I began writing this post on Thursday 2nd June, but life, specifically Covid*, intervened. Now, very belatedly, here's my account of the Manchester Writing Competition Gala Prize-giving Ceremony... which has the aura of a dream to me. An almost out-of-body experience. And I was only a judge! After months of reading hundreds of stories, rereading …
Tag: short stories
workflow
Just a few weeks ago I met up with my fellow 2021 Manchester Fiction Prize judges Nicholas Royle and Simon Okotie to decide on the overall winner from our shortlist of six stories. Over the previous months we'd read hundreds of stories, and then gradually whittled our unofficial longlist down to six via email. It's …
Best British Short Stories 2021
I'm beyond delighted that my short story, The Red Suitcase, is included in Best British Short Stories 2021 edited by Nicholas Royle and published by Salt Publishing. The Red Suitcase was originally published as a limited edition short-story chapbook by Nightjar Press in October 2020, but is now sold out. Over the last few weeks I've been …
the story of a story
I am delighted to welcome into the world my short story The Red Suitcase, published as a beautiful limited-edition chapbook by Nightjar Press. I keep track of my submissions on index cards (I know, it's old school). I first sent the story out in March 2012. I kept trying off and on, so many times …
elusive equilibrium
Yesterday was not a good day. The weather in my hometown Melbourne can be so changeable we say it has 'four seasons in one day'. My mood is often like this too, but yesterday it was relentless cold drizzle with a major storm brewing. Anxiety that I could not shift until early evening when I …
End of November round-up
Wowee. I've been busy. I sat down yesterday morning and began a list of things I've been up to since I last blogged: Words for the Wild - I've had two poems published on this beautiful site, as part of their autumn 'Fruit' themed issue. I love the mix of poetry and fiction, and the …
Loose Muse feature
Wednesday night was blowing a gale in London, but the threatened tube strike had been suspended, and the day's lashing rain finally dried up. So, given the circumstances, there was a good turn out for Loose Muse at the Poetry Café, where I was billed as one of the two featured writers. Unfortunately, Sally Spedding, …
wine, women, words
That's a recipe for a convivial and enriching evening, and that's exactly what we got last Thursday at the launch of the fourth Loose Muse anthology, downstairs at Cottons on Exmouth Market. Once again, Agnes Meadows and her co-editors have put together a varied and top-class collection of writing by women who have attended one …
what I didn’t do this weekend
I didn't go to the community roof garden. I didn't go to Publish and Be Damned at the ICA. Damn. I didn't see the Judy Chicago exhibition at the Ben Uri gallery. It's been on since mid November, closes next week. Typical. I didn't ring any of my family in Melbourne. 11 hour time difference …
three nights out on the trot
Another busy week on the cultural front, beginning on Monday evening at the Southbank Centre's Purcell Room for Morton Feldman's For John Cage. The piece, for piano and violin, lasts about an hour and twenty minutes, requiring the intense concentration of both musicians and audience. Slow, often deathly quiet, the music creeps up on you, …
Hilaire 