What does the Scottish BPOC Writers Network do?
The Scottish BPOC Writers Network is an advocacy and professional development group for Scottish or Scotland-based writers and literary professionals who identify as BPOC (Black people, People of Colour). Learn more about us and our initiatives.
I’m a Scotland-based BPOC writer, how do I join the Network?
There are 3 main ways to join the network.
Subscribe to our newsletter
By joining our newsletter list you’ll get regular access to awesome opportunities like job and writing submissions, our community events, blogs, and resources. Subscribe to the newsletter.
Join the community on Facebook
Our community is full of vibrant conversations where you can get even more access to events, resources and opportunities shared from our members, crowdsource information or find support with your work in progress. Join the Facebook Group.
Attend our events
We host frequent events (online and in person) in our community including monthly writing events, professional development events, and partner events with Scottish literary organisations. Check out our upcoming events.
What access do you provide to network members?
We aim to facilitate accessible, inclusive and supportive spaces. You can find access information listed on each event listing or activity description. We run our own programme of events and activities, as well as partnership events (like at a literary festival) and activities (like a submission opportunity), so access may vary depending on the type of event or activity.
For more general information, check out our Access Statement. However, always refer to an individual event or activity description for the full access details.
I am a BPOC writer outside of Scotland, can I still join?
Generally, our programs are for and prioritise BPOC writers who are based in Scotland. That said, there are some groups or specific events that are open to the wider diaspora of writers who identify as BPOC. For example, our monthly Black Writers Group welcomes folks who identify as Black, African, African Caribbean, and of mixed heritage anywhere in the UK and Ireland.
If you are a writer or writing organisation based in diaspora and would like to connect with us, send a message. We’re always keen to build connections across borders and communities.
How do we partner with the network?
Before getting in touch, please review our mission and values, constitution, and safer spaces policy.
Are you a literary organisation or group that would like to work with us? Awesome! Check out some examples of our past partnerships.
Contact us directly through email.
If the partnership is an aligned fit for us, we’ll be in touch within 2-3 business days (during the week).
How can we support the network?
The Network is an important space for the BPOC writers community in Scotland. To help us continue to thrive, here are some ways you can support us:
Follow us on social media
Attend our events
We host several events which are open to the public or at literary festivals, so be sure to attend them. Find out about our upcoming events here.
Donate Pay What You Can (PWYC) tickets
We aim to offer as much access to our events as possible but still appreciate the wider community’s support to help us do this. Consider buying an additional ticket to donate or a PWYC ticket to help us increase access.
Supporting Access Requirements
We strive to make our programming more accessible through access provision. For example, BSL Interpretation or childcare and travel bursaries. By asking partners to cover the financial cost, we can ensure that we continue to provide access requirements for SBWN events and reach an even wider pool of participants.
SBWN may not engage in a partnership, where a potential partner doesn’t have sufficient funds to also cover access costs in line with our requirements.
How do I share opportunities with your community?
Have an exciting opportunity or event you’d like us to share with our community? Submit them directly using our form and if it’s a good fit for our community, we’ll share it.
How do I know the opportunity is a good fit for the SBWN community?
The opportunities we share usually fall into one or more of these categories:
- Literary, creative and arts-related opportunities, open calls, submissions and events
- Paid work and/or jobs in the arts, creative, journalism, and literature sectors
Do you take pitches for your blog?
Yes! We have an open submission call every quarter, so check out the blog for the latest submission call. Before submitting a pitch to us, read our guidelines and past blog posts to get a sense of the type of content we publish.
I love what you’re doing and would like to feature the network in an upcoming article, do you do press features?
For all media inquiries and to access our fact sheet, head to the press page. For interviews with our core team and for headshots and other assets, please contact us directly.
