Dean Atta

🚨Big Thursday cover announcement!! 🚨 We’re excited to share the cover for Dean Atta’s incredible novel Big Man, out on September 3rd. We hope you love it as much as we do 🧡 Available now for pre-order - link in our stories and bio. Cover design by @keepingthewolvesat_bay @abirfellows @dhhlitagency

COVER REVEAL! Auntie’s Bangles A heartfelt story about love, loss and the joy a person leaves behind, written by multi-prize winning poet Dean Atta and illustrated by the award-winning Alea Marley. Auntie’s bangles used to jingle-jangle as she laughed, read and made delicious dishes, and especially as she danced. But everyone is so sad since Auntie died. It feels . . . quiet. Slowly, Theo and his cousin, Rama, learn to celebrate their memories of Auntie, even after she’s gone. This gentle and sensitive exploration of grief will open up important conversations and help little ones find their own way to remember and celebrate someone they’ve lost. Reading age: 3 years and up Publisher: Orchard Books Publication date: 15 Jan. 2026 Pre-order today: https://geni.us/AuntiesBangles

Best friends Kai and Matt made a promise not to come out at school, but now Kai wants to write his own story and show his true self to the world. With friendship and love on the line, it’s no wonder Kai can’t think straight! A queer, coming of age romance from the author of The Black Flamingo and Only On The Weekends, @deanatta . Publishing May 2025! #ICantEvenThinkStraight #deanatta #yabooks #lgbtqbooks #lgbtq #bookstagram #queerbooks #youngadult #bookrecs

I was terrified, but I’m told I did really well. I spoke about Big Man to an audience for the first time! I’m so grateful to the Indie Showcase for the opportunity to introduce my adult debut to a room full of booksellers and book lovers. A massive well done to all the other authors presenting their books: Pedro Carmona-Alvarez, Dr Alfredo Carpineti, Tandy Hoskins, Divya Maniar, Simon Matthews, and Canwen Xu. Demi Echezona chaired our panel brilliantly, and I’m especially grateful to Jack, Ellis, and Liam from Cipher Press, as well as my wonderful agent, Abi. And of course, I went home with a few free books 📚❤️

I really appreciated being invited to the opening reception of the Tate Britain Commission by Zineb Sedira. The immersive installations explore history, memory, identity, and cinema. Better yet, it’s totally free and on view until 17 January 2027, so you have plenty of time to go check it out. Thank you to my dear friend Shabnam Shabazi for taking the two photos of me.

Essex Writers House: Open Advice Sessions 📅 3 – 24 June 📍 Chalkwell Hall, Southend 🎟️ FREE (Limited spaces, book a slot via link in our bio) Book a 1:1 slot with the Metal Team and a special guest panellist to gain valuable feedback, advice and support. These 60-minute sessions are free and welcome writers at any stage of their journey, whether you’re starting out or refining a manuscript. This space is dedicated to you, your writing needs and your development. Our panel of special guest writers are: ✨Dean Atta on 3 June ✨Saira Niazi on 10 June ✨Lora Aziz on 17 June ✨Camilla Balshaw on 24 June Find out more about our talented panel and book a slot via the link in our bio. Image credit: Dean Atta by Josimar Senior | Lora Aziz by Marley Larazimba ID: A green graphic titled ‘Essex Writers House 2026: Open Advice Sessions’ with photos of the four guest creatives in a grid style collage. Their names overlay the image in bold white text. In the top right in a small image of Chalkwell Hall, with the Metal, Essex Writers House and Essex Book Festival logos at the bottom of the graphic. #EssexWritersHouse #MetalSouthend #EssexBookFest

Frank Cottrell-Boyce Children’s Laureate Lecture, “The Kids Are Not Alright”, was introduced by Baroness Floella Benjamin and featured live illustration by Chris Riddle. Lemn Sissay performed Alex Wharton’s specially commissioned poem “I Am A Story”. The entire evening felt hopeful and uplifting, highlighting the deep care so many of us have for children, the power of storytelling, and the importance of reading for pleasure and wellbeing.

Happy publication day to Patience Agbabi and Firefly Press! When signing my copy of Wonderland, Patience wrote, “To Dean, for being one of my core inspirations to write a novel-in-verse!” How special is that! 🥰

‘Reading Big Man by Dean Atta, I immediately felt a strong sense of déjà vu, as if I had met these characters before. It’s not that they are familiar in a literal way, but they feel emotionally recognisable’, writes Eric Ngalle Charles in his review of Dean Atta’s latest to find out why go to link in bio to read in full #review #novel #book #writer

After a day of back-to-back meetings, it was wonderful to have dinner with a dear friend. We skipped selfies despite both looking great. On the way to the station, we stopped to admire the view from Trafalgar Square and shared a moment of appreciation for living in London. Life has been pretty intense lately, and spending time with long-time friends feels even more important.

@nolsnathankski talks community with @deanatta on the podcast! Dean Atta is a BAFTA-winning British poet, author and filmmaker, current chair of the Society of Authors Poetry and Spoken Word Group. Of Greek Cypriot and Jamaican heritage, Dean was named one of the 100 most influential LGBTQ+ people in the UK. He’s been commissioned by Tate Britain, Tate Modern, the National Portrait Gallery and Keats House. His novel in verse, The Black Flamingo, won the Stonewall Book Award. His memoir Person Unlimited was published by Canongate in 2024. His short film, Two Black Boys in Paradise, won the 2026 BAFTA Film Award for British Short Animation. In this episode, Dean talks about his forthcoming collection "I Don’t March to That Drum", reads two exclusive poems written in a Joelle Taylor workshop, and discusses making work with soundscapes alongside Antosh Wojcik. He reflects on his time with Malika’s Poetry Kitchen, the @roundhouseldn Collective, and his residency at Keats House, and speaks to the importance of open mics and workshops for sharing and developing your writing. Dean is chair of the Society of Authors Poetry and Spoken Word Group. Dean’s books • I Am Nobody’s Nigger - The Westbourne Press • The Black Flamingo - Hachette Children’s Group • Only On The Weekends - Hachette Children’s Group • I Can’t Even Think Straight - Hachette Children’s Group • There is (still) love here - Nine Arches Press • Person Unlimited: An Ode to My Black Queer Body - Canongate Books • Confetti (illustrated by Alea Marley) - Orchard Books • Auntie’s Bangles (illustrated by Alea Marley) - Orchard Books Dean’s film • Two Black Boys in Paradise, an animated short film, winner of the 2026 BAFTA Film Award for Best British Short Animation mentions • @jtaylortrash • @antoshwojcik • @malika.booker • @keithjlondon writing prompts Dean made his @thegreenparty poem you can hear on this reel poem in 3 minutes from a prompt he made on the way to the studio! Its not impossible... • 48 writing prompts - riso-printed a6 booklet, published by @burleyfishercommunitypress out now