Margaret Busby is a writer and editor who was also the UK's youngest and first black woman publisher when she co-founded Allison & Busby, A&B in 1967. The idea behind A&B was to make poetry accessible and affordable to young people who cannot afford much and as an editorial director for over 20 years, she has published a cluster of significant titles such as Sam Greenlee’s The Spook Who Sat by the Door, Buchi Emecheta’s Second-Class Citizen, C.L.R. James’ The Black Jacobins, and George Lamming’s The Pleasures of Exile. She also compiled the groundbreaking anthology Daughters of Africa: An International Anthology of Words and Writings by Women of African Descent (1992), and 2019’s follow-up New Daughters of Africa, each volume showcasing the creativity of more than 200 writers.

Born in Ghana and educated in Britain she has been a literary awards judge, including the Caine, Baileys and Commonwealth prizes, served on the boards of PEN, Wasafiri and the Royal Literary Fund, and collected many honors, including the 2015 Henry Swanzy Award. She has received honours such as Honorary Fellowship of Queen Mary, University of London, the Bocas Henry Swanzy Award for Distinguished Service to Caribbean Letters, the Royal Society of Literature’s Benson Medal, honorary doctorates from the Open Universityand the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, and in 2019 the Royal African Society’s inaugural Africa Writes award for Lifetime Achievement.

Content Highlights: Margaret Busby MBIFL 2020 Festival Of Letters Mathrubhumi Literature Festival