Meet the founder behind Northampton book festival that readers and authors travel across the country for
Meet the founder behind a newly introduced Northampton book festival that readers, authors and independent bookish businesses travel across the country for.
Tamsin Shawe from West Hunsbury launched Scribe & Sign in August 2024, having lost the love for her long-standing career in the construction industry. With a passion for reading, books and authors, she launched this as a side hustle and it really took off.
“I’m a book buying enabler,” Tamsin told the Chronicle & Echo. “I source special editions, lightly read and new books, with a focus on independent authors. My job is to find your next best book.”
Scribe & Sign is an online business with a website, Etsy shop and presence on TikTok, with Tamsin hosting a livestream every Wednesday evening to a national audience who have become known as the ‘scribe tribe’.
Tamsin is praised for her reasonable prices and that orders are hand wrapped. Lightly read books have a lower price point, and the offering builds up to bookish bundles with items like candles, book lights and bookmarks included.
“Hundreds of thousands of books go into landfill every year, and my mission is to stop that happening,” said the founder. “I focus on secondhand and I’m picky so there are no bad books. I put my book knowledge into their hands so they can discover new authors.”
A new aspect to Tamsin’s offering is ScribeFest, with the first event of its kind having been hosted in June. The positive response means a larger Christmas edition is coming to Sedgebrook Hall on November 8.
There were 35 authors and 10 vendors at the first festival, with an increased number of 80 authors and 20 vendors at the one later this year. They will be joined by independent bookish businesses and attendees can look forward to exclusive interviews and author panels.
ScribeFest has already grown far beyond what Tamsin expected, after following her dream of creating an affordable and welcoming event where readers can meet authors, discover books they may never otherwise come across, and support independent writers and businesses.
VIP tickets are priced at £55 and attendees are welcome to attend from 9am, with general admission kickstarting from 10.30am. VIP tickets include an upgraded goodie bag with a free independent author book, free tea and coffee all day, allocated seating in the panel talks, and a ‘book butler’ where they can drop their bags off to be looked after for the day.
General admission is priced at £30 per person, tickets for four-to-16-year-olds are £20, and children under the age of four can enter the event for free.
Tamsin has been overwhelmed by the response to the event and said: “It makes me feel really proud. Community has always been at the core of it and I’ve pulled off bringing like-minded people together, who want to meet in real life and converse about the same things.”
The founder’s aim is for ScribeFest to be the most well-known independent author festival in the UK, describing it as the “Glastonbury of the book world”. Tamsin wants to grow the community and stock hundreds more independent authors for customers to discover.