Short Stories Wanted

A new company, Hollander Literary Agency is now looking for new clients to publish their short stories.

• Use Word doc format only.
• Maximum 25 pages.
• Name & Address, email address, Title, Genre should appear on the front page.
• The story should finish with the words - End of Story
• Please allow 12 weeks for us to read submissions.
• No communication will be entered in to unless we feel there is potential in the story but we will offer advice where we feel it is needed.
• Communication will be to the email shown on Page 1 of the submission.

Submission is by e-mail only to phollander6@gmail.com

Good luck.

Wrekin Writers



Wrekin Writers have launched their own short story competition.

The competition, which closes on 11th July 2011, has a top prize of £150.00 for a short story of no more than 1,200 words.

For more information please go here.

Neil Storey's Ghost Stories

Following his visit to us in October last year, Neil Storey returned to Norwich Writers' Circle this evening to adjudicate our Ghost Story Competition.

The popular author and historian commended all 16 entries in the competition, citing that he was impressed with the humanity of the characters featured and some of the descriptive passages featured in the short stories.

The winners were then announced as:

1st
Going Home
by Mickie Dann

2nd
Local Hero
by Paul Taylor

3rd
The Ghostly Badger
by Barré Funnell

We then heard all 3 winning entries, plus a spooky short story selection, featuring some of the runners-up.

At our next meeting we will be welcoming back Jean Fullerton who will be giving us a workshop on Characterisation & Viewpoint. We hope to see you then.

People's Friend

Congratulations to NWC committee member Lyn Fountain who had a short story published in The People's Friend towards the end of last year.

Lyn's story, entitled A Footballer In The Family, was featured in the issue dated 6th November 2010. We hope to listen to the story at one of our forthcoming meetings.

For Women Who Write

The deadine for the Mslexia's annual Short Story Competition is the 24th January 2011.

The competition, which this year will be judged by Jackie Kay, has a first prize of £2,000.00, plus a day with an editor at Virago, and a week-long writing retreat at Chawton House Library, home to early English women's writing.

Five other winners will share prizes totalling £1,050.00. All six competition winners will then published in the New Writing section of the magazine.

Get writing this festive season!

Storey Teller

Tonight, Norwich Writers' Circle welcomed Neil Storey, as our 2010/11 programme continued.

During the meeting, the animated and enthusiastic author and historian informed us how he started his own writing career by first being published locally, and then in magazines. Neil then studied at the UEA, founded the living history movement and continued to write.

Amongst Neil's most popular books is A Grim Almanac Of Norfolk, which has most recently been published as a paperback. This book has proven so popular that it is now been franchised to cover every part of the country.

In an entertaining evening full of great and ghoulish stories, the visiting author launched our In-House Competition Two. This competition, which closes on 7th December, is for a Ghost Story of no more than 1,000 words.

Neil suggested that our competition entries:

• had a good sense of place - somewhere local?
• are made real, using something familar
• are set in the past or present
• feature some (gallows) humour
• are an enjoyable read

The latest NWC visiting writer hoped to inspire us with his suggestions, and told us to bare in mind that Halloween was coming up and the nights were drawing in.

Our next meeting is on 2nd November, which will be one of regular Manuscript Evenings. We hope to see you there.

Loads Of Downloads

Get interactive on our main website by visiting its new dedicated Downloads section.

Our new online area gives you the chance to download short stories written by Norwich Writers' Circle members, along with a group welcome letter and membership form.

Within this new website section, you can also listen to one of our Circle member's recent BBC radio appearance, where they discuss their latest publication on air.

In addition to the above, an Information Pack for our current Open Poetry Competition is also available to download.

Please visit norwichwriters.org.uk/downloads for more.

Night River

Sally Newton’s recently launched website now gives you the opportunity to download and read her Norwich Writers' Circle competition winning short story, Night River.

This fast-paced children’s adventure story won The Cooper Prize earlier this year, and is well worth checking out.

For more, please visit sallynewtonsworld.com.

Anne's Anthology

Congratulations to Norwich Writers’ Circle member Anne Olerenshaw, who is having a short story published next month.

Anne's story, which focuses on the thoughts of a dying man stranded in the desert, will be included in the Flesh And Bone anthology published by Gatehouse Press.

We look forward to reading this intriguing tale.

Gentle Footprints

Today's Hay Festival saw of the launch of the wildlife short story anthology, Gentle Footprints, by Virginia McKenna.

This evening, the famed actress and wildlife campaigner appeared on Sky Arts' popular Book Show - broadcast live from the Festival - to promote the anthology's recent publication.

Amongst the 19 short stories featured in Gentle Footprints is The Last Big Cat, written by NWC committee member Lyn Fountain.

Lyn's recent appearance on BBC Radio Norfolk, promoting the anthology and her short story, can be heard by clicking here.

To purchase the book, which has has been published to raise funds and awareness of the Born Free Foundation, please go here.

Write Here Write Now

Tonight at The Assembly House, we held one of our regular Manuscript Evenings.

This evening gave the opportunity for both Circle members and visitors read their work aloud in front of our welcoming group. Amongst the read aloud, and commented on, were excerpts from a children's fantasy, a science fiction story and a historical novel. The group also listened to some humorous poetry too.

All the readings lead to some interesting discussions involving everyone who attended the meeting.

We next meet on 18th May when writer and photographer John Worrall will be returning to adjudicate our competition to write an article with a local theme. See you there.

Still Getting Away With It

Norwich Writers' Circle member Stuart McCarthy is having his story story, I Always Get Away With It, published in an e-book by globalshortstories.net.

The tale, which is also available to read by going here, was a runner-up in the online company's short story competition in October 2008.

Congratulations, and we hope you enjoy the read.

A Big Adventure With Benjamin Scott

This evening Benjamin Scott returned to Norwich Writers' Circle for our Children's Adventure Story Competition adjudication.

The freelance writer commented on the competition entries in a variety of ways, these included that the stories:

• Focused on a boy, as per his original recommendations
• Had an adventure element that made your heart race
• Had a strong, logical, emotional and narrative flow
• Featured an interesting central character
• Were appropriate as short stories, and not as longer prose
• Did not use the word 'that' needlessly
• Had been proof read, with any mistakes corrected

After hearing Ben's valued feeback, we then heard a selection of the winning entries. As with our previous competition, 3 winners were selected along with 2 commendations.

The winners were:

1st - The Cooper Prize
Night River
by Sally Newton

2nd
Earthworks
by Doreen Rosser

3rd
The Big Weekend
by Mickie Dann

Commendation
Tibor Finds A Halo
by Anne Funnell

Commendation
The Blue Lady
by Victoria Bartlett

The next NWC meeting is after Easter on 6th April.

Our 6th April meeting is a talk by Andrew Brammer on Writing Humour Based On Personal Experiences. This meeting will also include the popular author performing some of his tall tales.

Write Here Right Now

This evening, at The Assembly House, we held one of our regular Manuscript Evenings.

Tonight gave the opportunity for both Circle members and visitors read their work aloud in front of our welcoming group. The wide variety of work read aloud included a children's tale, a humorous short story and a chapter from a science fiction novel. Each reading then lead to everyone being involved in a variety of interesting and engaging discussions.

We also saw several new members join our writing group.

The next Writers' Circle meeting, on 2nd March, will be a talk by writer and photographer John Worrall on Illustrated Features.

We hope to see you next time.

Short Story Success

Congratulations to Norwich Writers' Circle Vice President June Sutton who had her short story, The Edge Of Lonely, published in an edition of Woman's Weekly last month.

Walk On The Wild Side

Norwich Writers' Circle member Lyn Fountain has had her short story The Last Big Cat accepted for inclusion in a forthcoming anthology called Gentle Footprints.

The wildlife story collection, due to be published in June this year, on behalf of the Born Free Foundation, by Bridge House, also features a new short story from Richard Adams and a foreward written by the charity's patron, Virginia McKenna.

For read more about this exciting forthcoming publication, please visit gentlefootprintsanimalanthology.blogspot.com.

Season's Greetings From Toad Hall

Lyn Fountain - writing as Marilyn Fountain - has had a short story entitled Welcome To Toad Hall included in an anthology called The Wind In The Willows Short Stories, published by The Kenneth Grahame Society.

The book is currently available through Lulu.com, in a casewrap hardcover and as a paperback.

The anthology will also soon be available from Amazon, and is destined to be a popular read over the festive season.

Stuart's Success

In October 2008, new Norwich Writers' Circle member Stuart McCarthy was a joint runner up in a short story competition run by globalshortstories.net.

The story, entitled I Always Get Away With It, is now available to read online by going here.

We hope you enjoy the read, and share in our congratulations.

Sultan's Success

New Norwich Writers’ Circle member Sultan Walpole has had a short story published. The story, A Mother’s Blessing, is part of the anthology Foreign Parts, published by Gatehouse Press.

The recently published book is now available to buy from the publishers, and is a recommended read.

Right Here Write Now

Norwich Writers' Circle's 2009/10 programme continued tonight with one of our regular Manuscript Evenings.

Our welcoming group heard a wide variety of work read aloud, including poetry and several extracts from work-in-progress novels - all of which lead to healthy and interesting discussions.

Tonight, once more, proved popular, and saw several visitors join our members for another enjoyable and engaging meeting.

On 1st December, at our next meeting, saga writer Jean Fullerton will be adjudicating the Historical Novel Introduction Competition. Please feel free to come along.