Orlaine McDonald, Lisa Smith and Francis Spufford explore how South London has inspired and shaped their novels, hosted by Rachael Allen.
In Orlaine McDonald’s No Small Thing, three generations of women reckon with the power and pain of mothering on a South London housing estate. In Lisa Smith’s Jamaica Road it is 1981 and Daphne is the only black child in her class until a boy named Connie Smith arrives from Jamaica and they form an intense bond. In Light Perpetual, Francis Spufford takes his inspiration from the real life V2 Rocket attack on a Woolworths in New Cross in 1944 that killed 168 people. These three award winning writers sit down with author, editor and lecturer Rachael Allen to discuss how South London has inspired and shaped their novels.
Presented in partnership with Goldsmiths Writers’ Centre.
Francis Spufford photo credit: (C) Antonio Olmos
About Deptford Literature Festival
Deptford Literature Festival takes place each March and celebrates the diversity and creativity of Deptford and Lewisham through words, stories and performance. It is run by London Writers Centre in a collaboration with independent producer Tom MacAndrew, with support from the Albany, Deptford Lounge and Lewisham Libraries. The festival is part of our campaign to make Lewisham the UK’s first Borough of Literature. You can find out more about Deptford Literature Festival and see the full festival programme at: deptfordlitfest.com
Orlaine McDonald is a writer of Jamaican and Irish heritage, and lives in London. Her debut novel No Small Thing was shortlisted for the 2024 Nero Book Awards for Debut Fiction, the 2025 RSL Ondaatje Prize and was a June Indie Book of The Month pick. She is winner of the 2025 Kate O’Brien Award.
Lisa Smith is a British Jamaican author and documentary filmmaker from South London. She has an MA in creative and life writing from Goldsmiths, University of London where she won the Pat Kavanagh Prize in 2019. Her short story Auld Lang Syne won the Guardian 4th Estate 4thWrite Prize in 2017 and in 2020 she was selected to join the London Library Emerging Writers Programme. Jamaica Road was published in June 2025 and is her first novel.
Francis Spufford teaches Creative Writing at Goldsmiths in New Cross. His novel Light Perpetual, longlisted for the Booker Prize in 2022, was set in an imaginary South London borough with bits of Deptford, bits of Lewisham, bits of New Cross and bits of Peckham mixed into it. His new book Nonesuch is mostly set in the City, during the Blitz.
Rachael Allen is the author of Kingdomland and God Complex, both published by Faber. Kingdomland (2019), was a Poetry Book Society Choice. She was the recipient of a Northern Writers’ Award and an Eric Gregory Award. She was born in Cornwall, and works as an editor and lecturer.
This year, the festival is running with limited public or charitable support. We have brought in a ticket price of £3 for the majority of the events to help cover some of the festival costs.
Children’s and family events are free for parents, guardians and carers. Tickets must be purchased for children. Parents, guardians carers must stay with their child/ children during the event.
Carers can attend for free. When booking your ticket, you can add a free carers ticket to your basket.
Six of the festival events are free to attend: Lewisham Libraries Celebrates Local Writers (Saturday 21 March), The Goldsmiths Prize Presents: Kate Briggs In Conversation (Wednesday 25 March), Poetry in the Library (Thursday 26 March) and on the festival day – Saturday 28 March: Lewisham Writers’ Link Up, Lewisham Writes: Writing the Seasons, and CRIPtic x London Writers Centre Salon.
As far as possible, by booking a ticket we ask that you commit to attending, as places for in-person events are limited. If you can no longer attend, please cancel your ticket so someone else can come along.
You can manage your ticket/s by clicking on the ‘manage tickets’ link at the end of your booking confirmation email.
Three of our in-person events on the festival day (Saturday 28 March) will have BSL Interpretation in-place for audiences that require it: South London in Fiction; Mother Tongue: Poetry, Family and Inheritance; and Navigating Culture: Black Male Writers on Britain Today.
BSL interpretation is available on request for all other festival day (Saturday 28 March) events. If you require this, please book a ticket by Friday 6 March, and request BSL interpretation as you book. We will then arrange for this to be put in place.
All venues are wheelchair accessible, with accessible toilets.
The festival hub on Saturday 28 March, Deptford Lounge, has Changing Place facilities, an induction loop and assistance dogs are welcome. For more information: deptfordlounge.org.uk/access
If you require assistance on the festival day itself, Saturday 28 March, please come to the Festival Hub in the foyer of Deptford Lounge where we will be happy to help you.
If you require additional access provision in order to attend or take part in the festival, for example, larger print handouts at workshops, or a scribe, please get in touch before the festival day at: festival@londonwriterscentre.org.uk
Deptford Literature Festival celebrates local talent and introduces exciting new writers from Lewisham and nearby boroughs. We want to be able to continue to offer our workshops, readings, events and community projects at a low cost. We do not want finances to be a barrier to anyone taking part. If you are in a position to make a donation, please give a gift today. Anything you give will help more people come to future festivals.
BSL Interpretation
