Hosted by the Children’s Writing Fellow for Northern Ireland, Shirley-Anne McMillan, the Conference on Children’s Literature welcomed academic researchers, authors and industry professionals from across the sector.  

A highlight of the conference was a keynote panel and reception chaired by Damian Smyth from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland (ACNI) featuring all the Children's Writing Fellows to date including Maire Zepf, Kelly McCaughrain, Paul Howard, and Shirley-Anne McMillan.  

The Children’s Writing Fellowship was established through the Heaney Legacy Project funded by Atlantic Philanthropies, in partnership between the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen’s and the ACNI.  

During their time in post, Fellows are based at the Seamus Heaney Centre, delivering creative writing workshops, readings and public events across Northern Ireland, with hundreds of schools and thousands of children benefiting from the work of the Fellows.  

Speaking about the conference, Children’s Writing Fellow for Northern Ireland and young adult novelist, Shirley-Anne McMillan said: “The conference on children's literature at the Seamus Heaney Centre was the first of its kind in Northern Ireland, bringing together academics, children's writers, illustrators and industry professionals from Northern Ireland and around the world, to discuss current issues relevant to children's literature.  

“It was an amazing privilege to be part of this vibrant event which demonstrated the huge energy we have in Northern Ireland around creating excellent art for children. It was absolutely wonderful to see the Seamus Heaney Centre packed with people who care about children's books, and to celebrate our connections, across many borders, with other writers, artists, publishers and readers.”  

Damian Smyth, Head of Literature & Drama, Arts Council of Northern Ireland, said: “The recognition of children’s writing, writing for children, young people and young adults, has been one of the great steps forward over the last ten years. The Children’s Writing Fellow, a partnership between the Seamus Heaney Centre and the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, remains an important part of that visibility, focusing always on the very best writers and work. It has helped showcase work which has been among the best in the world today.  

“The conference was a milestone event, providing signposts for development in years to come. The Arts Council was delighted to join Queen’s University in celebrating the achievement.” 

Stephen Connolly, Outreach & Engagement Officer at the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen’s added: “It has been almost a decade since the appointment of the first Children's Writing Fellow and the various ways in which each of the Fellows have approached their role have been invaluable to the ecosystem of writing for young people. The Conference reflected the wide-ranging ambassadorial role of the Fellowship and has been a meeting point for those involved in writing, illustrating, publishing and promoting books for young people. 

“The genesis for this conference was a lecture by Shirley-Anne McMillan in which she posited that children's literature is rarely taken seriously until news breaks that particular books have been banned from schools and libraries. We are hopeful that in hosting this conference we are playing our part to encourage serious thought about children's literature.” 

The Conference on Children’s Literature ran over a three-day period from 26-28 March and took place during the National Year of Reading 2026, reflecting a wider focus on reading and writing across the UK. 

For more information, please visit: https://www.qub.ac.uk/schools/seamus-heaney-centre/Events/Conferences/ChildrensLiteratureConference-2026/  

ENDS...

 

Media

Media enquiries to Zara McBrearty at Queen’s Communications Office on email: z.mcbrearty@qub.ac.uk

Notes to Editor:  

1. Interview requests via the contact details above.