Authors from across Shropshire and further afield have contributed to a new inspirational book which will serve as a lasting reminder of life in lockdown and also raise funds to support the vital work of carers.
Lockdown Lit is thought to be one of the first literary collections of its kind to be published during the Coronavirus pandemic and will be read by generations to remember and reminisce the 2020 lockdown.
It features short stories, musings and poems from around 60 different independent authors – a handful of which live in Shropshire including Lorna McCann, Sarah Griffiths, Richard Carpenter, Sarah Fountain, Romella Jones and Karen Tommy. Poems and stories written by some of the author’s young children are also featured.
Several illustrators have also contributed to the book which has been published by publisher Team Author UK (TAUK) to help raise much-needed funds for Carers Wales which supports in the region of 370,000 volunteer carers across the country.
The book launched online at Amazon on Monday (June 8) to coincide with the start of Carers Week (8-14 June), an annual campaign to raise awareness for carers, including those who take on unpaid responsibilities for loved ones at home.
In the first day of launching, the book marked success by rising to number one in two of the Amazon charts and reaching the top ten in a third.
Sue Miller, editor and founder of TAUK which works with authors across the county, came up with the new book idea just a few weeks ago and after a rallying call to authors received more than 70 submissions.
She said: “The last few months have been an extraordinary time for everyone. It’s been an absolutely fantastic team effort with authors and illustrators anxious to contribute their interpretations and raw emotions to our anthology ‘Lockdown Lit’.
“Without a doubt the current pandemic is set to go down in history. We have all adjusted, adapted, re-invented and reflected during this time.
“In years to come children will study the global Coronavirus crisis in the same way as others have learned about World War I and II and this book will serve as an ever-lasting reminder on people’s bookshelves of what life was like in 2020.
“At the same time proceeds from the book will be used to support the valiant work of carers across Wales.”
TAUK was first founded in June 2016 when Sue decided to transform her editing business into a one-stop-shop for writers.
The organisation pulls together a range of professionals to provide editing, design, proofreading and publishing services to authors as well as illustrations, websites and PR and marketing.
To date TAUK has published in the region of 160 books.
For more information visit www.teamauthoruk.co.uk or follow @teamauthoruk on social media. More details on Carers Week (8-14 June) can be found on www.carersweek.org.
The paperback book can be purchased here: https://bit.ly/LockdownLit.
