NOVELIST Sarah Harrison drops into the region next month as part of the Word Market festival.

Best-known for her First World War family saga The Flowers of the Field and more recently The Grass Memorial, Sarah joins the literary festival's special readers conference on Saturday, February 7 (10am-4pm), at Ulverston's Lanternhouse.

Her visit ties in with the publication of her latest novel, The Dreaming Stones.

Also in the line-up of guest speakers are Lancaster's Litfest director Andy Darby, and organiser of the Cheltenham Literature Festival Adam Puskin.

Tickets are available from The Bookshop at Tinner's Rabbit on 01229-588858.

The conference includes workshops and is part of the second Word Market - South Cumbria's Writers and Readers Festival, which runs from next Wednesday (February 4) until Saturday, February 14.

A couple of new additions this year include a poetry walk along the shoreline from Baycliff to Ulverston, with the esteemed Welfare State International director John Fox.

Ten days of literary fun and games are promised: workshops, seminars, master classes, readings, plus pub scripts, where writers are challenged to pen a five-minute play set in a pub.

And top wordsmith and broadcaster Simon Armitage stars at a poem and pint' night in Ulverston's Coronation Hall on February 7 (7.30pm).

The Westmorland Gazette's website www.thisisthelakedistrict.co.uk has joined forces with Word Market and will be launching a poetry and short story competition during the festival.

Find more details after February 4.

Further details about Word Market are available on 01229-475464.