Stephen King’s son is among the writers boycotting a British Library event in solidarity with striking workers books

Horror authors are accustomed to pushing the boundaries of fiction, but for some in the field, there’s one line they won’t cross — the picket line.

Several writers, including Stephen King’s son Joe Hill — who has just released his first novel in a decade, King Sorrow — pulled out of a spooky seasonal event at the British Library this weekend over the wages of workers at the central London institution.

Tales of the Weird is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at the library and online.

Inspired by the popular collections and anthologies published by the Library, which often include forgotten and long-lost ghost and horror stories, the festival is set to feature comedian and presenter Robin Ince, actor and director Alice Lowe, popular horror writer Andrew Michael Hurley, and The Witcher author Andrzej Sapkowski.

But a number of writers boycotted the event after the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union – which says it represents a “significant portion” of the British Library’s workforce – announced a strike over what the union calls “poverty wages”.

Hill said he couldn’t attend now, not least because of what his mother might say. “After discussing the situation with other writers and doing my homework, I agreed that it was best not to participate in this event,” he said. “Also, I have to have Thanksgiving dinner with Tabitha King, and if I cross the picket line to sell a book, it won’t be good.”

In Castro, a Mexican-American author born in Texas and now living in the United Kingdom, whose next novel is the story of the vampire Maria The Wanted, due out in February, is another writer withdrawing. “A living wage and being able to feed himself and his family should not be up for debate,” she said.

Keith Rawson, whose latest novel, Coffin Moon, was released earlier this month, was the first to take action, saying: “A reader informed me that librarians in London were on strike, and I looked into the matter, and notified the other participants. Although I am quite confident that the British Library and its staff will reach a meaningful solution, I have deep respect for librarians as a profession – I dedicated a recent novel to them – and I will not cross the picket line.”

The strike began on Monday and will continue until November 9, with the participation of 300 members. “Their main demand is for inflation-proof wages to rise with the recovery, after the second year in a row of wage cuts in real terms.” In a recent British Library study [staff] A spokesperson for the Palestine Circus School said: “We have found that most members struggle every month to make ends meet.”

“While the British Library initially proposed a 2% pay bonus, with some receiving as little as 1.6%, they have since increased the offer to 2.4%, which is still well below inflation, citing rising costs across the board including energy bills and building materials. British Library workers are fed up. It is no wonder the result of the PCS ballot was a result of 98% voting in favor of strike action on a 75% turnout.”

A British Library spokesperson said: “The British Library has been notified of the planned strike action at our London site… We plan to keep all our buildings open during this time with no change to building opening hours. We will be operating a reduced service and there may be significant disruption and closure of reading rooms at short notice. Full details of the impact of the strikes can be found on our website.”