WORLDBOOKDAY
KENT ’ S LITERARY CONNECTIONS
A PROFOUNDLY HISTORIC LANDSCAPE FILLED WITH ROLLING COUNTRYSIDE , STUNNING ARCHITECTURE AND CHARACTERFUL TOWNS , IT ’ S NO WONDER THAT OUR COUNTY HAS A RICH LITERARY HISTORY THAT ’ S BEEN IMMORTALISED IN PRINT FOR CENTURIES . WHETHER YOU ’ RE A GARDEN OF ENGLAND NATIVE OR ARE VISITING FOR A WEEKEND AWAY AT THE COAST , IT IS HERE IN KENT THAT HUNDREDS OF WRITERS INDULGED THEIR IMAGINATIONS TO CREATE SOME OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL STORIES OF OUR TIME , FROM CHAUCER ’ S MAGNUM OPUS TO THE DICKENSIAN TALES WE KNOW AND LOVE SO WELL . IN CELEBRATION OF THIS YEAR ’ S WORLD BOOK DAY ( THURSDAY 6 MARCH ), HERE ARE insideKENT ’ S TOP HISTORIC AND CONTEMPORARY WRITERS WHO HAVE PRESERVED KENT WITHIN THEIR PAGES .
Heartstopper : Volume One , Alice Oseman ( 1994 - )
A bestselling young adult graphic novel series exploring adolescence , friendship and self-discovery , Heartstopper : Volume One is the first of six volumes following the lives of Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring . A comingof-age LGBTQ + romance that tackles the darkness of mental health in a lighthearted way , the Heartstopper novels are the ultimate comfort read for those who find themselves represented within its chapters .
44 • www . insidekent . co . uk
Born in Chatham , Kent , Alice Oseman grew up in a village near Rochester and secured a publishing deal for their first novel , Solitaire , at the age of 17 . Five years later , they began writing and illustrating Heartstopper , and what started as an online webcomic navigating the story of Nick and Charlie - side characters in the story of Solitaire ’ s Tori Spring - quickly became a passion project that garnered millions of fans from across the world . Writing from their realworld experiences , the Heartstopper series was heavily inspired by Oseman ’ s time at
Rochester Grammar School in Kent , a samesex grammar school much like the fictional Truham Boys School and Higgs Girls School within their novels . Featuring a visit to the University of Kent ’ s campus within volume five , it ’ s no surprise that the television adaptation of the series was filmed across the county , using Herne Bay High School as well as the town ’ s sandy beaches for shots within season one of Heartstopper ( 2022 ), now streaming on Netflix .