Development Week 2025: Meet our experts
Find out more about the brilliant speakers who will be taking part in Development Week 2025.
See the full Development Week programme here
Anna Caig
Anna works with The Society of Authors, Jericho Writers, The Literary Consultancy, Tŷ Newydd Writing Centre and The Romantic Novelists' Association, as well as one-to-one with many writers.
She has worked in communications for 20 years, specialising in media relations and strategic marketing campaigns, and is an experienced and engaging public speaker.
Anna also writes historical crime fiction, and her debut novel was shortlisted for the CWA Debut Dagger prize. She reviews books for The Sheffield Telegraph and on her blog.
The former Head of Communications at Sheffield City Council and tutor on the University of Sheffield MA Journalism course, Anna began her training business to support writers to build their brand and reach more readers. She now works with traditionally, indie and self-published writers, as well as helping creatives in any discipline find a wider audience.
Jasmine Richards
Jasmine read English Language and Literature at Oxford University and has over 18 years of experience in children's publishing.
She was the Lead Editor on the multi-million-selling series Beast Quest and has written a dozen books for children, including The Unmorrow Curse and Myth Keeper. Jasmine has also been a screenwriter on Disney's PJ Masks and BBC's JoJo and Gran Gran.
In 2019, she founded Storymix, a multi-award-winning fiction studio dedicated to centring children and teens of colour in stories filled with joy and adventure. In 2023, Jasmine received a prestigious special commendation in the Editor of the Year category at the British Book Awards.
She is also a Bookseller Rising Star and the creator of The Write Beach Hut, a creative sanctuary by the sea which is designed to nurture and empower writers and creatives through workshops, mentoring, and affordable writing retreats.
Eishar Brar
Eishar is Editorial Director at Knights Of, where she is focused on publishing underrepresented writers and showing that inclusive books can be commercially successful.
In her role, she creates space for non-trauma led narratives and aims to widen the scope of authentic and representative publishing through her commissioning.
A 2021 Bookseller Rising Star, she has published joyful middle-grade and YA books from a wide range of authors, including A Kind of Spark by Elle McNicoll (winner of the Blue Peter Best Story Book Award and the Waterstones Children's Book Prize), The Council of Good Friends by Nikesh Shukla, Friendship Never Ends by Alexandra Sheppard, and the Vivi Conway series by Lizzie Huxley-Jones.
Elorine Grant
Elorine has worked in publishing for over 30 years.
Earlier in her career she worked for Penguin, Macmillan and Transworld publishers. For the past 20+ years she has worked at HarperCollins Childrens books. David Walliams, Michael Morpurgo, Judith Kerr, Adam Stower, Dapo Adeola and Steven Lenton are a few of the many authors and illustrators she has had the honour of working with.
Elorine is also a board member and mentor for POP UP Projects, a programme which empowers and advocates for a diverse generation of children's book creators.
Tiffany Leeson
Tiffany has worked as a designer in the children's book industry for over 30 years, working at Walker Books, Ladybird and HarperCollins – among many other publishing houses.
She works with publishers, editors, agents and illustrators on a daily basis. She's constantly looking out for commercial, original illustration styles and clever concepts.
She currently works at Farshore (part of HarperCollins UK) as Creative Director, managing a team of designers to deliver over 200 books a year.
Tiffany is a Trustee of 'Picture Hooks' and helped develop the HarperCollins Design Academy. She directs the design quality for all the Farshore publishing, from picture books to YA, from Minecraft to Michael Morpurgo and Tehereh Mafi. Making the best books for children has never been more important.
Rashmi Sirdeshpande
Rashmi is an award-winning British Indian children's author who writes a mix of picture books and illustrated non-fiction.
An official World Book Day author for 2022 and a former BookTrust Writer in Residence, her books have been published around the world and featured in a number of national and international newspapers. She is a strong advocate for inclusiveness and wider representation in children's publishing.
Her first picture book, Never Show a T-Rex a Book, illustrated by Diane Ewen, won the 2021 Society of Authors Queen's Knickers Award and the Anna Dewdney Read-Together Award in the USA. Her picture book Dadaji's Paintbrush, illustrated by Ruchi Mhasane, won the Diverse Book Awards and was shortlisted for the Jhalak Prize. Her latest non-fiction book Amazing Asia, illustrated by Jason Lyon, has been shortlisted for the Stanford Travel Writing Awards.
Dapo Adeola
Dapo is an illustrator, author and character designer who was awarded Illustrator of the Year at The British Book Awards in 2022.
Dapo rocketed into the picture book world with his greatly acclaimed illustrator debut, Look Up!, written by Nathan Bryon and published by Puffin in 2019, which won the Waterstones Children's Book Prize in 2020.
Dapo illustrated My Dad is a Grizzly Bear and My Mum Is a Lioness written by award-winning author Swapna Haddow (both published by Macmillan Children's Books), and collaborated with Malorie Blackman on their picture book We're Going to Find the Monster!
Dapo made his author debut in 2021 with the Puffin published picture book Hey You!: An Empowering Celebration of Growing Up Black, featuring 18 talented Black British illustrators, which also went on to win Illustrated Book of the Year at The British Book Awards in 2022.
Born in Britain and of Nigerian heritage, Dapo is an avid believer in the importance of equal representation in the creative arts. He currently lives in Manchester.
Jasbinder Bilan
A Costa-winning and Waterstones-shortlisted author, Jasbinder was born in a stable in the foothills of the Himalayas.
Her debut novel, Asha & the Spirit Bird, won the 2017 Times/Chicken House Competition and was inspired by the incredible bond Jasbinder shares with her grandmother.
She lives in Bath with her husband and two teenage sons.
Chanté Timothy
Chanté is an award-winning author-illustrator known for her vibrant and captivating artwork in children’s books.
She has illustrated notable works such as Daddy Do My Hair: Beth’s Twists by Tolá Okogwu and Hey You! by Dapo Adeola, which was featured in The British Book Awards Children's Illustrated Book of the Year 2022. Chanté is also the author-illustrator of the upcoming book series Supa Nova, launching on June 5, 2025.
Her work celebrates diversity and creativity, aiming to inspire young readers and foster a love for storytelling.
Selina Brown
Introducing Selina Brown: an accomplished author, astute marketing consultant, and adept event producer. Raised by her Black British mother and Jamaican granny, Selina cultivated a profound affinity for words from an early age.
Her journey is marked by exceptional achievements, having assumed the role of Youth MP for Nottingham at the age of 16 and obtaining two Degrees and a Masters by the age of 21.
Her professional trajectory has encompassed pivotal roles at esteemed organisations such as the BBC, MTV, and Freud Communications, with work experience spanning across New York, Kenya, and Gambia.
Committed to diversity and with a remarkable presence in Birmingham's creative landscape for over two decades, Selina is passionate about promoting inclusivity and artistic expression.
Amid the challenges posed by the pandemic, Selina demonstrated her versatility by authoring the cherished children's book Nena series. In 2020, she established the Black British Book Festival, an embodiment of her visionary commitment to celebrating the vibrancy of Black British literature. This distinguished festival, heralded as Europe's largest Black literature festival, partnered with the esteemed Southbank Centre in 2023 and received sponsorship from influential brands publishing entities, including Audible, Pan Macmillan, Hachette, Simon Schuster, National Express and Penguin.
Selina's indomitable spirit and devotion to her craft have garnered widespread recognition, drawing enthusiastic engagement from a diverse audience eager to embrace the richness of the Black British literary voice.
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