Children's Literature Festival: Writing for Children and Writing by Children

1 April 2010 - 10 November 2010

About the research

exetreme imagination is a biennial festival of literature for children and young people, partially funded by the Arts Council.  Debra Myhill leads the exetreme imagination partnership, which is not an organisation, but an innovative collaboration of arts organisations and local institutions, working together to co-create this Festival.  The aims of the exetreme imagination partnership are to:

• enthuse and inspire children and young people across Exeter, showcasing high quality writing for children, and fostering talent in writing by children and young people;
• engage marginalised and low engagement groups of young people, and families/carers in Exeter;
• programme accessible activities which occur in schools, in community settings, in  cultural venues, and in the natural environment;
• inspire and inform adults using writing by and for young people as a creative tool to develop better understanding of  young people and what is relevant to them;
• strengthen and extend sustainable collaborative partnerships between creative organisations within Exeter.

Uniquely, amongst children’s literature festivals, exetreme imagination brings together all the major arts and culture organisations in Exeter in a creative collaboration, bringing children’s authors into schools, communities and arts venues to work alongside children and young people, sharing their experiences as writers and engaging young people in the power of the written word.  At the same time, the festival inspires young people by using the arts as the imaginative springboard for writing, or as the medium through which writing can be reinterpreted and reframed.  Although primarily designed as an arts event, exetreme imagination enables research into the way young people engage with authors and into the creative writing experiences of children and young people.