Polish-born author M.L. Arden will visit Norwich this November to introduce the first novel in her planned bilingual ten-book series, The Marta Saga.
The author will appear at The Forum in Norwich on Sunday, 29th of November 2026 at 1:30 pm, at an event organised with the Norfolk Polish Heritage Group. The event comes just one day before the official release of the first book, which will be published simultaneously in Polish as ZostaΕa sama and in English as Still Here on 30th of November.
For M.L. Arden, the Norwich event is particularly meaningful because the story behind the books reflects the experience of building a new life away from the country in which she was born.
Born in Gdynia, Poland, Arden moved to the UK in August 2009. Like many people beginning again in a new country, she had to learn a new language, adapt to a different culture and build her life from the ground up.
Those experiences later became part of the emotional foundation for The Marta Saga.
ZostaΕa sama / Still Here introduces Marta, a young woman whose life changes dramatically as she faces motherhood, loneliness, loss, difficult relationships and the challenge of rebuilding her life.
Rather than ending Marta's story after a single novel, Arden has planned a ten-book series following her over many years. The books explore how one person's life changes through relationships, family, motherhood, migration, trauma and recovery.
The series will be published in both Polish and English, allowing Arden to reach readers in the country where she was born as well as those in the country she now calls home.
βI wanted Marta's story to show that life does not suddenly become perfect after one difficult chapter,β
said M.L. Arden.
βPeople change, families change and sometimes rebuilding yourself takes years. That is why her story became a saga rather than a single book.β
The Norwich appearance will give readers an opportunity to meet the author and hear more about the inspiration behind the series, her journey from Gdynia to Britain and the process of turning an idea into an ambitious ten-book project.
Arden will also speak about writing and publishing the story in two languages and about the importance of preserving the Polish identity of the series while making it accessible to English-speaking readers.
The event is being held at The Forum, Norwich, on Sunday, 29th of November 2026 at 1:30 pm, in association with the Norfolk Polish Heritage Group.
The first volume, ZostaΕa sama in Polish and Still Here in English, will be officially released on 30 November 2026.
M.L. Arden is a Polish-born author living in England and the creator of The Marta Saga, a planned ten-book contemporary fiction series published in Polish and English.
