Where better to write than a bookshop with a cafe? When better than at 5am? Join other local writers from 5am on the first Wednesday of every month to write as the sun comes up.

Coffee, tea and pastries available to kickstart your writing morning.

We’ll open the shop at 5am and you’re welcome to join us then, or at anytime after that – and leave whenever you need to. The shop opens to the general public at 9.30am but if you’re in full flow, you’re free to stay as long as you like.

Tickets are limited to 20 as we only have so many chairs and table space. While the majority of writers sit upstairs in the cafe, we also have chairs and tables on the ground floor and in the cosy basement, so feel free to spread yourself about throughout the bookshop – wherever you feel comfortable.

We’ve had to increase our prices in 2025 because of the increase in Eventbrite fees, the minimum wage and Employers National Insurance. Tickets now cost £10 (including VAT) BUT in addition to including your first coffee or pot of tea, you will also get a 30% discount on any other drinks or snacks. The local bakery usually delivers our pastries at about 7.30am to give you that extra energy boost.

This is a silent write session – there’s no workshopping, just the motivation of being around other writers as the sun comes up. We can promise you a magical atmosphere.

Why do we do this? Author and bookshop owner Cathy Hayward has regularly risen at 5am to write and she wondered if other local writers did the same. We started the 5am Writing Club in the bookshop as a trial on the Summer Solstice 2023. They’ve proved popular so they’re now a monthly fixture and we’ll keep running them as long as people keep turning up. If you have any questions, or feedback, email cathy@kemptownbookshop.co.uk

Tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable just because of the admin involved and Eventbrite’s high fees – sorry.