Story Long Listed for Bath Short Story Award

One of my stories, Lips, has been long listed for the Bath Short Story Award - from over 1,000 submissions.

My story wins WorcsLitFest first prize

I have heard that my story 'Sensitive' has won the Worcestershire Literary Festival Flash Fiction Award announced on Friday 12 June. The story was read aloud by LitFest organiser Lindsay Stanberry-Flynn. It will be published in an anthology by Black Pear Press in the autumn.

https://www.facebook.com/WorcesterFlashFiction/posts/703754279746693

I'm Doing a Public Reading on Sunday 9 August

A new short story event, called Short Stories For Grown-Ups, starts on Sunday 14 June when Katherine Mitchell and event organiser Philip Douch read at No 23 Bisrtro & Bar, Nelson Street, Stroud, GL5 2HH at 8pm

I am headlining the second event - on Sunday 9 August again at 8pm.

Then on 11 October it's Clare Reddaway.

Tickets are £5 and available from No 23 or by emailing Philip Douch on pandjdouch@gmail.com

Story short listed for Award

'Sensitive' is one of ten titles short listed for the 2015 Worcestershire Literary Festival Flash Fiction Award. And the only title by a man!

Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival tonight

Reading 5 stories tonight at http://hulitfest.com/ c/o Debbie Young. In 3.5 minutes. They're short.

Story gains Flash Flood Journal success

My short 200 word piece 'The Shore Line' has been selected by Flash Flood Journal for online publication on Friday 17 April at 9.40pm. Lovely.

BBC Radio Gloucestershire Interview

Today (Tues 14 April 2015) I will be interviewed on BBC Radio Gloucestershire after 4pm on the Chris Baxter Show. It's a double header with A Feast of Stories organiser Philip Douch.

Feast of Stories, Bacon Theatre, Cheltenham 10 April

I read my short story Sunday Morning in an event that included stories by organiser Philip Douch, Andrew Stevenson, Julie Green , Elaine Miles, Christine  Griffin, as well as music by cellist Asha McCarthy.

Stroud Short Stories event SOLD OUT

Just one week after tickets went on sale, and over two weeks to the date of the event, the 19 April Stroud Short Stories event, The Alchemy of Chocolate and Other Tales, has completely SOLD OUT. There will be no tickets on the door.

Stroud Short Stories names its ten authors

The ten stories and their authors selected by my fellow judge Sophie Livingston and me to read at the 19 April Stroud Short Stories event have now been named.

Stroud Short Stories breaks all records - again!

Stroud Short Stories is now closed for submissions for the 19 April event. Thank you to all the authors who submitted. We have received a staggering 128 stories from 91 Gloucestershire and South Gloucestershire authors. The ten selected authors and their stories will be announced by 8 April at the latest.

http://stroudshortstories.blogspot.co.uk/

Bits and bobs from Feb/March 2015

• My story Moustache (dedicated to Larry Cotterell) was runner-up in the Earlyworks Press flash fiction competition. It will be published in an anthology in the spring. Three other stories - Anti-Ageing Acid, Treacle and Belinda's Diets will also be published.

• My story The River failed to make the shortlisted ten stories for the Bare Fiction Magazine Short Story Award. There were 571 stories submitted. However, their editor Robert Harper kindly emailed to say it had been in their unofficial long list.

• Writing Short Fiction is a brilliant new website, created and edited by Bruce Harris, that tells you everything you have always wanted to know about writing short fiction. It features two of my stories The Open Door and Sunday Morning in the Champion Fiction section, and also a short article on endings in short fiction.

• The closing date for submissions for the next Stroud Short Stories event is Saturday 21 March at 23.59. Stories are streaming in. We will be announcing the ten stories to be read by their authors before 8 April. The event takes place on Sunday 19 April at SVA in Stroud, and will be pre-ticketed.

• I am reading at two events in April. On 10 April at The Bacon Theatre in Cheltenham in an event called A Feast of Stories - Love and all that Stuff.  And at the first Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival on 23 April.