Happy Ever Afters with Sharon Gosling, Rebecca Ryan and Heidi Swain

Authors Sharon Gosling, Rebecca Ryan and Heidi Swain join Simon and Schuster's Sara-Jade Virtue to discuss their new feel-good novels, idylic settings, love, life and answer some important questions - what is love and what makes a happily ever after?

Sharon Gosling started her career as an entertainment journalist, writing non-fiction books about film and television. She is also the author of multiple children’s books. Sharon and her husband live in a small village in northern Cumbria. She can be found on X @sharongosling.

Rebecca Ryan lives in Bradford with her three young children. Although she always loved writing, it hadn’t really occurred to her that she could do it professionally. She recently left her job as a teacher to pursue writing full-time. She enjoys walking in the countryside and takeaways (if that counts as a hobby).

Heidi Swain is a Sunday Times Top Ten best-selling author who writes feel-good fiction for Simon & Schuster. She releases two books a year (early summer and winter) and the stories all have a strong sense of community, family and friendship. She is currently writing books set in three locations - the Fenland town of Wynbridge, Nightingale Square in Norwich and Wynmouth on the Norfolk coast, as well as summer standalone titles. Heidi lives in beautiful west Norfolk. She is passionate about gardening, the countryside, collecting vintage paraphernalia and reading. Her tbr pile is always out of control! Heidi loves to chat with her readers and you can get in touch via her website or on social media.

Sara-Jade Virtue has worked in the book industry for nearly 22 years, firstly at Waterstones Head Office in the Fiction Buying Team. She joined Simon & Schuster UK in 2007 and spent 12 years as Special Sales Director and Brand Director, before moving into Editorial as Brand Development Director, working across the commercial women’s fiction list. She runs the Books and the City community, manages the #DigitalOriginals publishing programme, #OneDay open submission project, and leads the Jackie Collins publishing programme. She’s also the founder of the #RespectRomFic movement, aiming to increase the profile of romantic novelists in the UK.

About the Festival
After a triumphant debut year, the Edinburgh Women’s Fiction Festival is back for 2024 with a bigger, even more stunning lineup.

The Edinburgh Women's Fiction Festival is a literary festival celebrating writing for, by, and about women. We are an inclusive event and welcome everyone who finds joy in reading women's fiction - commercial, romance, historical, literary, book club and beyond. Our festival showcases authors of genres that are often overlooked, and our aim is to give readers the opportunity to connect with their favourite writers.

This year's festival will take place on Friday 27th and Saturday 28th September 2024, in our lovely venue of Morningside United Church - just five minutes walk from Bruntsfield Links and a short bus ride from the city centre. Directly opposite our main venue is our gorgeous Green Room and Festival Bar at McLaren's on the Corner, where you can relax between events and enjoy some refreshments.

2024 Programme
Details of our full programme will be announced soon, but you can see the line-up so on our website.

Tickets
General ticket sales will begin on 27th July 2024

Our festival strongly believes in paying our authors, chairs, and workshop leaders the fee recommended by the Scottish Book Trust, which has increased (which is wonderful for our authors!). This has meant an increase in ticket prices, but we are certain you’ll think it’s worth it!

Concession tickets — Where applicable, are available to students, registered disabled (plus one companion), registered unemployed, under 16s, Young Scot card holders and sponsors. Proof of entitlement will be required.