Melissa Cummings-Quarry and Natalie A. Carter are the co-founders of Black Girls' Book Club, a literature and social events platform that celebrates literature by Black female writers. One of the UK's top live literature events, Black Girls' Book Club have hosted Bernardine Evaristo, Roxane Gay, Malorie Blackman, Afua Hirsch, Tayari Jones and Angie Thomas. Melissa and Natalie were named as two of The Bookseller's Rising Stars of 2019. Their debut book Grown will be published by Bloomsbury in 2021.

Jackie Kay was born in Edinburgh. A poet, novelist and writer of short stories, she has enjoyed great acclaim for her work for both adults and children and was the third modern Makar, the Scottish Poet Laureate from 2016 to 2021. Her first novel Trumpet won the Authors' Club First Novel Award and the Guardian Fiction Prize. She is also the author of three collections of stories with Picador, Why Don't You Stop Talking, Wish I Was Here, and Reality, Reality; two poetry collections, Fiere and Bantam; and her memoir, Red Dust Road. She is Professor of Creative Writing at Newcastle University, and divides her time between Glasgow and Manchester, where she is currently Chancellor of the University of Salford.

Salena Godden is a high-profile poet, activist, broadcaster, essayist and memoirist whose work has been widely anthologised. Canongate pre-empted world rights to her debut novel Mrs Death Misses Death, which will be published in February 2021.