Applying for Arts Council Funding with Penny Batchelor – Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses Network Meeting

Join us for our next online meet-up on Thursday 27 November from 2pm.

In the meeting we will hear from Penny Batchelor about her experience successfully applying for Arts Council Funding through their Develop Your Creative Practice program. She will share her tips on how to apply and what she learnt from the experience.

Penny Batchelor is an Amazon-bestselling author with a reputation for gripping plots, compelling characters and jaw-dropping twists. Her first psychological thriller My Perfect Sister was longlisted The Guardian‘s Not The Booker Prize 2020. The Woman Next Door was published on 15th May 2025.

In 2022 she co-founded with publisher Clare Christian the ADCI Literary Prize for disabled and chronically ill authors who include positive disability representation in their novels, for which she is one of the judges. Also with Clare Christian, Penny co-founded the #KeepFestivalsHybrid campaign, urging literary festivals to maintain an online presence following the relaxation of pandemic lockdown rules. With author Victoria Scott she successfully campaigned for Amazon to introduce a disability fiction character for adults in their books section. Penny writes columns for The Bookseller on disability and publishing issues and co-edited the 2025 disability takeover edition.

She is a regular speaker at literary festivals and events, both in person and online, with past engagements including Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, Women’s Prize LIVE, The Society of Authors, Arts University Bournemouth, Gwyl Crime Cymru Festival, London Book Fair and Warwickshire Library Service.

About the Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses Network 

The Authors with Disabilities and Chronic Illnesses network is a member-led peer support network aims to break feelings of isolation by connecting authors facing common experiences, in an online community that offers continuing professional and personal support.

We run monthly get-togethers using Zoom, where you can chat informally online with others. Depending on your computer or device, you can take part either using audio or video. Please let us know if you have any specific needs that will help you take part.

Our primary aim is to offer a friendly and supportive space where you can feel safe to ask questions, share experiences, offer advice, and make new connections. For more information, visit our Network page here.

Our online meet-ups are free to attend for ADCI Network members only. To join us, click the Going button below and enter your details in the RSVP form. We’ll send you an email with a link to join us on Zoom.

If the confirmation email doesn’t arrive in your inbox, please check your junk mail folder! 

If you have any access questions please contact us at disabledauthors@gmail.com