&D
What does the future hold? And how will it influence the books we read? A panel with all the answers. (No pressure.)
Panel: Nick Harkaway, Fabio Fernandes, Lauren Beukes, Sarah Lotz

Love and Sex: an intimate exploration
6.45 - 8.00pm
County C&D
From shipping to sex scenes, and from erotica to WTFtica.
Panel: E. Saxey, Rebecca Levene, Tiffani Angus, Sarah Lotz, Laurie Penny

Writing Transmedia: ideas that cross formats and boundaries
6.45pm - 8.00pm
County A
Because a story can also be an app, computer game, vlog, fanvid, web series, docu-drama, interactive ebook, diary comic, inter-sensory experience or any other format currently existing or yet to exist not listed here. Kind of against the spirit of the thing, if you ask us. Guess you'll just have to go to it in person.
Barry Nugent, Anna Caltabiano, Simon Guerrier, Adam Christopher, David Tallerman

Choose Your Own Documentary – a forgotten diary falls out of an old book. What would you do? - with the Film Festival track
6.45pm - 8.00pm, room 41
Join Nathan Penlington and a team of filmmakers as they embark on an epic and emotional quest to find the author of the diary and unravel the mystery of its pages. A true story of obsession, childhood sweethearts, friendship, loss and adventure. But there is a twist. You, the audience, decide Nathan’s fate by using remote controls. With over 1,500 paths and multiple endings, his destiny is in your hands. Choose wisely.

C̛T̷H̵́͡Ù̶L̢̨H̷̷U͞?̡͢͝!͜
8.30pm - 10.45pm
Royal A. Sanity optional.
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn*
(*In a corner at Nine Worlds, four authors roll dice and battle evil.)
Jon Morgan, Jonathan L Howard, Rebecca Levene, Scott Lynch, Kim Curran

School Stories: prefects, headmasters and tuckshops, oh my!
10.15pm - 11.30pm
County C&D
School stories: why are we so fascinated by them? From Harry Potter to Ender's Game, from St. Trinian's to the X-Men, will we ever really escape our school days? Oi, no talking in the back of the class, there.
Panel: Aishwarya Subramanian, Zen Cho, Emma Vieceli, Tiffani Angus, Ewa Scibor-Rylska

New Voices: say hello to the Class of 2014!
10.15pm - 11.30pm
Royal B
Fun and fast-paced readings from the very best new writers.

Plus, signings at Forbidden Planet and the ALL OF THE BOOKS Indie table, Monsterclasses and more!

Saturday

CoffeeKitsch: brought to you by The Kitschies
9.15am - 9.45am
County C&D
Up early? Start your day right by meeting up with your fellow writers, publishers and fans. And some donuts.

Cyberpunk: exploring society in the corporate machine age (.net)
10.00am - 11.15am
County C&D
Science fiction in a science fictional real world.
Panel: Anne Charnock, Fabio Fernandes, Laurie Penny, Paul McAuley

Dragons vs Werewolves vs Vampires vs Warlocks: The Ultimate Deathmatch Smackdown
11.45am - 1.00pm
County C&D
Four monsters enter, one monster leaves. Vampires, dragons, werewolves or warlocks? It all gets decided here.
Debate: Anne Perry (Moderator), Elizabeth Bear (Dragons), Gail Carriger (Werewolves), Joanne Harris (Vampires), Scott Lynch (Warlocks)

MONSTERCLASS: Street Art
11.45am - 1.00pm
Room 30
Unconventional artistry with Deadly Knitshade, Lauren O'Farrell.

Likeable Bad Guys
Loving you is easy; explaining you is so hard
1.30 - 2.45
County C&D
We love to hate them, we hate to love them: from great one-liners to a sympathetic backstory, from the evil laugh to villian-fabulous fashion: what makes bad guys soooooo good?
Panel: Ed Fortune, Rochita Loenen Ruiz, Stephen Aryan, Anna Caltabiano, Den Patrick

MONSTERCLASS: Mummies
3.15pm - 4.30pm
Room 30
With John J Johnston of the Egypt Exploration Society.

Westerns: they're your Huckleberry
3.15pm - 4.30pm
County C&D
Saddle up - we're off to the not-so-distant past to find the secrets of this rough and tumble genre.
Panel: Jared Shurin, Will Hill, Stark Holborn, John Hornor Jacobs, Joanne Harris

Looking Backwards
5.00pm - 6.15pm
County C&D
From Victorians to Egyptians, what's the appeal of past worlds? What can we learn from them, and how do they inform our work today?
Panel: Gail Carriger, John J Johnston, Marek Kukula

MONSTERCLASS: Comics
5.00pm - 6.15pm
Room 30
Learn how comics and collaboration can inspire your storytelling skills. Take part in a Comics Jam session led by Sarah McIntyre and Philip Reeve and geek out with them about techniques and such. Bring your comic-making questions!

MONSTERCLASS: Postcolonial SF
6.45pm - 8.00pm
Room 30
Genre fiction from around the world with Fabio Fernandes.

Noir: the dirty streets of fiction
6.45pm - 8.00pm
County C&D
"It seemed like a nice neighborhood to have bad habits in." - Raymond Chandler
Panel: Will Hill, Daniel Polansky, John Connolly, Sara Townsend, Francis Knight

Working with Artists: drawing up professional relationships
6.45pm - 8.00pm
County A
How can artists get the best from their writers, and vice versa? Advice about making great things.
Q&A, with Sarah McIntyre, Emma Vieceli, Gillian Redfearn, Djibril al-Ayad, Adam Christopher

#PROMNADO: The Gollancz Prom Party!
Drinks and nibbles in celebration of Gollancz's talented 2014 debut writers!
8.00pm - 10.00pm
County C&D
Meet Gollancz's ‘Class of 2014’ – Den Patrick, Mark Alder, Jon Wallace, Anna Caltabiano, John Honor Jacobs and Ed Cox - and enjoy an evening old school tunes, a mirror ball, ‘The 2014 Year Book Quiz’, and much more.

New Voices: the Class of 2014 continued!
10.15pm - 11.30pm
Royal B
More fun and fast-paced readings from the very best new writers.

Plus, signings at Forbidden Planet and the ALL OF THE BOOKS Indie table, Monsterclasses and more!

Sunday

CoffeeKitsch: brought to you by The Kitschies
9.15am - 9.45am
County C&D
Up early again?! Warm up for a great day with coffee, donuts and the company of other early birds.

African Speculative Fiction: more than acacia trees...
10.00am - 11.15am
County C&D
From Who Fears Death to Zoo City, African SF/F is winning our hearts (and shelves). What books and authors should we be reading next?
Panel: Geoffrey Ryman, Sarah Lotz, Tade Thompson

MONSTERCLASS: Mental Illness Primer
11.45am - 1.00am
Room 30
The fact and the fiction of mental illness for SF/F creators, with Tade Thompson.

Spock vs the Sorcerers: F or SF? The Genre Deathmatch Smackdown!
11.45am - 1.00pm
County C&D
The vicious genrepocalypse that we've all been waiting for. There can be only one.
Debate: Anne Perry (Moderator), Daniel Polansky (Fantasy), Liz Bourke (Fantasy), Zen Cho (SF) , Geoffrey Ryman (SF)

Marketing & Social Media: getting the word out
11.45am - 1.00pm
County A
How do you get the word out about your book? How can events, social media, publicity and marketing work? Tips and tricks from the experts.
Q&A with Tom Hunter, Adam Christopher, Danie Ware, Sophie Calder and James Oswald

X-Punk: punk as suffix, genre and state of mind
1.30pm - 2.45pm
County C&D
Steampunk, Cyberpunk, Grimpunk, Sandalpunk, Godpunk, Pinkpunk, Punkpunk... what's nextpunk? Our panelists consider the next big thing - and the perils of the X-Punk genre lifestyle.
Panel: Djibril al-Ayad, Kim Curran, M. Suddain, Mathew Pocock, Stephanie Saulter

Epic Fantasy: the panel of prophecy!
3.15pm - 4.30pm
County C&D
And lo, it was prophecised that the heroes of the epic fantasy genre would ascend to the Nine Worlds, where they would battle the Evil One with the Sword of Banter and Wand of Quick Wit +2.
Panel: Den Patrick, Scott Lynch, Rebecca Levene, Elizabeth Bear, Gaie Sebold

MONSTERCLASS: Marketing
3.15pm - 4.30pm
Room 30
With Tom Hunter, marketing strategist and Director of the Clarke Award.

Ask a Professional: all your questions about the book trade, answered
3.15pm - 4.30pm
County A
Experts from every walk of publishing life, ready and willing to be put to the test. Feeling shy? Tweet questions in advance to @booksnineworlds
Q&A with Alasdair Stuart, Juliet Mushens, Ian Whates, Liz Gorinsky, Jenni Hill

"Strong Female Protagonists" in YA
5.00pm - 6.15pm
Connaught A
The term "Strong Female Protagonist" in Young Adult fiction seems to be gaining popularity following the success of The Hunger Games' Katniss Everdeen, who shoots arrows with pinpoint accuracy while defying the corrupt system. But what does the term mean? Why do we use it? And do we need it at all? Is it a promising trend in exciting new female role models for young people? Or just a way of praising masculine traits in fictional heroines? A panel of writers and reviewers will invite a discussion on the ins and outs of this emerging attitude towards female characters in YA fiction, and where the future of the genre lies.
Panel: Rowan Williams-Fletcher, Juliet Mushens, Laura Lam, Tom Pollock, Anna Caltabiano

Wow. So Panel.
Much subtitle. Vague.
5.00pm - 6.15pm
County C&D
Panel: Jenni Hill, Jared Shurin, Anne Perry

Plus, signings at Forbidden Planet and the ALL OF THE BOOKS Indie table, Monsterclasses and more!

NOTE ABOUT GUESTS: please note that the below guest list is only the first wave of our totally epic 100+ -strong guest list. Expect the second wave soon. SOOON.

Awesome Lego photos are by S.A. Partridge, via lego-stories.tumblr.com/