The Art of Opposition English 2026

Both as a novelist and as a screenwriter, Courttia Newland has found himself, through circumstance or choice, in a place of opposition to the commercial mainstream. Now, he reflects on what it means to be an artist operating in the margins and shares his experiences and observations for those facing similar hurdles and choices.

Newland covers key aspects of creating beyond the mainstream, including centring your own voice; which voices are allowed full freedom of artistic expression and which are not; the importance of reading outside of the white Western canon; and how success shapes the work of historically excluded creatives. Alongside his own observations and experiences, he explores the work of - and in some instances interviews - other oppositional artists, including Percival Everett, Lou Mensah, Iain Banks, Jean Binta Breeze and others. The result is a startling provocation, and a galvanising vindication of refusing to conform.