The Annual Event is a month long celebration of all things UKYA, highlighting books by British and Irish authors (resident and national) and asking their views on topic affecting the community. All views are the author’s own.
About the Authors:
Clara Kumagai is from Ireland, Japan and Canada. Catfish Rolling, her debut novel, was a 2024 YOTO Carnegie Medal nominee, and winner of the 2024 KPMG Children’s Books Ireland Book of the Year. Her second novel, Songs for Ghosts, is out in 2025. She lives and writes in Ireland.
Originally from South Africa, Marilize Loxton holds a BA in English Literature and Creative Writing. With over five years of experience in the marketing industry, she’s especially intrigued by the power of social media to connect readers and sell books. Now based in Hampshire, England, Marilize can often be found exploring countryside trails with her beloved Cocker Spaniel. When she’s not writing young adult and adult fantasy novels, she’s likely feeding her candle obsession or savouring a perfectly brewed cup of coffee.
Salomey Duko is a self-taught freelance author-illustrator from Leeds, England. Originally trained in architecture, in which she worked for over 3 years, she started watercolour painting in 2018 and quickly fell in love with the art of storytelling. An ardent lover of kids books and bubble tea, she is inspired by her diverse community, the natural world, and all things bright and beautiful. When she is not drawing, she is either daydreaming, going on long walks around Yorkshire, jetting off on international city breaks, at church, or talking to her pet hedgehog Strawberry.
About their books:
Title: SONGS FOR GHOSTS
Author: Clara Kumagai
Pitch:A retelling of Puccini’s Madame Butterfly meets Japanese ghost stories. When Japanese-American teenager, Adam, discovers a diary in his attic, he is enthralled by its account of a young Japanese woman’s life. A hundred years separate them yet she, like Adam, is caught between cultures, relationships and heartbreak.
Find on Goodreads. Find on Bookshop.org (affiliate link).
Title: A WISH SO DEADLY
Author: Marilize Loxton
Pitch: After stealing cursed jewels from a Soulreaper, and her sister’s soul is stolen, a girl with the ability to sense emotions through taste and smell strikes a dangerous deal. Compete for a wish in a deadly magical tournament on an island riddled with beasts, alongside the Soulreaper’s mysterious but handsome protégé. He’s dangerous, unpredictable and hiding secrets that could cost her sister’s life. But when the sea monster dragged her under, he was the one who pulled her out…
Find on Goodreads. Find on Bookshop.org (affiliate link).
Title: PROJECT FAIRYTALE
Author: Salomey Duko
Pitch: Brielle’s first year at Once Upon a Time University comes to a whirlwind end, as the lines between friendship, love, betrayal, and trust, begin to blur, and long buried secrets begin to stir. Tensions rise, and Brielle’s fairytale begins to crumble around her. Can she, Bear, and their friends find within themselves the courage they need to keep pursuing happily ever after? With difficult choices to make, the path to a fairytale ending may not be as straightforward as Brielle originally imagined. Maybe it’s time to rewrite those fairytale rules…
Find on Goodreads. Find on Bookshop.org (affiliate link).
In your opinion, how has social media helped foster the UKYA community?
Clara Kumagai: It has helped connect writers and readers, but equally as important, it has connected writers to each other and helped form community.
Marilize Loxton: In my experience, I wouldn’t have been able to connect with and celebrate the achievements of other UKYA authors without social media. I also love seeing UKYA authors (especially debut authors like myself) create hype around their books by launching street teams. This brings together readers, fellow authors and bookfluencers to shout about upcoming YA books, and gives lesser-known authors a platform they might not have had otherwise.
Salomey Doku: It has connected us in ways we otherwise would not have been able to by ourselves, and made easy for us what we would have struggled to do on our own, especially if limited by resources. It connects readers with new titles, and publishers and authors to a wider audience than they might have had offline.
In which ways do you think we can responsibly use social media to introduce YA titles to teenagers? How can we go beyond social media to reach them, given conversations in several countries around re-thinking current legislation on such platforms for minors?
Clara Kumagai: The main way to go beyond social media is to have more in-person events, liaising with libraries, schools and bookshops. I am aware that this requires a lot more attention and cost, but this is how I imagine we can go ‘beyond’ social media. I do also think online events can work–eg. virtual author visits.
Marilize Loxton: I think we can responsibly use social media to introduce YA titles to teenagers by engaging them on platforms where they’re already most active, and through content that is age-appropriate and mindful of emotional well-being, and includes trigger warnings where applicable. I really like library initiatives, author events and book subscription boxes as ways to introduce titles beyond social media.
Salomey Doku: Bringing YA titles into schools, as school is where teens spend a vast majority of their time. Introducing new titles to teachers and librarians, and working with schools is always a good idea. Some students may not have the resources to purchase new titles themselves, so making free copies of new titles available is essential.
How do you think the YA market is going to change thanks to emerging technologies like AI?
Clara Kumagai: I am concerned that the market will be flooded by AI written or assisted work, particularly in the areas of genre fiction and self-publishing. I am also concerned about the use of AI in images and illustrations (including elements like book teasers, trailers, character art etc).
Marilize Loxton: I’m worried that the YA market is going to become saturated with AI-generated books and content that aren’t checked for quality and factual accuracy (if appropriate). We will also lose that human aspect which helps teens relate to characters and their problems.
Salomey Doku: I hope very little! It would be a damned shame to see the quality and breadth of exciting and unique voices diluted by a bastardised, ingenuine processing of tone and style copied and spat out by a machine.
What steps would you like publishing needs to take in response to the rise of AI?
Clara Kumagai: I think getting behind legislation to protect creators’ rights is very important, and taking a firm stance against writers/illustrators who use AI.
Marilize Loxton: Definitely establish firmer guidelines around quality checks and factual accuracy. And also establish firmer copyright rules to protect authors and their work from being stolen by AI.
Salomey Doku: My fervent hope is that publishers will always reject this bastardisation, and value living, breathing authors as pure fountains of sparkling wit and intelligence such as an AI model can never possess. Similarly, that they will value the skill and experience of living, breathing illustrators, and keep the traditional publishing YA industry a thoroughly high class market – it’s what readers absolutely deserve.
Thank you all! For more interviews, check here and don’t forget to check instagram (here) for book recommendations from these authors and more!
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