AMANDA OOSTHUIZEN recommends Simon Van Booy’s collection Love Begins in Winter: ‘I’ve returned to some of these stories several times, and I always find surprises. In that respect, it is the literary equivalent to great music, but written in prose that is elegant, spare and startling…’
‘The journey to the end of a story can be littered with plot holes, hold-ups, plans that need constant revision and, worst of all, a complete blockade. Enthusiasm will only get you so far…’ LYNDA NASH shares some valuable strategies to help overcome the dreaded writer’s block.
DAVID FRANKEL reflects on Beta Life from Comma Press, an anthology of short fiction and essays: ‘…what makes these stories particularly interesting is how they explore what it is that makes us human, the things at the core of how we react to the world…’
We are pleased to bring you the foreword to Writing Short Stories, by acclaimed author Kate Clanchy: ‘The short story, in contrast, shines a harsh light on every word you write and neither gives you a shape nor forgives you for getting the shape wrong…’
The 2015 THRESHOLDS Feature Writing Competition is now open for entries, until Wednesday 06 May, 11:59pm (BST). £500 first prize. 2x £100 runner-up prizes. FREE to enter…
‘I have come across quite a few such readers who react vehemently to the Saunders worldview. They wonder why he bends the moral situation so far that it almost breaks. But some, like me, may beg to differ…’ JOSE VARGHESE takes us into the intricacies of George Saunders’ ‘Escape from Spiderhead’.
‘The history, landscape and natural rhythms of the Orkney Islands were Brown’s inspiration…’ CAROLA HUTTMANN examines the life and writings of George Mackay Brown.
Join Vicki Heath in conversation with ZOE GILBERT, winner of this year’s prestigious Costa Short Story Award…
‘If I told you that a short story collection saved me as a reader and as a writer, would you believe me? Probably not. But it’s true…’ GINA PARSONS finds her writing self through the stories of Robert Shearman.
In a special follow-up post to his shortlisted feature, Stephen Devereux interviews the elusive author Helen Harris, gaining insight into her writing processes, her choice of narrative perspective, and teaching creative writing…
