Storymix: Craft and Conversation

Adeola Sokunbi spent years asking her mum if she could draw on the walls. The answer was always no. Then lockdown arrived, her mum gave in and said yes to the shed, liked what she saw, and handed over the rest of the house. The doodle that went up on the kitchen wall ended up on Instagram, Jasmine Richards slid into her DMs, and that is how Destiny Ink started. This week on Storymix: Craft and Conversation, and for the last episode of season two, Jasmine Richards talks to author-illustrator Adeola Sokunbi about DESTINY INK: TALENT SHOW MAGIC, published in the US by Nosy Crow on 15th September 2026 and already out in the UK. Destiny is about to go on stage for the first time and the nerves have arrived. She has her sketchbook, her hamster Fuzzy, and a habit of drawing things that then turn up. Adeola is also a software engineer, and she is in no hurry to stop being one, which makes this the right episode to ask what a dream job actually is. She talks about getting nervous with only one source of income, about how unstable publishing looks from where she is sitting, and why money should not be a dirty word for writers and illustrators. The other thread is how hard the way in is to find. Adeola came on board for Destiny Ink as an illustrator, then Jasmine read a YA fantasy she had written in lockdown and saw someone who could write as well as they could draw. Even now, with four books out and an award behind her and a brand new series dropping soon, Adeola says she is still not entirely sure how a person is supposed to become an author-illustrator. Listen, share and get into the conversation! Useful Links: ● Follow Adeola on Instagram: @adeolasokunbi ● Reach out to Adeola for enquiries or author visits: [email protected] ● See the kitchen wall doodle that started it all, in Adeola's blog for Nosy Crow: https://nosycrow.com/blog/the-inspiration-behind-the-destiny-ink-series-a-blog-by-adeola-sokunbi/ ● Buy the Destiny Ink series at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/storymix-craft-and-conversaton-the-reading-shelf ● Work with Storymix: https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us Credits www.storymix.co.uk 

Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

At one point Nicola Williamson was sharing a house with 22 guinea pigs, seven chickens, four rabbits, two dogs, two cats, a rooster called Jack Sparrow and two seagulls named Flappy and Crappy. She was also a vet for decades, and a veterinary ophthalmologist, and in 2022 she walked away from all of it to write full time. This week on Storymix: Craft and Conversation, Jasmine Richards talks to Nicola Williamson, writing as Nicci Johnson, about STABLEHEART: HELPING HERO, published by Simon & Schuster on 18th June 2026 and the first of four books. Prestige Knight is 11, moved from a country foster placement into a big Birmingham school partway through the year, and in with an aunt after years of not living with family. Then she finds Stableheart Yard, and a bay pony nobody can get near. Pony books have a fixed idea of who belongs in them. Nicola's grandmother was an excellent horsewoman, which she points out is not what people picture when they think of Black Jamaicans. What child readers say about Pres is that they don't notice. They just see a good book. Nicola and Jasmine also get into the heritage that slips away without anyone noticing, why some of her writer friends warned her off working with a book packager, how long the character of Hero the horse took to let her in, and what deadheading roses taught her about editing.                                                                                                                          Listen, share and get into the conversation! Useful Links: ● Check out Nicola's website: https://nickyloveswriting.com/ ● Follow Nicola on Instagram and TikTok: @nickyloveswriting ● Buy Stableheart at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/storymix-craft-and-conversaton-the-reading-shelf ● The FAB Prize, for undiscovered writers and illustrators of colour, which shortlisted Nicola in 2021: https://www.fabprize.org/ ● Work with Storymix: https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us 

Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

When Pardina Samson-Fessale was a child in Saint Lucia, her mum, the only South African on the island at the time, marched into Nelson Mandela's hotel and refused to leave until they had met him. He gave Pardina a glass of orange juice and told her to be a good girl and listen to her mother.
This week on Storymix: Craft and Conversation, Jasmine Richards talks to Pardina Samson-Fessale, writing as P. J. Killburn, about DEAD YARD: DEEP TROUBLE, illustrated by Markia Jenai and published by Little Tiger on 3rd September 2026.
In book two, Jermaine has won his film competition and feels guilty about how he won it. Then children start disappearing from his corner of Shepherd's Bush, and every one of them was last seen near the Thames. That points to Mami Wata, a water deity carried from West Africa to the Caribbean through the transatlantic slave trade. She is not a duppy. She is a good spirit, which makes what is happening in the waterways of London all the more worrying.
Pardina and Jasmine talk about access at every level. What Pardina had to learn once writing stopped being a hobby, from royalties and contracts to being told to engage on Instagram, which she is certain she is terrible at. What publishing could do for the writers coming up behind her, which turns out to be less about encouragement than about telling people the actual next step. And access on the page, including the Caribbean word she cut from book one because not every reader would have grown up hearing it.
There is also the matter of book one, Dead Yard: Seeds of Doom, being shortlisted for the Lollies 2026, an award for funny books, which Pardina finds hilarious given that she wrote a spooky story.
Plus: writing book two in the middle of planning a wedding, testing dialogue by saying it out loud in her best cantankerous old man voice, why Nine Night traditions fade three or four generations into the diaspora, and why a disappointed family matriarch is scarier than any vampire.
Listen, share and get into the conversation!
Useful Links:
● Follow Pardina on Instagram: @pardinawrites
● Buy Dead Yard: Deep Trouble at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/dead-yard-deep-trouble/ea89d70537e81fd6?ean=9781788957922&listref=storymix-projects&aid=7068&bkshp-astro=t
● Buy Book 1, Dead Yard: Seeds of Doom at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/dead-yard-seeds-of-doom-p-j-killburn/4e45b2e4cab7e5ad?ean=9781788957649&listref=storymix-projects&aid=7068&bkshp-astro=t
● Vote for Dead Yard: Seeds of Doom in the Lollies 2026: https://shop.scholastic.co.uk/lollies
● Explore Dead Yard's publisher, Little Tiger, at https://littletiger.co.uk/
● Explore Pardina and Jermaine's favourite film director, Ryan Coogler's filmography: https://letterboxd.com/director/ryan-coogler/
● Work with Storymix: https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us

Support Storymix
Support our mission to make children's books more inclusive by buying us a coffee: https://ko-fi.com/storymixfundraising
Why support us? Storymix creates original, high-concept fiction with inclusive casts of characters, giving every child the chance to be the hero. Founded in 2019 by author Jasmine Richards, we act as a springboard for racially-minoritized creators, incubating talent to produce stories that resonate with young readers everywhere. Since our launch, publishers have sold over 500,000 copies of our titles.


Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

In the 1990s, Savita Kalhan smuggled books through customs in the lining of her suitcase. Three decades on, she's writing teen horror under a name built from names that are very important to her

This week on Storymix: Craft and Conversation, Jasmine Richards talks to Savita Kalhan — writing as S. R. Krish — about THE LOST NAME SOCIETY, published by Fox & Ink Books on 3rd September 2026.

 

At Marybourne School, a hundred students sign a charter agreeing to compete for the Pentangle Prize. None of them know the games are lethal. Andy — whose real name is Aniruddha — is about to find out.

 

Savita and Jasmine talk about the power of names: the ones we're given, the ones we're made to give up, and the ones we choose for ourselves. Savita explains the very personal reason behind the name S. R. Krish, and why it felt right for this particular book.

 

They also get into what it does to a young reader to grow up never seeing a child like themselves in any of the books they love, and how long it can take before a writer feels they have permission to put those characters on the page. Savita discusses the CLPE's Reflecting Realities research, why South Asian protagonists remain so underrepresented in UK children's books, and why the recent slippage in those numbers matters.

 

Plus: moving into horror after a career in contemporary fiction, what teenagers actually want from a scary book right now, and something Savita noticed in school writing workshops that changed how she runs them.

 

Listen, share and get into the conversation.

 

USEFUL LINKS

Follow Savita on Instagram: @savita_kalhan

Savita's website: https://savitakalhan.com/

Book Savita for a school visit via Authors Aloud UK: https://authorsalouduk.co.uk/speaker/savita-kalhan/

Buy THE LOST NAME SOCIETY at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/storymix-craft-and-conversaton-the-reading-shelf

CLPE Reflecting Realities Report: https://clpe.org.uk/research/reflecting-realities

Work with Storymix: https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us

 

CREDITS

www.storymix.co.uk

Host: Jasmine Richards

Producers: Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

Cover art for THE LOST NAME SOCIETY by Douglas Lopez

Music by @Alexthetruefoodie on Instagram

Socials: @storymixstudio @savita_kalhan

 

SUPPORT STORYMIX

Support our mission to make children's books more inclusive by buying us a coffee: https://ko-fi.com/storymixfundraising

 

Why support us? Storymix creates original, high-concept fiction with inclusive casts of characters, giving every child the chance to be the hero. Founded in 2019 by author Jasmine Richards, we act as a springboard for racially-minoritized creators, incubating talent to produce stories that resonate with young readers everywhere. Since our launch, publishers have sold over 500,000 copies of our titles.

 










Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

In this episode, we're talking to Lui Sit, who writes under the pen name Scarlett Li, author of The Lucky House Detective Agency, published by Storymix Books on 11th June 2026. We talk about why Lui thinks that collaboration with Storymix made The Lucky House Detective Agency all the more richer. We get into the pressure she's felt at points in her career to — in her words — "Chinese-ify" a story, and how she found a way to write authentically without that becoming the whole book. We also cover the rollercoaster of having her publisher going into administration and the book's new life with Storymix Books. So here's my conversation with Lui Sit.

  Useful Links: ●      Check out Lui’s website: https://www.lui-land.co.uk/ ●      Follow Lui on Instagram: @lui.land ●      Buy The Lucky House Detective Agency at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/storymix-craft-and-conversaton-the-reading-shelf ●      Buy The Land of the Last Wildcat at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/land-of-the-last-wildcat-lui-sit/37047eafeab0ddeb?ean=9781035040315&listref=storymix-craft-and-conversaton-the-reading-shelf&aid=7068&bkshp-astro=t ●      Pre-order The Wildcat and the Gathering Storm at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/the-wildcat-and-the-gathering-storm-lui-sit/a596e2226d700f7b?ean=9781035040346&listref=storymix-craft-and-conversaton-the-reading-shelf&aid=7068&bkshp-astro=t ●      Work with StoryMix: https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us     

Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

This week on our episode of Storymix: Craft and Conversation Season 2, Jasmine Richards chats with YA author Angelica Ellis, who writes under the pen name A. M. Ellis, about blending two genres, who gets to write which stories, and the expectation around stories centering pain and trauma. A.M Ellis's book, I Feel Your Pain, published by Penguin Random House, came out on 25th June 2026. Listen, share and get into the conversation!
Useful Links:

• Follow Angelica on Instagram: @amonaiellis
• Transcript can be found here
• Buy I Feel Your Pain at Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/storymix-craft-and-conversaton-the-reading-shelf 
• Buy Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston at Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/their-eyes-were-watching-god-zora-neale-hurston/7130ce64b4702b25?ean=9780060838676&bkshp-astro=t
• Buy Divergent by Veronica Roth at Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/p/books/divergent-veronica-roth/5c707406766d2a58?ean=9780062387240&bkshp-astro=t
• Buy the Sookie Stackhouse series by Charlaine Harris at Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/beta-search?bkshp-astro=t&keywords=sookie+stackhouse
• Buy the Daughters of the Moon series 
• Work with Storymix: https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us

Credits
Host: Jasmine Richards
Producers: Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic
Music by @Alexthetruefoodie on Instagram
Socials: @storymixstudio @amonaiellis

Support our mission to make children's books more inclusive by buying us a coffee: https://ko-fi.com/storymixfundraising
Why support us? Storymix creates original, high-concept fiction with inclusive casts of characters, giving every child the chance to be the hero. Founded in 2019 by author Jasmine Richards, we act as a springboard for racially-minoritized creators, incubating talent to produce stories that resonate with young readers everywhere. Since our launch, publishers have sold over 500,000 copies of our titles.



____________________________



Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

In the first episode of Season 2 of Storymix: Craft and Conversation, Storymix founder Jasmine Richards talks to debut children’s author Siren Knight about mixed race identity, Caribbean history, teenage life and the creative journey behind her new novel, Princess (Apparently).Siren and Jasmine explore what it means to write characters who live “in-between”, including Della, the mixed race teenager at the heart of Princess (Apparently). They discuss belonging, Black royalty, the imagined Caribbean island monarchy of St Antonique, and the real history that provided the “sliding door” inspiration for the novel.They also talk about why stories featuring marginalised young people should be allowed to be commercial, romantic and joyful, rather than existing simply to educate readers. Drawing on Siren’s experience as a teacher, they get into what adults often misunderstand about teenagers, ambition, work and politics, as well as the books that shaped Siren as a young reader, from The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton to Noughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman.Princess (Apparently) by Siren Knight is published by Usborne on 13 August 2026.In this episode:

• Writing mixed race identity and belonging
• Creating Della, the teenage heroine of Princess (Apparently)
• Black royalty, Caribbean history and St Antonique
• Representation without turning characters into lessons
• Writing joyful, commercial stories with big ideas
• What teaching teenagers reveals about writing for young people
• The books and writers that shaped Siren’s storytelling

Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

This week on the final episode of the season of Storymix: Craft and Conversation, Maame Blue and Azi Farni chat extensively with children’s literary agent Davinia Andrew-Lynch about what it really means to be a literary agent, industry expectations, and answering the constant question: how do you get a seat at the publishing table? Listen, share and get into the conversation!

Useful Links:

• Davinia Andrew-Lynch at Curtis Brown
• The Fab Prize
• Follow Davinia on Twitter @nocturnalreader and Instagram @andlynlit

Credits
www.storymix.co.uk
Hosts: Azi Farni and Maame Blue
Producers: Azi Farni and Maame Blue
Music by @Alexthetruefoodie on Instagram
Socials: @storymixstudio @maame_blue @art.by.azi
Recorded at Dream Factory

Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

This week on Storymix: Craft and Conversation, in our final Craft episode of the season, Maame Blue takes you through the crucial steps needed to get your stories out of your head and into the hands of agents and publishers. Plus, our 5 Minute Mentor Jasmine Richards shares some great tricks for writing the elevator pitch for your story idea! Listen, share and get into the craft!

Useful Links:

• Writers and Artists Yearbook
• SCBWI Illustrator Gallery

Credits
www.storymix.co.uk
Host: Maame Blue
Producers: Azi Farni and Maame Blue
Music by @Alexthetruefoodie on Instagram
Socials: @storymixstudio @maame_blue @art.by.azi
Recorded at Dream Factory

Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic

This week on Storymix: Craft and Conversation, Maame Blue and Azi Farni sit down with author and teacher J. T. Williams - who wrote The Lizzie and Belle Mysteries - to discuss how research can play a part in story development, what it takes to create characters from real figures in history, and how to navigate the question: How do I tackle big topics like slavery and racism when writing for children? Listen, share and get into the conversation!

Useful Links:

• J. T. Williams books
• Follow JT Williams on Instagram (@lizzie_and_belle) and Twitter (@ojibrown73)

Credits
www.storymix.co.uk
Hosts: Azi Farni and Maame Blue
Producers: Azi Farni and Maame Blue
Music by @Alexthetruefoodie on Instagram
Socials: @storymixstudio @maame_blue @art.by.azi
Recorded at Dream Factory

Follow Storymix:
https://www.storymix.co.uk
https://www.storymix.co.uk/create-with-us
Instagram: @storymixstudioFollow Siren Knight:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sirenknight
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sirenkn1ght   
The music for Storymix: Craft and Conversation is by @Alexthetruefoodie.
Artwork is by Reyhana Ismail 
Produced by Jessica Horton and Sonja Stojiljkovic